Exhibiting on Open Eye Gallery’s External Wall, Sam Batley: One Day At A Time is a three-pronged project that tells the story of life after addiction, informed by people in recovery.
The exhibition documents the production journey of the films Three Bull-Mastiffs in a Corner Kitchen and One Day At A Time, developed with residents of Damien John Kelly House recovery centre, through behind the scenes photography taken by Sam Batley, Paul Chambers, Jack Gibson, Jamie Maxfield, Matty Owen, Wayne Goldie and Craig Taylor.
About the exhibition
The project developed in three parts, beginning with the short film Three Bull-Mastiffs in a Corner Kitchen, based on an autobiographical poem written by Sam Batley a few months into recovery from alcohol and drug addiction. The poem revisited Sam’s young adulthood and the themes that played heavily in his formative years. During the lockdown of 2020, Sam Batley and Paul Chambers, the film’s director, developed the poem into a screenplay. They successfully crowdfunded to produce the film and enabled the team to shoot in 16mm with cinematographer Owen Cant. Casting people from the recovery community in Liverpool alongside professional actors.
The second part of the project is the story which began to unfold during filming which ran parallel to the narrative of the short film: that of the men and women who acted in Three Bull-Mastiffs in a Corner Kitchen while in recovery themselves. Working closely with Damien John Kelly House, a recovery living centre for men in Wavertree, Liverpool, the team decided to create One Day at a Time, a documentary on life after addiction and what recovery means to those who are in it.
The third aspect is the socially engaged project ‘One Day at a Time Boys’, started by Sam Batley in Damien John Kelly House, that allows residents to engage in photography, art and creative writing. Throughout filming the One Day at a Time documentary, the residents documented the process and amassed an impressive body of work, alongside existing work documenting individuals’ recovery and growth. Through photography and other art forms the exhibiting photographers have learnt to express themselves, form new passions, aid in the search for self, transferable confidence and community. Most of all, it forms a part of the wider program at Damien John Kelly house, one based in willingness, open mindedness and honesty.
Photo Credit: Three Bull-Mastiffs / One Day At A Time Boys, 2021. Paul Chambers