on the 7th of May, in the Box at FACT, tenantspin hosted a discussion about gun crime. Guest host Liam Fogarty welcomed onto the tenantspin couch: Andrew Edwards, Deputy Editor of Liverpool Echo and lead on Liverpool Unites charity and campaign, Ian MacDonald, Retired Police Officer and Initiator of CitySafe, Stephen Moore, Merseyside Police Matrix Unit and Tracy Dunn, Film-maker.
We asked the question: is Liverpool losing the battle against gun crime? See the discussion below.
tenantspin have just returned from The International Community Arts Festival (ICAF) in lovely Rotterdam. tenantspin interviewed participants and delegates attending the festival and asked the question “What does quality in Community Arts mean”. We also hosted a live discussion in a local retirement village, where we discussed the similarities and differences between Liverpool and Rotterdam.
We had a great time. Please watch this 20 minute compilation of our time at the Festival.
Patrick and I spent 27th March in Space gallery in Hackney, East London for their symposium On the Margins of Technology a day of ‘presentations and debate about realising the impacts of technology expanding and diversifying participation in art and society.’
We responded to a number of projects including Geezer Power a project which is run by Lorraine Leeson and the ‘Geezers’ some of whom included Dennis Banks, John Bevan, John Day, Ray Gipson and Ted Lewis. The project is based around accessing the Geezers collective experience and expertise of ways in which you can generate energy from already available resources. What they came up with was a turbine fixed to the Thames barrier which they hoped could either generate enough electricty for street lighting for their community.
Although the project was different to ours in the sense that it focusses on scientific subject matters rather than those of a creative or technological ilk we felt that their ethos really matched ours and we were inspired to start thinking about accessing the wonders of people over 55’s knowledge and expericence of life and how this should be tapped into when looking at the future of the planet for all of us.
We also responded to Mukul Patel and Fiona Fieber talking about User Manuals and ‘explaining technology’ which focusses on the relationship between the explaination of a product/entity and the usage of that in everyday life.
We really enjoyed our stay in London and met some inspirational and complex people and projects and are grateful to Space for inviting us down. For more information about Space gallery, Hackney please click here.
on the 26th of March, in the Box at FACT between 2pm - 3pm, tenantspin will host the first in a series of Cultural Commentaries. We will be looking back over the first few months of this momentous year for Liverpool. The live discussion is open to the public and all are welcome. But first, we want your opinions….
What cultural events have you attended this year?
What do you think the highlights have been?
What about Ringo?
Do you think this year will have a positive effect on how Liverpool is perceived?
What are you looking for from a year of Culture?
Please add your comments. This is your year, so speak up!
On the 5th of March, tenantspin and E-Space Lab connected with Shanghai and Hong Kong for a conversation about Christmas. A conversation about Christmas in March may seen a little strange but tenantspin had been working on a series of films about how the festive period is celebrated here in the UK, while groups in China collated footage of their New Year celebrations. Both groups discussed the differences and more importantly, the amount of shared customs. The discussion will be available very soon, and thanks to Phil Courtenay and Peter Hagerty from E-Space Lab and our friends in China.
tenantspin welcomed onto the couch Dr. John Hunt from UK BioTech Liverpool University, Anthony Mark Cutter, Senior Lecturer and Director of LLM, Medical Law and Bio Ethics, and Sharon Waldron from Transform Medical Group to discuss advances in medical technology, the effects on the body and the ethical implications of such works. This discussion was filmed as part of FACT’s Human Future’s Programme.
Wednesday - 20th February, 2pm, The Box @ FACTtenantspin will be hosting an open debate in order to respond to some of the themes raised through the Sk-Interfaces exhibition.We will be exploring the variety of different ways advances in medical technology have allowed modern humans to intervene with the functions of their natural bodies and repair or replace everything from limbs to lips!What Science Fiction is about to become Science FACT?Have you any stories to share. Please come on down….
talking about Regeneration….
We will be in the audience for a public seminar:
‘Regenerating Anfield’ featuring Udi Engelsman, Project Manager for Arena Housing and LFC veteran Phil Thompson.
The seminar takes place on Thursday February 21st at 4pm in the Budden Lecture Theatre, School of Architecture, University ofLiverpool.
The focus for this seminar will be the debate around the new stadium for Liverpool FC and the significance of such buildings for local communities as well as professional interest groups associated with football.
Kim Ryan’s Anfield Changing was screened at FACT on Tuesday the 4th of December. The screening was a near sell out and the film was introduced by FACT’s Head of Programming Laura Sillars.
The night was a great success and feedback has been very positive. If you attended the screening and have any comments, please feel free to get in touch. tenantspin would once again like to thank everyone involved in the making of the film.
Also, keep an eye on tenantspin.org for news of further screenings.
