Airship dreams is a project run by Bedford creative arts. It celebrates the airship heritage in Bedfordshire. For the exhibition(which is hosted at The Higgins), Bedford creative arts gathered a collection of very interesting airship memorabilia from several different people, much of which is related to the R101. There is even a spar from the R101 mooring mast! The History behind these items is incredible and often tragic. It was also interesting to see the tea and coffee cups from the graf Zeppelin, a slightly more successful airship.

The Artworks

Mike Stubbs was the chief artist of the airship dreams art project. He and his team created several mesmerisingly beautiful abstract artworks using modern softwares and technology. These can also be seen at the exhibition. The book that can be bought in the gift shop (pictured below) goes through how the artworks were made in more detail and the first part is dedicated to the story of airships. I would definitely recommend buying this book, especially if you just want a simple insight on airships and their history. The artworks themselves can be seen on a video screen in a room separate to the main exhibition. I was told it was rather crowded in this room and because I was trying to stay COVID safe, I decided not to go in.

The exhibition

The exhibition boasts several interesting items and memorabilia that Bedford Creative Arts gathered from several different people. The centrepiece was a re-creation of Des Burchmore’s shed where he would keep his memorabilia. Des Burchmore worked at RAF Cardington where he originally stored his collection of airship related objects, and when he retired, he set up the Airship Heritage Trust(I have now got a link to their website on the web links page).

Tickets

To get tickets to the exhibition, click here. The tickets are absolutely free but you have to select the time you wish to go. The exhibition will end on the 28th of November.

Summary

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed visiting the Airship Dreams exhibition. Everything was well presented and some of the objects on display were definitely worth seeing.

PHOTO CREDIT 1: https://bedfordcreativearts.org.uk/

PHOTO CREDIT 2: The Hybrid Air Vehicles newsletter

PHOTO CREDIT 3-4: Myself