Culture Diary w/c 23-06-2014
What’s hot this week? Our pick of the listings from around Liverpool and the rest of the UK…
Tuesday – Both Sides Now — Film And Video From Hong Kong And China 6.30pm @ FACT, Liverpool, then on to Nottingham, Brighton and London — £4/3
Provocative artists’ video exploring the impact of 30 years of Chinese authoritarian rule, this UK touring screening (24 June-13 July 2014) includes animation and documentary made during the ’80s-’00s. Expect ‘imagery and commentary unlikely to have been seen outside of China and Hong Kong.’
Wednesday – Liverpool Science Festival @ various venues across Liverpool
Running until 9 July, this new UK science festival is a combination of film, literature, comedy and really, really nerdy science. Which is right up our street. Highlights include today’s launch event The Hitchhikers Guide To The Solar System; a screening and Q&A of CERN documentary Particle Fever (described as “mind-blowing” by the New York Times); Ruby Wax’s Sane New World stage show on mental illness; and Dr Lewis Dartnell on how to survive the apocalypse.
I Don’t Love Soccer Because Soccer Has Never Loved Me: Exhibition And Publication Launch 6.30pm @ Bold Street Coffee, Liverpool — FREE
The Beautiful Game as seen by the talented gang of Graphic Design and Illustration tutors from LJMU’s School of Art and Design. All the artwork exhibited is a direct response to philosopher Umberto Eco’s essay The World Cup and Its Pomps (1978) — think revolution, vanity and ’(a)political morality’ (“Is the armed struggle possible on World Cup Sunday… Is revolution possible on a football Sunday?”). Expect pitch-perfect (sorry) typography, drawing and print.
Thursday – The Needle’s Eye LJMU MA Fine Art Exhibition 6pm @ The Glass Factory, Sparling Street, Liverpool — FREE
If that’s what the tutors can do, what about the students? MA shows are a great way of seeing developing practices and future emerging artists; in this case, a tight-knit and proactive group of fine artists that are already instigating new studio groups and spaces within the city. They tonight present live art alongside sculpture, installation, print, drawing and painting in the old Pilkington glass factory (Baltic Triangle).
PICK OF THE WEEK: Dead Dog in a Suitcase (and other love songs) 7.30pm @ Everyman Theatre, Liverpool
Kneehigh — possibly the hottest indie theatre company in town at the moment — presents a brand new version of John Gay’s musical satire The Beggar’s Opera, made in collaboration with the new Everyman theatre, and it is already receiving a lot of love on social media from excited audiences (who’ve found it ‘amazing’, ‘stunning’, ‘remarkable’). Expect a group of actor musicians portraying hitmen and corporate conspiracy alongside forbidden love and, yes, a dead dog. In a suitcase.
Friday – Mondrian The Man: A Biographer’s Perspective 2-3pm @ Tate Liverpool, Auditorium
Friday 27 June 2014, 14.00 – 15.00
Why was Piet Mondrian so elusive? And what do we actually know about him? Mondrian’s biographer, Nicholas Fox Weber, comes to Liverpool this Friday to share his discoveries about this somewhat formidable artist, which include ‘unusual personal relationships, a fondness for ballroom dancing, an acerbic wit, and an unparalleled determination to paint and live according to his own rules.’ See our co-founder Mike Pinnington interview Weber here.
Private View: Barbara Kruger 6.30-8.30pm @ Modern Art Oxford — FREE, RSVP required
The American conceptual artist, designer and writer is responsible for some of the most striking, effective critique of Western consumerist culture. So much so, her work has been copied and reproduced, ironically, on everything from shopping bags to t-shirts (recognise I Shop Therefore I Am?). With a giant new installation made specifically for Modern Art Oxford, in addition to a series of classic paste-up works from the ’80s and a rare presentation of her film Twelve (2004), this is well worth a visit. RSVP here.
Saturday — Heather Phillipson: Yes, surprising is existence in the post-vegetal cosmorama – (pictured) 10am-5pm @ The Grundy Gallery, Blackpool — FREE
How would you like to to clamber inside a humongous, sexy, colourful body crammed with sculptures, videos and giant bananas? The Grundy’s new (insane) installation was originally commissioned by BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead in 2013 and has been described by Adrian Searle as like “a virtual-reality drive-through car wash”. Fantastic.
Futurecamp: Private vs Public: Activism, Economics and Politics Today 12-5pm @ Wysing Arts Centre, Cambridge — FREE
What does the future hold? This three-month long conference and artist residency aims to answer just that, with an ambitious programme of fortnigtly talks, performances and workshops exploring everything from psychology in the digital age, alternative art and education and living in a post-gender world. Saturday’s event is dedicated to the relationship between the economy, politics and the way we are governed, looking at alternative systems of power with Al Jazeera producer Rammy El, journalist Ray Filar, and anthropologist Dr Claire Loussouarn amongst others.
Sunday — Rear Window (1954) 6pm @ FACT, Liverpool — £9.50/8.50
Possibly our favourite Alfred Hitchcock film (and one of Sight and Sound’s Top 100 Films Of All Time). From Jimmy Stewart’s cooped up, inquisitive journalist and Grace Kelly’s incredulous girlfriend, to the incredible set design and THAT breaking in scene, Rear Window is a classic of the suspense thriller genre that made Hitch’s name. See more of our articles on the infamous director here.
