WHITECROSS STREET PARTY AND THE RISE OF THE NONCONFORMISTS LAUNCHES LIVE URBAN ART AND PERFORMANCES FOR THE SEVENTH YEAR!
12 – 6pm on Saturday 16 July 2016
St Luke’s annual Whitecross Street Party is one of London’s unique outdoor events, with a creative mix of street arts and performances and community interaction, that take over the area on Saturday 16 July. This celebrated family-friendly street party will again provide a platform for over 40 artists painting live for THE RISE OF THE NONCONFORMIST outdoor exhibition as well as a day packed with live music, dance, family activities and a good dash of the unexpected.
Whitecross Street, EC1 is a major lunchtime food destination in the week. Home to a fantastic range of restaurants and cafés and a bustling international food market. It is also home to a growing collection of public art installations and creative interventions developed through the Whitecross Street Party programme.
The event is produced and curated by St Luke’s Community Centre working with artist Teddy Baden and with the support of the London Borough of Islington, grant funding and local in-kind support.
The Whitecross Street Party
Draws together cutting-edge street arts and an eclectic range of showcases from community projects, dance performance, live music and creative works from professional, emerging, international and local talent. Together with a food and an arts and craft market and family activities this one-day event offers a unique experience for everyone.
Programme includes:
– Live music stage showcases: Lips Choir, Solution Sound System, Yaaba Funk, Flame Proof Moth, Hotdoggrrrl and the Sesame Buns and Liz Bentley.
– Showcases from community partners Key Changes and the Youth Takeover Stage from Spectrumand a fine selection of sounds from Islington Oxjam on the acoustic stage.
– Over 40 live street artists include: Ant Carver, Wreckage International, 616, Airborne Mark and many more.
– Debut dance performances from Sadlers Wells, Candoco Dance Company with Angel Shed Theatre and Counterpoint Dance Company with choreographer Simona Scotto and guests.
– A new addition – The Stage of Nonconformists – a show from Little Angel Theatre nonconformist puppets showcase the work of students from St Luke’s Primary and the St Luke’s Community History Group and other local groups.
– Make your mark! Seek out this year’s ‘get involved projects’ where you get to make work with the artist.
– Street performers and expect other unexpected encounters!
– Nearby Fortune St Park have activities for small kids and family fun.
– St Luke’s – the hosts of the event will celebrate carnival style. Find out what’s on offer, take part in activities, help build a food sculpture and dress up.
– The event will culminate in a parade with Dimensions carnival group.
The street party kicks off from 12:00 – 6:00pm with fun found all along Whitecross Street (EC1) and in Fortune Street Park.
Exhibition – The Rise of the Nonconformists
The Rise of the Nonconformists breaks most social norms– it is a street art exhibition mounted on buildings for eight weeks. In previous years there’s been comic book style tonne-weight anvils floating in the sky; monster-sized pencils scribbling on buildings and snipers hiding in fake windows.
The Whitecross Street Party is a brilliant family-friendly event for both the avid art lover and those that like something a bit different.
For the latest information http://www.wxstreetparty.co.uk/
LISTINGS INFORMATION
Whitecross Street Party FREE
Saturday 16 July 2016
12:00 – 18:00pm
Whitecross Street, EC1, London
The Rise of the Non-Conformists Exhibition FREE
Sunday 17 July – 16 September 2016
Whitecross Street, EC1, London
The Whitecross Street Party and its exceptional outdoor street art exhibition ‘The Rise of the Nonconformists’ started back in 2010 when a small team of disorganisers took inspiration from the local dissenter’s graveyard. This hallowed ground where prominent nonconformists William Blake, Daniel Defoe, John Bunyan and Susannah Wesley’s spirit were laid to rest provided the inspiration for the event to celebrate, creative difference, artistic ingenuity, invention and innovation. The lively street art party and two-month exhibition is choreographed and curated by St Luke’s Community Centre working with artist Teddy Baden. The annual event is supported by the London Borough of Islington, grant funding from the Arts Council England and this year the Heritage Lottery Fund. www.wxstreetparty.co.uk @WXSP
St Luke’s Community Centre is a welcoming, neighbourly community centre in south Islington, London. It provides a space for local people to gather and socialise, and for St Luke’s and other organisations to deliver services and activities to benefit the local community, including lunch club for the over 55s, a café, an online centre, art & dance studios, kids clubs, salon & therapy room, a unique cookery school, an employment hub, a members’ club suite and a variety of meeting rooms. www.slpt.org.uk @StLukesTrust
UK based street artist Teddy Baden is not simply driven by a fascination with dogs. His art celebrates an incredible relationship… human society’s historic and endearing subsumption of another species. His paintings exude a “vivacious wit”, a “combination of humour and cynicism”… “Where dogs wear snorkels and spew coloured paint”. Teddy is founder and curator of The Whitecross Street Party, and ‘Rise of the Non Conformists’ public art exhibition. He is also known for his organizational and curatorial involvement for the Mutate Britain Events, and contribution towards the Robin Hood Tax Campaign and the Dogs Trust Charity. www.teddybaden.co.uk @teddybaden
