Faye
Faye Mulligan is going to be doing our general admin. She will offer vital support making sure everything runs like clockwork. Faye will be helping with the day to day ins and outs at Empty Shop such as taking workspace bookings and responding to any  of your lovely emails. She will  also be the friendly voice down the phone at Empty Shop HQ, so if your looking to find out more about Venue hire, events coming up – or if you have any question about Empty Shop please feel free to contact Faye on thefolks@emptyshop.org.

Jonny
Also new to the team is Jonny Atkinson. His role is to handle our exhibitions, searching the land for the best artists and helping all of you realise all of the opportunities we offer. Jonny’s currently seeking new innovative art that can be showcased in new and old spaces within Empty Shop such as the Stairwell Gallery exhibition programme and more to be announced soon. He will also be working online, exhibiting new video art on the empty shop website every month. If you would like further information, fancy submitting a video or think you may have something special that Empty Shop will love.

Please contact Jonny on exhibitions@emptyshop.org

Linda
As the third new member of the Empty Shop crew Linda is going to be heading up some of our communications stuff. She’ll be responsible for keeping everyone updated on the ins and outs at Empty Shop including looking after our online social networks such as facebook and twitter and composing newsletters like this one, so next time you hear from us it’ll be Linda’s words you’ll be reading…

Media opportunities, press enquiries and all things marketing can be directed then to media@emptyshop.org

Ok this is going to be a long one so for those of you who can’t be bothered to read the breakdown here it is in a nutshell –

• Friday 23^rd July
• Massive night of art
• Set over two venues
• 4 exhibitions
• Paper Jam comic book launch
• Salford Zine Library in the North East for the fist time
• Poetry & performance
• Loads of fun

Times
Durham Art Gallery: 6pm – 8pm – then onto Empty Shop HQ: 8:30pm – 10:30pm

***We will gather at Empty Shop HQ at 5:45 to lead people up to the Durham Art Gallery, so join us there first and we can head up together***

Everyone is welcome to the opening on Friday night
Open Saturday: 11am – 5pm
Open Sunday:11am – 4pm

The main collaboration is with the Durham Art Gallery. On the same evening they will be launching their big summer show ‘What Are You Like?’ an illustration exhibition based on the Victorian parlour game featuring work by some pretty big names such as David Shrigley, Quentin Blake, Brian Eno and Elton John to name a few and they asked Empty Shop to work with them on the event.

We were more than happy to combine forces and take a bit of the Empty Shop ethos to the DLI so we set to work on programming some exhibitions and events to accompany the night. Here’s a run down of what we are bringing to the table:

Art… and that

A specially commissioned comic made by the awesome guys at Paper Jam Comics Collective. We are big fans of Paper Jam and have shown work by them in the past. With the DAG’s exhibition showcasing big name talent we thought it would be a great opportunity to show off some local talent. The folks over at Paper Jam have created a special art themed edition of their ‘…and that’ series and will also selling their back catalogue.

Salford Zine Library

We love DIY. We love people doing things for themselves and creating for the love of it. Salford Zine Library is an amazing collection of self published, small press, DIY comics and zines from all over. The guys do an amazing job of collecting and keeping the library together and we are delighted to be bringing it up to the North East for the first time. This amazing collection will be available to browse for two weeks at the Durham Art Gallery. If anyone makes zines and would like to submit theirs to the collection get in touch with the guys.

Giant Pictionary – we like fun and we especially like fun at openings so that’s why we decided to suggest a giant game of pictionary on the wall! This should be going on throughout the opening and possibly the duration of the exhibition.

Empty Shop HQ after show event – when the fun ends at the DAG it continues at HQ with our second opening our new building. Come join us for some art, drinks and good ol’fashioned socialising – here’s what’s in store:

• The FreeBirds studio group showcase – an exhibition showcasing the work of the FreeBirds featuring work of varying disciplines and styles.
• Some poetry and performances curated by Empty Shop Exhibitions Coordinator Jonny Atkinson
• Beermat Show – The brainchild of our friends Temporary Art Space, the Beermat Show an expanding collection of beermat art and a touring exhibition. It comes to Empty Shop HQ for the opening night and we are looking for submissions to add to the collection.

*If you have ever drawn, scribbled or doodled on a beermat, send it to us at

Empty Shop HQ,
35c Framwellgate Bridge,
Durham,
DH1 4SJ

Have you recently thought this?…

“I wish there was a sizzling cast of contemporary, pioneering musical and digital motion graphic artists to evoke, provoke and delight in Durham very soon”

…well if you have then your in luck! This July ex-FreeBird Ste Walker is bringing exactly that with aBrassive, part of the Brass Festival that is currently going down in Durham.

It should be dead good and that – we are going so see you there.

What? aBrassive
When? Sat 17th July | 7pm – 11pm
Where? Durham Live (formerly Walkabout and Robins Cinema before that)
How much? £7 (or £5 if you email in time for the advance offer)

Check out these links for more info and updates:

http://abrassive.wordpress.com/
http://www.brassfestival.co.uk/

Empty Shop is filled simultaneously with sadness and joy in announcing the availability of a studio space in our fabulous FreeBird towers, Empty Shop HQ.

Steven Walker aka 50ftfootlonghorse is flying the nest due to a change in circumstances and direction. We’d like to thank Ste for his contribution to Empty Shop in the last year, starting with Shock of the Used he’s consistently supported both the organisation and us as friends.

We wish Steven great luck all future endeavours and look forward to developing collaborations of globe shattering consequence further down the line.

To enquire about the space email thefolks@emptyshop.org

Something exciting is brewing y’all; FreeBird Ged Robinson is kick starting his new project Kymeera: Cultural Remixes in less than two weeks at the Star & Shadow in Newcastle.

Kymeera:Cultural Remixes is a newly established organisation that aims primarily to curate unorthodox events and collaborations which fuse live music, performance, visual art and literature. This first outing sees Ged collaborate with Andrew Cleaver – awesome stuff. The official breakdown is this:

An eclectic night featuring visual art and performances from bands representing various genres and style, all followed by DJ sets from a number of individuals to end the night with your dance shoes well worn…

The night kicks off at 6 o’clock with Versions of the Fifth, a group show presenting the art and writings of Toby Lloyd, Steven Walker, Carlo Viglianisi, Mary Quinn, Andrew Donaghy, Christos Worsely, Eilis Hanson and Robbie Hudson. This will form part of the debut event from Kymeera: Cultural Remixes.

Following this will be a night of music brought to you by the following bands and DJ’s:

MASS
Tyne and Wear Agro Prog – www.myspace.com/massmassmass

CARPUS TRIO
Intense jazz/industrial hardcore – www.myspace.com/carpustrio

GRANDFATHER BIRDS
Chilled/intelligent/indie – www.myspace.com/grandfatherbirds

LUNA LOUNGE
Spaced out instrumental improvised noise – www.myspace.com/lunaloungeband

DJ’s:

Syncut

El Toro

PRMNNT dj’s

Venue: Star and Shadow, Newcastle

Kick off: 18:00

Price: £5

Facebook event page – click here

Just a quick post to elaborate on the earlier mention of live art performance this Friday, which will happen as part of the after show event for Hannah Marsden’s new exhibition preview.

The event will take place as a private after show party at Empty Shop HQ (to find out more please email us) and details are as follows…

RICH FISHER (FISHING ALL THE TIME)
& HIS SPLENDIFIDUS TRUFFLE BAND

(an art performance)

a collective, a collaboration, a band of artists unwearyingly fusing improvisation, music, the written word, the spoken word, the visual treats of video, of lighting, of experience, a celebration of spontaneity, of the absurd and of the happening.

This Friday at The DLI Museum and Durham Art Gallery sees the opening of a new exhibition by friend of Empty Shop Hannah Marsden. She has been using The Workspace at Empty Shop HQ in the build up to the show to try out ideas and have a City centre base. It’s been great having her around and watching her do her thing.

We’ll be heading up to the DLI this Friday to check out the work so come and join us – there will also be an after show event at Empty Shop HQ to keep the art based japes going featuring some more work by Hannah, a peformance by Andrew Wilson and video by FreeBird Toby Lloyd (possible extras to be confirmed). If you are interested in the after show event please email us as it is a private affair with a limited capacity.

About ‘Reflective Observation’
Durham based artist Hannah Marsden’s new body of work explores a personal conflict between her introverted instincts and extroverted interests. For this exhibition Marsden explores the symbolic potential of the umbrella as a symbol of protection and distinction. Incorporating sculpture, performance and film, Marsden performs undercover research in and around Durham to explore the interconnectivity of humanity and the idea of a universal human nature.

Marsden is a graduate from Newcastle University and has exhibited work at Allenheads Contemporary Arts and Gallery Glue.

Details
Date: Friday, 11 June 2010
Time: 18:00 – 20:00
Location: The DLI Museum and Durham Art Gallery

For more info try these links:

Umbrella of Humanity Blog

DLI and Durham Art Gallery

Empty Shop is seeking voluntary administrative support for our Durham City based headquarters.

Likely to be around one day’s work a week duties would include handling exhibition submissions, liaising with artists and partner organisations, basic website maintenance (training provided) and a variety of other day to day tasks. Knowing your way around MS Office would be preferable. Being friendly and flexible is a must. Would suit a graduate or artist looking to get into arts admin.

All enquiries to thefolks@emptyshop.org

You can keep up to date with opportunities with Empty Shop by checking the ‘Get Involved’ page – click here

We are absolutely friggin delighted to announce that all of our studio spaces are now full!

The final piece of the jigsaw is artist Toby Lloyd whos Re:Roll exhibition you may have seen at our February launch event. Here is the low down…

Toby Lloyd uses photography, video and performance to examine the self and its relationship with its surrounding environment. His work has been described as banal in the best possible sense and masochistic as he takes the everyday object or action and pushes it into the absurd

For more info on the rest of our inhabitants of our art lovenest visit…

emptyshop.org/hq/freebirds/

We are about to launch our first ever life drawing class at Empty Shop HQ, the first of many to come

Beginners Life Drawing Classes

Empty Shop presents a 10 week series of life drawing classes led by artist, FreeBird and teacher Abi Barlow.

Starting on Wednesday the 5th May, you can learn or brush up on your art skills in Empty Shop’s unique and friendly atmosphere. Each week Abi will cover a key dimension of figurative drawing in an informal and engaging way whilst also offering unstructured/untutored time to put these skills into practise.

This opportunity to work with a live model takes place in the informal and relaxing atmosphere of Empty Shop HQ and asks participants to engage with different techniques and ways of working.

Bring a sketch pad and the medium of your choice (pencils & pens) and be prepared to embrace the quirks of the building and the Empty Shop ethos!

The course will run every wednesday for 10 weeks starting 5th May. Spaces are limited and on a first come first served basis. To book your place please email – drawpeople@emptyshop.org

Details
When? Wednesdays 7-9pm starting from 5th May
Where? Empty Shop HQ
How Much? £4 per session

To find out more about Empty Shop HQ, including where it is – click here

This life drawing class is supported by an Arts Development Small Grant from Durham County Council.