Libraries Week

Tell us what you’re up to!

Libraries Week is an annual showcase and celebration of the best that libraries have to offer. Taking  place between the 4th and 10th October, Libraries week 2021 will be celebrating the nation’s much-loved libraries and the central role that libraries play in their community as a driver for inclusion, sustainability, social mobility and community cohesion. 

The Touring Arts In Libraries (TAIL) project is all about boosting the ambition of libraries to deliver a programme of touring work. We know taking arts into these open, friendly, public spaces is both positive and inspiring not just for those communities but also for library staff, and artists. 

We want to promote Rural Touring arts activities in libraries by sharing your events with our project partners, forum members and followers.

So don’t hesitate to email Jess Huffman TAIL project manager on project@nrtf.org.uk with links and details of what you’re up to. Let us help you to shout about it!

What else is the TAIL project doing for Libraries week? 

Our monthly mail out will highlight the latest project news and opportunities for libraries, schemes and artists. Including touring shows, new library specific commissions, Go See Grants, and artists workshops.

On Monday 11th October as part of our Mechanics: Online Rural Touring Workshops for Artists, we’ll be running an interactive session that will include feedback from artists with library touring experience and a chance to pitch your own creative ideas. 

To join us or find out more about the Mechanics Workshops programme go to: https://www.ruraltouring.org/rural-touring-mechanics-october-2021/ 

For more information on Libraries week go to: http://librariesweek.org.uk/ 

Keep up to date by following @librariesweek and share your plans at #LibrariesWeek.

For more information on the NRTF’s Touring Arts in Libraries (TAIL) project go to: https://www.ruraltouring.org/project/touring-arts-in-libraries-tail-project/ 

TAIL PROJECT UNLOCKED: POUND ARTS PERSENTS – TRUTH SLEUTH

Truth Sleuth in Thrills, Chills and Chemical Spills

A choose your own adventure by Modest Genius

Hello! We’re delighted to let you know about Modest Genius’ brand new ‘choose your own adventure’ digital game, that will be available for communities, festivals, libraries, organisations, schools & venues to engage with across the UK and the world from June 2021

Truth Sleuth in Thrills, Chills and Chemical Spills is an interactive storybook with a series of binary choices that take the player on branching narratives. The game explores bias and trusted sources, linking the player’s choices to integrity level. In order to win the game you must maintain a high integrity level so that the town of Amberville believe in your accusations.

Modest Genius have developed a choose-your-own-adventure style computer game. Through an original and engaging interactive story set in the library, discover tools for revealing bias, recognising hidden agenda and separating fact from opinion.

Average gameplay time: 60 minutes

Age guidance: 7+

Truth Sleuth needs you…

From June 2021 we are inviting communities, festivals, libraries, organisations, schools & venues to engage with our digital offer, by offering your audiences the opportunity to play Truth Sleuth as part of your digital programme. The game will be available to download for FREE – with generous support and funding we are in a position to make this game as accessible as reach as far and wide as possible as we learn to live, think, come together and adapt to these topsy turvy times.

If you would be interested in finding out more, in hosting and sharing this digital piece with your audience and communities please email Pound Arts at martin.campbell@poundarts.org.uk

Facebook – @modestgeniustheatrecompany/@thepoundartscentre

Instagram – @truthsleuth_mgtc/@poundarts

Twitter – @poundarts

Website – www.modestgenius.co.uk/www.poundarts.org.uk

Babylon Arts ‘Creative Ideas Lab’

Babylon Arts are offering nine micro commissions for creative practitioners of any artform, to provide a gentle springboard for them to work up a new or existing early idea, that is about connecting people in East Cambridgeshire with the arts in some way.

This opportunity is aimed at creative practitioners who have some experience in delivering socially engaged arts activities or projects that make connections with people.

The offer

  • A micro commission payment of £200 for each of the nine creative practitioners that are selected from their expression of interest.
  • The chance to discuss your idea with a panel of creatives and project managers to get feedback, make connections and gain suggestions for next steps.
  • The opportunity to have your idea selected for a £2000 commission to develop and bring to life your project, so that it can be tested/delivered to an identified audience, group or community based in East Cambridgeshire. We have one £2000 commission available.
  • The opportunity to have two, one-to-one coaching sessions with a qualified careers coach

All you need to do:

To get started, creative practitioners need to submit an expression of interest either by completing this short online form, or sending in a video of no more than 2 minutes, covering the following points:

  1. Your name
  2. Two or three sentences describing your experience in delivering socially engaged arts activities or projects
  3. A brief outline of your idea – this might be something like “As a filmmaker, I’ve been thinking about how we use our smartphones to capture and edit films and I have the spark of an idea about how to use this technology to create a film with young carers or young people excluded from school…”
  4. You might show us an example of your work or provide a visual reference point for your initial idea.

If submitting a film you will need to provide your postcode and contact telephone number in the email too.

Deadline for Expressions of Interest is 10am on Monday 26th April 2021.

More information about the programme can be downloaded from the Babylon Arts website here.