On Monday 2 April, The Public in West Bromwich welcomed its half millionth visitor through its pink doors.
The Public
Since fully opening in August 2009, over 500,000 visitors have visited the iconic arts centre, enjoying a range of events, exhibitions and workshops, attending conferences or simply relaxing in the café. Those visitors have seen more than 400 music, comedy and theatre shows, and have taken part in a programme of regular events including Saturday Art Club, tea dancing and Zumba, as well as annual community celebrations such as St Patrick’s Day and Diwali.
The Public’s diverse exhibitions programme of has attracted visitors from across the country and has ranged from a sci-fi themed Dr Who exhibition, to a touring V&A exhibition, a collection of photographs by legendary Top of the Pops photographer Harry Goodwin. Exhibitions by local upcoming artists have proved equally as popular, with the venues Summer Open Exhibition receiving submissions from across the region.
Each holiday period The Public also attracts hundreds of families from across the region and UK with their wide range of creative workshops, programme of entertaining children’s theatre and interactive exhibitions.
The Black Country venue marked their momentous milestone during the first week of the Easter holiday. Mr and Mrs Mason from Preston decided to visit the venue as part of their long weekend break with their daughters Sarah and Eleanor aged 12. The family were was presented with a package of goodies included a family friends membership entitling them to free tickets, exclusive discounts to events and Pink Tank café bar purchases and much more.
Linda Saunders, Managing Director of The Public said, “We’re absolutely delighted with the buildings steadily increasing visitor numbers and progress made since launching in August 2009. At The Public we have striven to put people at the heart of what we do and to build our reputation and plans for the future on this. Our partners in the local community and further afield are invaluable and we want to take this opportunity to thank them for their support.”
Mr Paul Mason, the 500,000 visitor to The Public said, “I have seen The Public on the news and always wanted to visit the venue with my family. We were looking for things to do with the kids and knew it would an exciting place to visit and the girls have really enjoyed it.”
One of Mr Mason’s daughters, Sarah, added, “It’s been really interesting, we have enjoyed the exhibitions, it’s been fun. Our favourite one was the interactive one by Josh Nimoy,.”
For further information about events, exhibitions and workshops at The Public please call 0121 533 7161 or visit www.thepublic.com.