Manifesto Workshop (23rd August 2023)

From Marx and Engels’ Communist Manifesto to Valerie Solanas’ SCUM Manifesto, manifestos have been a playful and mobilising way to launch a mission to the world. The history of art manifestos in movements as diverse as Futurism, Constructivism, Dada, Surrealism, Fluxus, Situationism, Punk, xenofeminism and tech-utopianism has shown that manifestos don’t have to be boring. Playfulness, provocation and absurdity often line this incendiary form. Existing somewhere between the political rally-cry and the advertising slogan, the history of manifestos offers an inventive way of rethinking ‘the mission statement’. Manifestos don’t have to be restricted to written text. We will also explore different mediums you can use, such as posters, typography, zines, collages, films, or spoken word pieces.

In this session we will draw upon this history in order to help you create your own manifesto. The session will be run by Bradley Tuck from Exploding Appendix, an art collective based in Brighton that focuses on the history and future of avant-garde art and radical counter-culture. This session is open to everyone, no prior knowledge of manifestos is needed. For details on the workshop please message explodingappendix@gmail.com 

The first hour will start with a guided conversation where we explore devices, techniques and topics used in manifestos and we will discuss what you might want to include in your own. For the second two hours you are invited to get creative. We will bring some art supplies, but if you have something specific in mind you are invited to bring your own.

The session will be run in conjunction with Defending Arts and Culture in Brighton, which was set up in response to the many cuts and crises facing arts, education and culture in this city. One of our aims is to create a repository of all the different manifestos for the city of Brighton and Hove. This will help us understand people’s key demands for Brighton as a cultural space. We see the manifesto workshop as a step towards this and we welcome people submitting their manifestos to this collection.

The session will be run on the 23^rd August 2023 from 10am-1pm. To book a free place on this workshop please book here.

The session will be run in collaboration with the Lighthouse, an arts charity based in Brighton.  They will be providing the venue alongside coffee, a variety of teas, and snacks including vegan and gluten-free options. Lighthouse is a fully wheelchair accessible venue. This event will be held in the ground floor, level access, reception space. For further information email info@lighthouse.org.UK or call 01273 647197.

Address:

Lighthouse

28 Kensington Street

Brighton

BN1 4AJ