Decommissioning the Twentieth Century artist commission
Museum of Possibilities is a creative, community-led public art commission developed by Urban Wilderness CIC for the decommissioned site of Chatterley Whitfield Colliery. As part of the wider Decommissioning the Twentieth Century research project, the commission reframed heritage — not only as preserved artefacts, but as living stories, community memory and future imagination.
Through playful public events such as a surface “dig” on the nature reserve, a “living library” tour with ex-miners, and “mad scientist” workshops with young people, the project asked participants and local residents:
What would you put in a museum at Chatterley Whitfield?
Rather than assuming what should be valued or displayed, Urban Wilderness invited the public to contribute their own ideas, fragments, memories and speculative futures. Everyday objects and personal stories stood alongside more traditional heritage items, challenging the notion that only certain narratives or artefacts “qualify” for preservation.
Museum of Possibilities emphasised co-creation, local agency and the power of art to engage, question and re-imagine the meaning of place in post-industrial landscapes. It proposed a more inclusive, dynamic and participatory way of preserving heritage, one which honours working-class legacies, community voices and the potential for renewal at sites of decommissioned industry.
Further Reading – Creative Decommissioning Report
Museum of Possibilities forms one strand of the wider Decommissioning the Twentieth Century project. For a richer context on how Chatterley Whitfield and other sites were explored through creative practice and research, see:
Creative Decommissioning (PDF, 31 May 2022) – by Professor Ceri Morgan and colleagues:
Download Creative Decommissioning report