Culture Diary w/c 28-04-2014

Fuck Buttons (c) Lara Parsons

What’s hot this week? Our pick of the listings from around Liverpool and the rest of the north-west…

Tuesday – The1st4: DiCTATE 6.30pm @ Blade Factory, Liverpool — FREE

Inviting artists from any discipline/medium to create a score for performance artists to interpret, tonight audiences should absolutely expect the unexpected. Which might include a lettuce being stabbed to death (see?). Stars of the show are dancer Ayaka Furukawa (The Scape, Threshold 2014) and video artist Dan Mahony (10,000 Hrs) who have collaborated on The Slow Death of the Jazz Singer — inspired by the work of the Foley Artists and a comedic look at our relationship with violence.

Wednesday — Torque Symposium 11-6pm @ FACT, Liverpool — £5

As cyber-prosthetics are replaced by imperceptible interfaces, where do we draw the lines between technology, mind and modes of communication? What happens when technology becomes sentient? Leading thinkers in the arts, poetry, technology and cognitive sciences lead a full day of talks and short films, including artist Cécile B Evans speaking about her spam bot AGNES. See the project’s great tumblr for more on this fascinating subject matter.

Ourscreen/Video Nasties Podcast Present: The Evil Dead 6pm @ FACT, Liverpool — £9.50/8.50 (halve that for Orange Wednesday fans)

Bruce Campbell stars in Sam Raimi’s (Spiderman, American Gothic, Xena: Warrior Princess) completely hilarious, OTT, ’80s horror big screen debut, described by the morality crusader Mary Whitehouse as “the number one nasty.”, it has plenty of gore in a cabin in the woods. As well as an introduction by Video Nasty Podcast founder Chris Brown, attendees receive an exclusive art print. Read Chris’s experience of crowdsourcing this film here

Thursday — Kulle.Houzz 7pm @ 143 Duke Street, Liverpool — FREE

Pronounced ‘colour house’, artist Danny Ryder takes over an entire building for one night only, transforming it into an “artificial colour environment… saturated in colour, one red, one green and one blue”, distrubing the retina to create “a completely monochrome situation.” Think the Hayward’s sold out Light Show exhibition, but transported into a very different environment.

Print Forward, Takk

Print Forward Exhibition Launch 7pm @ Takk, Manchester — FREE

An exhibition of limited edition prints raising funds for the creation of green spaces, including Simon S Misra’s work (above) based on his favourite Manchester green space Angel Meadows; visited by Charles Dickens and said to have inspired Hard Times. Collaborators The Manchester Print Fair & A New Leaf Manchester will speak about past and future initiatives to make Manchester city centre more green.

PICK OF THE WEEK: Liverpool Sound City @ various venues, Liverpool (Thursday-Saturday) — Conf plus Fest £120, 2 Day Pass £50, Day Pass £35

Described as a “charged and fluid sprawl of anticipation and excitement” (Clash Magazine), thousands will descend on the city centre this weekend for performances by Drenge, Fuck Buttons, PINS and Tennis, as well as incredible conference speakers John Cale (The Velvet Undergound) and Thurston Moore (Sonic Youth).

Testing Bed, The Royal Standard

Friday — Testing Bed Week 2: Joe Crowdy Pro:Repose 7.30pm @ The Royal Standard, Liverpool — FREE

Chelsea College of Art and Design graduate Joe Crowdy presents photography, performance and sculpture tonight in the latest installment of the gallery’s experimental research programme. A combination of his interests in gesture and repose, and performance as an extension of sculpture, expect unusual forays into costume, decorative concrete blocks found in Spanish holiday resorts in the ’60s and ’70s (!), and sportswear and exercise culture.

Slime City Festival @ AIRSpace, Liverpool — £5 WKND, £3 Day (Friday and Saturday)

An alternative to LSC, with emerging bands hailing from Liverpool and Yorkshire and performing in the city’s latest pop-up arts space. Expect a weird and wonderful ensemble, including pop from the post-LOVECRAFT breakup band Concrete Island (great name) and street-bonhomie from Harlequin Dynamite Marching Band (founded by Stealing Sheep’s Luciana Mercer).

Sunday — Walk On 11-4pm @ The Atkinson, Southport — FREE

An ambitious exhibition celebrating 40 years of ‘art-walking’, or art work inspired by journeys under foot, an impressive line-up include natural sculpture, photography, installation and performance from Richard Long, Julian Opie, Bruce Nauman, Marina Abramovic. A new multi-arts venue for Southport, check out the cinema, museum spaces, bakery and library while you’re there.

Sounds From The Other City @ various venues, Salford — £18

A fantastic way to explore the ‘proper’ old pubs (and ales), small churches and art studios around the city, this is a festival loved by artists and anyone looking for a truly independent experience. More ambitious by the year (this will be its 10th anniversary), stages include Now Wave at Peel Hall, Comfortable on a Tightrope & Chew Disco at The Crescent, and Deep Hedonia & Faktion at St Phillip’s Church. Don’t make a plan, just get lost.

Posted on 29/04/2014 by thedoublenegative