Exciting news from Vertiline’s little corner of Sheffield, a new community network has been set up by members of CADS (Creative Arts Development Space) to bring together local businesses and create a fantastic multitude of events. There’s talk of urban festivals and coordinated art events, we’re positively gleeful at the thought and can’t wait to be involved in all the fun and games.
SKINN is launching on October 28th with a weekend-long event celebrating the creative community of Shalesmoor, Kelham Island and Neepsend (SKIN) areas. Spanning across multiple venues in the area, the weekend presents open studios, gallery exhibitions, one-off art events, pop-up industrial bar stocked with locally produced ales, a curated trail between the different venues, blues bands, electronic musicians, factory tennis, fashion display & workshops exploring the local area. Some of the spaces will be opening their doors to the public for the first time. The weekend will provide the opportunity to drink tea with local artists in the informal atmosphere of their studios, meet with other members of the local community, explore the area and see what goes on behind the facades of these post-industrial buildings. A full list of the weekend’s events can be found here.
There is also a lovely article in The Star about the Skinn weekend shenanigans Here’s a little excerpt from it….
ACCORDING to local legend, when the last of the streetworkers and small-time dealers were being moved on from Kelham Island around the turn of the decade, one turned to an official and noted: “This place has gone downhill since the artists arrived, anyway.”
It is a rumour they re-tell with a certain pride in the studios, galleries, real ale pubs, award-winning restaurants, vintage stores and designer workshops which today populate the area.
But it is one which a new network of the area’s most prominent interests is determined to dispel.
And they are hoping to do it while turning this unofficial Sheffield alternative quarter set among derelict factories and warehouses into a bustling cultural district capable of attracting visitors from across the city, county and – hey, why not be ambitious? – country too.
SKINN – Shalesmoor, Kelham Island and Neepsend Network – will launch the weekend after next, October 29-30, with a mini-festival and ‘art crawl’ where nearly a dozen venues will throw open their doors for two free days of live music, pop-up bars, improv theatre, fashion shows, art exhibitions and craft stalls.
Our home, The Nichols Building, will be the HQ for the weekend’s events, and you can pick up a detailed map and full timetable of events from the information point inside. The weekend also coincides with Wear It Pink at Nichols, featuring a range of events to help raise awareness and money for Breast Cancer. There will be a Pink Auction hosted by Michael Dowse of Dowse Auctioneers (you can start bidding now!), along with pink photography shoots, fashion show, competitions, mini holistic treatments, live music and of course, the obligatory pink drinks and nibbles.
Can’t wait!
