THE EXCHANGE

  throughout May 2011

The time is right for FREE things:

• FREE painting
• FREE film
• FREE knitting

Are You Ready for it?

All of Portslade has been declared an involuntary park.

The only currency valid here is skill (any skill) and the only place to redeem it is at THE EXCHANGE, curated by artist group Involuntary Park at BLANK

Neither an exhibition nor a performance piece but a Pay-What-You-Earn-Art-Cafe and a workshop the size of a building ...

Come and hang out at The Deer Feeding Station Cafe, take part in an Involuntary Fashion Trail, help make a life size Knitted Deer, record your own Sound Nugget, or go out on an urban hunt with watercolours..

We aim to discover the hidden talents of Portslade by opening up our gallery and studio spaces to the community. Come and swap something YOU can do for something WE can do.

‘No skill is too big or too small. Everything is a currency we can exchange..’

Participants so far confirmed include:

Mike Weatherley MP; Monica Crowe, Katie Blackwell & Friends from The Goodwill Co-op at Emmaus; Parliament of Feathers screen printing; Josie Jeffery of Seedfreedom; Lorette Mackie of Portslade Community Forum; plus BLANK artists Carolina Diaz, Rosie Holmes, Romily Meredith; Chris Shaw-Hughes; Amy Smith, Eva Weaver, Tamsin Williams, Libby Davy, Jo Shapland, Lorenza Ippolito.

All hosted by artists, CiCi Blumstein, Johanna Berger and Joseph Young of Involuntary Park - designers of processes, events and objects in the public realm.

Blank artists will open their studios every weekend throughout May during THE EXCHANGE.

FOR A LIST OF ALL THE WORKSHOPS ON OFFER, DATES AND TIMES PLEASE FOLLOW THIS LINK:

List of Workshops at THE EXCHANGE

More workshops are being added every day, so please check back frequently for the most up-to-date information.

You can sign up for workshops on this online list but will need to register at BLANK Studios too on the day.

How to 'pay' for a workshop at THE EXCHANGE:

Volunteering:

Help in the cafe (manning the cafe, washing up, etc), invigilating the artists' studios, etc

Performing:

This one would be relevant to musicians, poets, theatre people, dancers, etc., to help animate the Deer Feeding Station cafe with short performances, interventions, readings, dances and more, sprinkled in liberally over the day - just let your imagination roam.

Facilitating a workshop, or giving a talk or demonstration:

It can be anything from one-to-one to small or large groups, for whatever length of time you feel comfortable with. It doesn't need to be 'artistic' - we welcome any skill that can be shared, particularly domestic or practical skills, special interests or knowledge from any field. Just run it by us and we'll most likely say yes!

Or other:

Contributing essential information or advice, donating or loaning us something we need, etc.

Money:

You are more than welcome to make a donation as sponsorship for the project if you wish, but as a payment option we try to make it 'the last resort'.

If anyone would like to offer a workshop or other skill in exchange for any of the above, please first register your offer with us at involuntarypark3@gmail.com , and on the day, we will give you an ANTLERCARD plus a stamp for each skill offered. You can then redeem each stamp for a workshop of your choice during THE EXCHANGE.