Upcoming Exhibitions

Paper Explosion!
10 February – 21 February
Artist Lee Thomas will be completely filling the gallery space with a
paper explosion of 100's of photographs, illustrations, sketches,
prints and drawings taken from his work over the last 15 years. He
will base himself within the space and continue to add to and change
this work during the course of the exhibition

Local Scenes: Views of Essex and Suffolk
24 February – 14 March
A group exhibition, based on open call, featuring the work of artists
capturing the spirit and sights of Essex and Suffolk

Changing Contexts
17 March – 4 April
A group exhibition from Colchester Minories MA students featuring
changing contexts and different viewpoints. Come and participate in
the unique experience which is Slack Space Colchester

Illustration
7 April – 25 April
A themed exhibition featuring a range of illustrative techniques and
interpretations from children’s illustration to modern representative
based approaches

Work In Progress

This weekend - last chance to see!

ALTERNATIVE VOICES (13 – 15 April)

A historical perspective of witchcraft and paganism in the East

All talks start 7pm and will be followed by Q&A / discussion session

Wed April 14

Suzanne Smith, Essex Witch Trials Memorial Society: Witchfinder! Suzanne’s talk will be followed by a showing of the Colchester Witchfinder film

Thur April 15

Alison Rowlands, University of Essex: Setting Witch-Hunts in Historical Context: The East Anglian Witch-Hunts of 1645-7

Fri April 16

Robin Herne, Ipswich Pagan Council : Druids, Romans and Heathens – a Colchester history

Free entry - email for place on guest-list

Current exhibition:

Slack Space Colchester are proud to host ‘Work in Progress’ - an exhibition of work by Colchester Minories / Colchester Institute MA Arts in Social Context students completing the first year of their course

The exhibition features work from:
Katherine Arnold
Anne Barclay
Ian Hurd
Lisa Temple-Cox
And will run from 13th – 24th January.

Upcoming exhibitions:

Female Photographers
January 27th – February 7th 2010
The best of Colchester and area's female photographers

'Graphic Start'
February 10th - 14th 2010
Graphic artist Lee Thomas wallpapers the space with his work. Public are invited to interact and participate

January mini fest:

The January mini festival has been postponed to February. Look out for some fantastic performance:

Wed 10 – Twelfth Night rehearsed reading, Guerrilla Shakespeare Company
Thur 11 – Matt Simpkins + Ensembell + Connor Sturges + Poetry and compere: Mark Brayley
Fri 12 – Moot Point, an evening of creative kaos and electronic music
Sat 13 pm - Martin Reed jazz and belly dancing with workshops and performance 1 – 5pm
Sat 13 eve - Terror the musical, Bad Terrorists

Please don’t book now. We’ll send out further details nearer the time.

Art at the Heart (Beat):

Slack Space has just been awarded 2K by Essex County Council to run an arts poster trail in Colchester Town Centre. We will display original local art (prints and poetry) in 18 empty and working shop windows across the town centre. Prints will be beautifully digitally printed with brief artists details, numbered and mounted. The exhibition will run for three months, changing after five weeks.

Work will be sourced through both an inclusive open call and by developing existing partnerships. A catalogue / guide will be produced.

Watch out for the first call for this exciting new project!

Nearly ten thousand visitors in seven months!

In 7 months of being open Slack Space has welcomed over 9,500 visitors (and we’re only open for half of the week!) This means we will shortly be able to welcome our ten thousandth visitor to the gallery space. Watch out for a special announcement and press release!

Hint of "Blood On The Snow" - exhibition ends this weekend!

Gargoyles

Currently lurking around the Eld Lane windowspace

Twelfth Night on Twelfth Night

Dorian Kelly, and the Guerilla Shakespeare Company in association with Slack Space presents a rehearsed reading of Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night" on WEDNESDAY 6th Jan at Slack Space , 33 Long Wyre Street. Doors open 7.00 pm. The performance is free but, as seating is limited, booking is necessary via email or call in to the venue.

Shakespeare's funniest play was written purely as a piece of fun: there are no royal intrigues, murders, no vast sweeps of history: just the story of a brother and sister cast up on a hostile shore each believing the other to be dead, a love story of mistaken identity together with the story of the people of a great house plotting the downfall of a haughty butler. Inevitably, all ends well. It is suitable for adults and children over about eight.

The performance is presented informally, with a mix of professional and amateur actors, and directed by Dorian Kelly.

CHRISTMAS AT SLACKSPACE

EXHIBITION! PRIVATE VIEWING! EVENTS! HIDDEN TREASURE! GIFTS! MINI-FESTIVAL! WORKSHOPS!.... TOO MUCH GOING ON IN ONE POST.... READ CAREFULLY IN CASE YOU MISS SOMETHING!

EXHIBITION- 'BLOOD ON THE SNOW' [17 Dec – 10 Jan] is a Slack Space group exhibition featuring:

Work which subverts or looks at traditional Christmas iconography in a new way // Work which challenges the consumerism of Christmas and the ‘Christmas industry’// Work which explores the old rituals and festivals which predate the Christmas tradition including sacred items and images

Information sheets from Ipswich Pagan Society and others and original artworks from:

Megan Amey, Chris Andrews, Amy Brooks, Jack Briggs-Miller, Glynis Brown, Abigail Cheverst, Jill Eastland, John Fanning, Vron Francis, Tristan Howe, Karen Jones, Pat Jordan, Sioux Jordan, Dorian Kelly, Paul Kopal, Paula MacGregor, Kerry McCarthy, Trudi Needham, David Ross, Tony Smith, Michael Talks and son, Elizabeth Vickery, Clive Wakeford, Derek Wray, Colchester Institute Devised Musical Theatre, Signals Media and Hazelmere School, Level Best

A Forest of alternative Christmas Trees, including:

Waste tree I // Waste tree II // Shop fittings tree // Coke can tree // Christmas message tree // Invisible tree // Tree of mourning // Shadow tree // Munitions tree

Visitors to Slack Space are being encouraged to bring in a loosely wrapped gift and exchange this for a gift under one of the Slack Space Christmas trees. The gift should not be of great value, not be offensive to any person and should not have been purchased for the occasion

The Space will be adorned with festive decorations with a difference, including:

Saggy glass jars with embedded objects // Turkey heads and feet constructed from coke cans // Clear baubles with embedded objects // Decorations constructed from photographic negative strips // Illuminated Christmas boxes // A very different Christmas angel // Alternative crib // Plus a variety of decorative and not so decorative creations from the Slack Space Christmas team

Also featuring:

Lost Christmas. I give you my art (Lost not Found: Abscission II)

Edinburgh Fringe artist Heather Tweed has hidden 14 small artworks around Colchester with instructions on how to report and keep or re-locate the ‘Lost’ artworks. There will be no clues as to the location of these items. Anyone could find them! As these items are found their location will be marked on Google maps and on a special map in the gallery space.

You are invited to the PRIVATE VIEW FOR 'BLOOD ON THE SNOW' the Slack Space Christmas exhibition.

6pm – 8pm

Wednesday 16 December

Slack Space Colchester

33 Long Wyre Street Colchester CO1 1LJ

With mulled wine and mince pies

Free, but donations welcomed

Guest list only, please email to guarantee your place

SLACK SPACE CHRISTMAS WORKSHOPS and other afternoon events
- All events free. Parents must stay for under 13s where applicable


Friday 18 December

12pm – 2pm Under 5s making workshop with Keziah Osborne and Bethany and Willow Mitchell. Please bring recycled card board and old christmas cards

4pm – 6pm ' Arty ' recycled gifts workshop with Linda Wonnacott
Bathmats from old duvets / Purses from men's ties / Junk mail bowls / Necklaces from old beads. Bring your own materials


Saturday 19 December

1pm – 1.30pm A traditional Mummers play with ‘Obby ‘Oss taking place inside and outside the space with folk songs and words

2pm – 4pm Children and adults workshop led by artists Keziah Osborne and Sioux Jordan – ‘Christmas traditions from around the world, and the origins of Christmas.’ Limit of 20 participants at any one time

Kez says ‘in this workshop we will be exploring traditional Celtic origins 'the festival of light' and studying Global Christmas traditions by creating Christmas tokens and wishes for the children of the world’


E mail colchesterslackers(AT) googlemail.com if further information is required

SLACK SPACE DECEMBER MINI-FESTIVAL
The Slack Space December mini festival runs from 17 – 19 December 2009
and is presented in support of the Blood on the Snow exhibition.

All events free and guest list only. E mail for inclusion

Thur 17 Dec
Dorian Kelly is our compere
Doors 7pm

7.30pm - 8.00pm Angela Dennis and community choir ‘Souterrain:’
Songs that challenge the popular 'spirit of Christmas' theme, and
about the seasonal rather than the religious nature of the turning of
the year

8.00pm – 8.30pm Keziah Osborne performance art (Christmas circle):
Participative sharing workshop / performance art activity exploring
the deeper messages and meanings of Christmas

8.30pm – 9.00pm Gabriela Eva
Sweet acoustic melodies. Pause for thought …..

9.00pm – 9.30pm Keziah Osborne performance art (Global Christmas wishes):
Exploring notions of Christmas in a Global context, a facilitated
ceremony/celebration to decorate the ‘shop fittings’ Christmas tree
with healing wishes and words

9.30pm – 10.00pm Eddie O’Halloran
Original and off the wall folk with guitar and mandolin

10.00pm – 11pm Ady Johnson
Pithy songs about love and life from Fuzz Face frontman Ady Johnson

Fri 18 Dec
Afternoon:
12pm – 2pm Under 5s making workshop with Keziah Osborne and Bethany
and Willow Mitchell. Free. Please bring recycled card board and old
christmas cards.

4pm – 6pm ' Arty ' recycled gifts workshop with Linda Wonnacott
Bathmats from old duvets / Purses from men's ties / Junk mail bowls /
Necklaces from old beads. Free. Bring your own materials

Evening:
Doors 7.00pm

7.00 – 7.30pm The Breakdancing Santas
Colchester's B-Boys, B-Girls & STARZ Throwing-Down in the Festive
Spirit. Come and enjoy some Funky moves as the Breakers Heat Up the
Dancefloor and Entertain you with their moves. Demonstrations will
include Popping, Rocking, Floorwork, Freezes and Power Moves.

7.30pm – 8.00pm Mark Brayley:
Poetry from Mark Brayley and guests including a sharing of Global
Christmas wishes and stories from yesterday’s workshop

8.00pm – 8.30pm Sioux Jordan performance art (Solstice):
An artistic representation of a healing ceremony with candles and evergreens

8.30pm – 9.00pm Gavin Roberts:
Acoustic interlude. Songs of love and loss from Suffolk based band
‘The Lullaby’s’

9.00pm – 9.30pm Mark Brayley:
Poetry from Mark Brayley and guests

9.30pm – 10.00pm Poppy Jackson performance art (sun – birth):
An artistic representation of Saturnalia, the principle sun-birth
festival of the Roman pagans which took place on December 25th,
celebrating the death of the old sun and birth of the new

10.00pm – 11.00pm
Storytelling, explanation and discussion session led by Ipswich Pagan society

Sat 19 Dec
Afternoon:
1pm – 1.30pm A traditional Mummers play with ‘Obby ‘Oss taking place
inside and outside the space with folk songs and words. Free

2pm – 4pm Children and adults workshop led by artists Keziah Osborne
and Sioux Jordan – ‘Christmas traditions from around the world, and
the origins of Christmas.’ Free

Evening:
Doors 7.30pm

8.00pm – 8.30pm Mark Brayley:
Poetry from Mark Brayley and guests including a reading of Christmas
Ghost stories sent in by local people

8.30pm – 8.50pm Imogen:
Impromptu Acappella and spoken word from Colchester favourite Imogen Donnelly

8.50 - 9.30pm Colchester Folk Club TBC

9.30pm – 10.00pm Mark Brayley:
Poetry from Mark Brayley and guests

10.00pm – 11pm Adrian Nation TBC
The heart beats on, the rest is up to you. A charming and lyrical end
to the Slack Space Christmas festival

Mini-Fest is guest list only - please email for inclusion

Coming soon to the Eld Lane window display

Pat Jordan's Sacred Trees 14 - 20th December
then Market Field School's Gargoyles Sculptures 20 Dec - 03 Jan

Slivers of Slackweek

For one week only Slack Space will feature a special exhibition showing work from Slack Space volunteers. Slack Week opens on Wed 09 December at 3pm.

STOP PRESS

Colchester Institute Devised Musical Theatre assessed performance 10 Dec

Colchester Institute Devised musical theatre students will be performing at Slack Space on Thursday 10 December at 7.30pm. They have written the performance in response to a brief given to them by Slack Space 2 months ago and their performance will be assessed on the night as part of their degree scheme. The performance is entitled ‘Blood on the Snow’ and supports the ethos of the Slack Space Christmas exhibition. This event is guest list only. Please email for inclusion.

Upcoming Exhibitions

Slack Space are pleased and proud to be able to announce their program of exhibitions through to Mid February:

‘Slackweek’

December

9th – 12th 2009
A celebration of the creative talent of Slack Space volunteers

‘Blood on the Snow’

December 16th - January 10th 2010
A group exhibition challenging you to think about Christmas in new and different ways

‘Work in Progress’
January 14th - 24th 2010
Group show from Minories MA Arts in Social Context students

Female Photographers
January 28th – February 7th 2010
The best of Colchester and area's female photographers

'Graphic Start'
February 11th - 14th 2010
Graphic artist Lee Thomas wallpapers the space with his work. Public are invited to interact and participate