Ian Nesbitt | The Commoners' Fair

Saturday 26 November, 11am-8pm, 2016
Followed by Film Free And Easy 8pm-11pm, 2016

The Commoners’ Fair is a day-long event that celebrates the idea of ‘the Commons’ - the shared resources that are available to all of us, and what that means to our urban communities in the here and now. This event brings together people from Radford, Lenton and the wider city to share the rich array of knowledge, skills and ideas in our local area. The project asks: ‘What is it that everyone has that they can share? And how do we share it?'

The Commoners’ fair has been developed by artist Ian Nesbitt with members of the Radford Skills Exchange and other local groups and initiatives. Join them for a day of talks, conversation, performance, food and workshops exploring ideas of alternative economies and the sharing of knowledge within a community.

11.30-12.30: Talks
Martin Parker (Professor of Organisation and Culture, University of Leicester and co-founder of the School For Organising) on managing, organising, and Commoning.
Panya Banjoko from Nottingham Black Archive on histories of community organising in the Black community in Radford.
Julie Gosling  (Advocacy in Action & Institute of Mental Health) on the subject of 'surviving against the odds through working together’. Julie will discuss her own work, and local tactics and solutions for the commons within a wider landscape.
Ian Nesbitt on the Ek-uh-nom-iks project and how The Commoners' Fair came about.

12.30-1.30pm: Lunchtime snacks and tasters from around the world provided by the Womens Culture Exchange.

1.30-5.30: Workshops
Dip into creative workshops led by local residents and artists. Workshops will run throughout the afternoon, specific times will be announced on the day.

Bead-dyeing and jewellery Join Raisa Mcclarey Francis to learn how to dye your own beads using natural pigments, and make a bracelet to take home.

Film Scratch and Draw Workshop Dallas Simpson invites you to make your own images and sound by scratching and hand drawing directly onto 16mm film. We’ll project your creations at the Film Free & Easy in the evening.

Breadstick Production Line Find out about the sourdough bread made at the Small Food Bakery, learn how to make and shape breadsticks and take home a bag of snacks.

Zine-making Throughout the afternoon you can add your own skills, stories and ideas to a Zine - a DIY magazine that we’ll be making live at The Commoners Fair.

Scratch Orchestra Scratch music making Frank, Rebecca and Nathaniel will share music-making ideas from the Scratch Orchestra, a music group which was active in the 1970s and sought new ways to try and make music as a democratic process. You need no previous music making experience or skill except the ability to listen and take part.

Apple-pressingTry your hand at juicing apples with a traditional apple press in Primary Gardens. The apple juice will be made into cider by Blue Barrel Cider.

Guided Walk Mateusz Lawrynowicz will lead a walk around the local neighbourhood - find out about the local stories of the Commons, co-operatives and histories of resistance.

Tell Me Something I Don't Know Throughout the day you can hear a variety of informal short talks in response to Ian’s invitation: ‘Tell me something I don’t know’. Drop by for a few minutes and you might find out about engineering, kitten care, the best way to tidy, how to make candied Scotch Bonnets, local history, or catch a musical performance.

5.30-6pm: Performances
Hear and see the results of the Scratch Orchestra and other workshops earlier in the day.

6-8pm Soul Food Cafe & Commoners’ Working Group discussion
Head down the road to All Souls Community Centre, for dinner courtesy of the Soul Food Café. Join us for a discussion looking at what we’ve learnt from the day and how people would like to continue working together. This is open to anyone who’s been involved in organising or attending the Commoners Fair.

8pm-Midnight: Film Free and Easy - The Ek-uh-nom-ix
A special edition of ‘Film Free and Easy’ with input from Annexinema. ‘Film Free and Easy’ is an event devised by artists to explore new ways of showing moving-image works, including film, video and projections. The structure of the event is based on the audience bringing along the material that will be shown.

This event is part of Ian Nesbitt’s Ek-uh-nom-iks project at Primary, as part of the Intersections programme.

The Commoners Fair is kindly supported by Castle Cavendish Community Fund.