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"I arrived your nephew, and left a stranger"
by Arlene Burnett This photograph shows the interior of a waiting room at a railway station. The location is Birmingham New Street, but this is not made explicit. This is a busy station but in this image it is ambiguous as to whether the station is in use or not, if the emptiness is from abandonment or neglect. The title is a quote from Kafka, drawing on the dreamlike strangeness that familiar places can achieve when looked at for any length of time. 
Arlene Burnett gained her Fine Art MA from Birmingham Institute of Art & Design (UCE) in 2004, where she was also given the Decorative and Fine Arts Society Award. Her work captures the traces left behind by people in disused flats, hotels and other spaces. This scrutiny becomes almost forensic, although there is often a playfulness that blurs the boundaries between truth and fiction. She is an active member of Birmingham Artists and co-curated the exhibition "The Chair" at the Mailbox. She is currently collaborating as Behind Closed Doors, who have curated the event "A Confidentiality Clause" at Periscope in Birmingham, and "The 18th Storey" at Haddon Tower in Birmingham.
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