Finding more voices

May 31st, 2023
 

To find more participants for my creative workshop, I decided to make a list of different places in Paisley where I could leave a poster for the Hidden Spaces Paisley workshop. This process was not just about advertising but also about immersing myself further into the community and understanding the cultural landscape more deeply. I started with places I had read about while building my contextual knowledge of Paisley’s cultural scene - places like OneRen, the YMCA, and the Paisley Central Library. Visiting these places felt like a natural first step because they represented the funded cultural heartbeat of the town. Next, I turned my attention to organizations that had been mentioned to me in conversations about my research and the creative scene in Paisley. This list included Outspoken Arts, the Lagoon Leisure Centre, Sculpture House, Star Project, and the Tannahill Community Centre. I felt a sense of anticipation visiting these spots because they had come highly recommended, and I hoped to find a receptive audience there. Finally, I decided to approach some central commercial locations—grocery stores, Nomads, The Vintage Shelter Scotland, Bailey’s Antiques, WHS Smith, Morrisons, and the Summits Outdoor Shop. These places were a bit more random in selection, but I felt it was important to engage with a broader cross-section of the community.

 

One interaction that stood out to me happened at the Paisley Abbey. It was a quiet Monday morning, and the gift shop was empty, so I struck up a conversation with some wonderful ladies working there. They were genuinely interested in my research, and we spent some time discussing my project and its potential directions. As I got back on my bike afterward, I felt a renewed sense of hope. Everyone I had spoken to during my flyer run had been very receptive to my study and believed it was an important area that deserved attention. However, I also became aware of an interesting dynamic. In my conversations with the people I left a flyer with, I noticed that their interest and engagement weren’t necessarily rooted in a specific recognition of the RVDLS resource. Instead, they seemed more intrigued by the opportunity to participate in something creative and research-oriented. This realization made me reflect on my own expectations and the assumptions I had brought into the process. It was a reminder of how my journey as a researcher is just as much about learning from the community as it is about contributing to it.

 

Recognizing the difficulties I encountered in comprehending the RVDLS and interpreting the designated sites during my fieldwork, I sought feedback from study participants regarding the resource’s accessibility and effectiveness. Several council members, through informal discussions, acknowledged these challenges, expressing regret that the information provided by the RVDLS was not more user-friendly. Similarly, numerous individuals I consulted during the dissemination phase of my research were unaware of the resource’s existence. This lack of awareness was seemingly particularly pronounced among community members residing in Paisley who worked outside of fields related to urban planning or development. Consequently, the RVDLS appeared to function primarily on a 'need to know' basis, with larger community organizations and private developers being more familiar with the dataset and understanding how to access its information.