Tickets will be on general release for this year’s blockbuster Heavy Metal exhibition, Home of Metal: Black Sabbath – 50 Years, from Thursday 18th April. The exhibition opens to the public on 26 June through to 29 September at Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery.
From the humble beginnings of 1960s Aston, Birmingham, Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward created Black Sabbath, in turn forging a new sound, a new aesthetic, and a new musical culture – Heavy Metal. With the full support of the original founders of Black Sabbath, the exhibition will detail the history of this iconic band, and their links to Birmingham, as the early pioneers of Heavy Metal. The show will celebrate their significant contribution to British music heritage and their unique relationship to their fans.
Iconic artefacts and personal items such as photographs, fans’ gifts, stage costumes and jewellery, plus more, will be on loan from the band members themselves. In addition, demonstrating the extraordinary scale and diversity of their global fan base, the show will include Black Sabbath memorabilia stretching back to the 70s, ranging from gig tickets and mixtapes, to motorbikes and battle jackets.
The exhibition will also showcase Black Sabbath’s Birmingham roots with photographs, posters, tickets and programmes from local venues that were instrumental in the band’s early success.
Also, a collection of 3,000+ commissioned portraits of Metal fans from countries as far afield as the USA, Botswana, Eygpt, Indonesia and Japan will throw light on this huge global community, one which Spotify* recently identified as the most loyal across all music genres.
Home of Metal is conceived and produced by Capsule, under the leadership of its founder and artistic director, Lisa Meyer, and is presented in partnership with Birmingham Museums Trust. In collaboration with Capsule, Morag Myerscough and Luke Morgan, one of the UK’s most acclaimed designer duos, will design Home of Metal: Black Sabbath - 50 Years for the Gas Hall within Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery, the largest exhibition space in a museum or gallery outside of London.
The exhibition is at the centrepiece of six shows being staged this summer by Home of Metal, each devoted to the music that was born in and around Birmingham. Music that turned up the volume, down-tuned the guitars, and introduced a whole new meaning to the word ‘heavy’ that has reached into all corners of culture.
