Museum of Youth Culture seeks Liverpool's teenage photos and memorabilia for its collection

The national Museum of Youth Culture is coming to Liverpool to gather photos, memorabilia and stories for its collection.

Organisers at the Museum of Youth Culture want Scousers to dig out their old snaps, ticket stubs, flyers, posters and even fashion to be photographed and included in a UK-wide archive.

You don’t have to part with the treasured piece of nostalgia, the idea of the ‘scanning social’ is to create a digital version which could be shown online and reprinted once the museum has a physical space.

Lisa Der Weduwe from the Museum of Youth Culture explains: “We already have museums dedicated to childhood, but the history of teenagers quite often just comes into wider social history and we lose that youth voice.

“We’re trying to build a collection that really tells a story that’s maybe not being told so much in other museums right now.

Liverpool student with blue eye shadow poses for photo in dorm room, Liverpool, UK, 1999/2000

“Museum of Youth Culture is an emerging museum that celebrates the lives of teenagers and young people over the last 100 years, the different scenes, styles and social movements, and acknowledges the impact that young people have had on society.

“Everyone’s been young once and I think because that period of our life is so important to us and really shapes who we become we all have really strong memories attached to it.”

The Liverpool event, at the Fred Perry store in Liverpool ONE on Friday October 25, is the latest stop in the museum’s tour of the UK,

In 2019 it started inviting members of the public to help build up its collections by submitting photographs, old ticket stubs, band T-shirts and other pieces of clothing, or just memories or funny stories.

“We’re essentially trying to crowd source this history of what it’s like being a teenager in Britain over the last 100 years,” says Lisa.

“We’d love as many different generations as possible to bring things in. The earliest we’ve had are from the early 1900s, photos that have been passed down generations, but we’re building up the most comprehensive picture we can so we want to see anything from early 1900s to present day.

Quiggins bag from John O'Connor — Quiggins bag from John O’Connor

“This year, with support from Fred Perry, we’ve been using their stores as bases.

“We’ve done things in Liverpool before, workshops with young people, but now we’re coming up with our scanner so we’re hoping to collect some really great stories and items.

“The idea of the scanning socials is people come, they sit down with us, tell us their story, and we can scan their photos or other material. We understand these things are really important to people and we respect that so they get them back, we’re happy just to have a digital archive and we can show them as reproduced prints.”

Lisa says items they’ve had from previous ‘shoebox archives’ have included everything gig and football ticket stubs to family holiday snaps and even an old school bag from the ‘70s.

“It’s about capturing all kinds of different experiences. Our teenage years are when we start developing so much of our identity and the things we’re passionate about, so most people have something that relates back to that time.

Ellen wearing a yellow The Beatles t-shirt at Mr Pickwicks nightclub, Liverpool, UK, 1977. "My friend and I were mad Beatle's fans, born a bit too late to be there in their heyday. We would attend conventions in Liverpool to mix with like-minded folk." — Ellen wearing a yellow The Beatles t-shirt at Mr Pickwicks nightclub, Liverpool, UK, 1977. “My friend and I were mad Beatles fans, born a bit too late to be there in their heyday. We would attend conventions in Liverpool to mix with like-minded folk.”

“It’ll be exciting to see what comes through in Liverpool because there have been so many iconic movements that have come out of Liverpool and broken new ground.”

Alongside submissions from the public, the Museum of Youth Culture will feature archive material from professional photographers.

At the Liverpool event on Friday, Francesco Mellina will be giving a talk between 2pm and 3pm so it’ll be an opportunity to see his work and hear his stories.

“Professional photographers were part of the scenes as well, they weren’t just coming in, taking the photos and leaving, they were photographing their friends and family,” adds Lisa. “Having a camera was their way of contributing to what was going on around them.”

The end goal is for the Museum of Youth Culture to have a permanent museum building which people can visit as well as travelling exhibitions which showcase national and local stories.”