Sheila Rowbotham talk (28/4)

Location : Old Fire Station, Crescent, Salford
Start date : 28th April 2012

We are pleased to announce that socialist feminist writer and activist Sheila Rowbotham will give the third annual Frow lecture, which is entitled 'Dreamers of a new day: British and American women's alternative economic visions in the late 19th and early 20th centuries'. 

Sheila Rowbotham draws on her most recent book, 'Dreamers of a new day: women who Invented the twentieth century' to show the range of ideas and plans women devised for a better society. While some have entered our daily lives many are yet to be realised and are still relevant today

Sheila Rowbotham is the Eccles British Library in Residence and an Honorary Fellow at the Universities of Manchester and Bristol.
2pm, all welcome, admission free.

Haçienda 30 XXX at Manchester Photographic (2-29 May)

In May 2012, Manchester's Haçienda will be 30 years old!

As a build up to the celebrations, Manchester Photographic Gallery will be hosting

‘Haçienda 30 XXX’

The Haçienda's Thirtieth Anniversary Exhibition

This exhibition will feature: rare and seldom seen ‘FAC51 – Haçienda’ memorabilia from Peter Hook's private collection, an incredible model of the Haçienda interior, created by Nick Hardy and some historical photographs taken from inside the Haçienda by Ian Tilton,

Nick Hardy's incredible model of the Haçienda

 

Further ‘Haçienda 30 XXX’ celebrations will include:

X1 – Haçienda 30 @ The Haçienda Apartments Car Park

Monday 21st May 2012 To Benefit Nordoff Robbins.
Check fac51theHaçienda.com for further details

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X2 – Haçienda 30 @ Sankeys

Saturday 2nd June 2012
Laurent Garnier L.B.S. Show
Justin Martin, Oli Furness & Special Guests TBA

~

X3 – Haçienda 30 Classics @ Sankeys

Monday 4th June 2012
ç - Graeme Park, Kevin Saunderson, Allister Whitehead, Tom Wainwright
Hot – Jon Dasilva, 808 State DJ’s, Peter Hook, Mc Tunes
Temperance Club – Dave Haslam, Dave Booth, Jason Boardman

For more information on the above three events - www.fac51theHaçienda.com / www.sankeys.info

Lady Rock / Bradford Film Festival

Two events of interest:

Manchester "Lady Rock" festival -- comedy, music, debates etc: website here

18th Bradford International Film Festival (til 29th April): website here

TV dinners en masse?

The Spinningfields outdoor cinema programme has commenced. Take your own blanket / chair / bit of newspaper, or rent a deckchair (£2 a throw last year; entry is £1). All screenings start at 8pm on Thurs nights, and there's a bar and a number of eateries for supper.

26th April - Senna (12A)
3rd May – Romeo and Juliet (12)
10th May – Transformers (12A)
17th May – Strictly Ballroom (PG)
24th May – Labyrinth (U)
31st May – Becoming Jane (PG)
7th June – How to Marry a Millionaire (U)
14th June – Beaches (12)
21st June – Chicago (12A)
28th June – Wimbledon (12)
5th July – Big (12)
12th July – Motorcycle Diaries (15)
19th July – [sic] Singin in The Rain (U)
26th July – Notting Hill (15)

HotchPotch Manchester

HotchPotch Manchester is a free unique monthly performance art and multi-media event held at the Thirsty Scholar and Attic (Oxford Road), organised to promote some of the most diverse talent within Manchester. It is for everyone who is interested in improving and developing knowledge about visual art, live performance, film and music. HotchPotch provides a platform for all kinds of budding and established artists as well as offering audiences something completely fresh, eclectic and exciting.


We're continuously looking for artists to participate for future events so if you feel that you could be part of HotchPotch Manchester, get in touch! So far we've exhibited music, poetry, comedy, theatre, photography, installation art, workshops, dance and film. We literally are looking for all creative acts. Or you could just come along and see the work.
Best regards,

Sophie Labrey
HotchPotch Manchester
hotchpotchmanchesterteam@gmail.com

MMP Grad Prog talk this Weds: "The 'C' is for Christ: The Beatles, Arthur Unger and Datebook Magazine"

Professor Brian Ward:

“The ‘C’ is For Christ”: The Beatles, Arthur Unger and Datebook Magazine

While much has been written on the “more popular than Jesus” controversy which engulfed the Beatles in 1966 during their final US tour, little attention has been paid to Arthur Unger, the man whose decision to re-print an English interview with John Lennon in his magazine Datebook sparked the furore. This talk explains that, contrary to conventional wisdom, Datebook was not a typical teen magazine, but a vehicle for the progressive politics of its publisher-editor Unger who had been using it for years to expose various kinds of intolerance and bigotry to American teens. Moreover, the Beatles had known Unger and supported his magazine's covert politics long before 1966. Indeed, far from cynically ripping Lennon's quote on religion—and an equally important one from Paul McCartney on racism—out of context and without permission to make a quick profit, it was the band’s own management which initially encouraged Unger to use the interviews. Ultimately, the argument here is that it is impossible to understand impossible to understand the genesis, evolution, or cultural significance of the “Jesus” controversy without attention to Unger.

Brian Ward is Professor of American Studies at the University of Manchester, UK, having previous taught at the Universities of Florida and Newcastle upon Tyne.








His major publications include Just My Soul Responding: Rhythm and Blues, Black Consciousness and Race Relations (Berkeley: U of California P, 1998), Radio and the Struggle for Civil Rights in the South (Gainesville: UP of Florida, 2004),and The 1960s: A Documentary Reader (Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2009).




He is just completing editorial chores on a three volume series of books devoted to new directions in the study of the American South, is just starting a book on pre-World War Two Artists and Repertoire men, and is perpetually working on a book about the relationships between the American South and the world of British popular music from Delius to the Kings of Leon.

2nd floor lecture theatre, Adelphi House, 4.10 - 5pm; Weds 25 April

MIRIAD event

Opportunities for Postgraduate Researchers and Early Career Researchers
at MIRIAD, Righton Building, 10.00 am - 5.00 pm, 23 May 2012

PARC North West is holding an exciting regional event to give PGRs, ECRs and their Supervisors the opportunity to generate a series of funded, cross-institutional events for the rest of this Academic Year. If you have an event idea already, or would like to be involved in one, this is your opportunity to develop it with your peers. These ideas can be topic or disciplinary based, specific or broad in nature, PARC North West is here to support your events.

With lunch and refreshments, the event will feature:

1) The 'Event Generator' is a creative process to develop the new events

This creative activity is based on 'Open Space Technology' to generate ideas. It is a powerful way to lead any kind of organisation in everyday practice and extraordinary change. All who participate will be able to develop their own ideas or join with others. Together we will then transform these ideas into one or more events in the coming months.

2) Introduction to what PARC NW is and what it can offer

3) Introduction to the Skills Development Programme

Designed for and by the region's students, the programme aims to support PGRs and ECRs working with non-academic partners to build their skills, expertise and networks. It will help them to identify new knowledge exchange opportunities, disseminate their research findings and enhance their long-term career potential. The programme will run between October 2012 and and September 2013, and is open to any postgraduate or early career researcher from the North West region and beyond.

Please email RSVP to MIRIAD@mmu.ac.uk, headed 'Opportunities'

Salford Sonic Fusion Festival 2012 (26/4 - 29/4)

The Music Department of the University of Salford is delighted to announce the first Salford Sonic Fusion Festival which will take place Thursday 26 April – Sunday 29 April. The intention of the festival is to bring cutting-edge international experimental contemporary music to Salford.

This is a new festival curated by University of Salford’s Head of Music Stephen Davismoon.

The festival will include seminal works by John Cage, Luciano Berio, and Cornelius Cardew, as well as works by current staff and students of the University of Salford, including Dr Alan E. Williams, Stephen Davismoon, and Jan Kopinski. Genres spanning contemporary art music to jazz and folk will be included, and audio-visual works will also be featured.

Artists from around the world will be visiting and performing at the university, so this is a wonderful opportunity to hear world-class contemporary music. For example, Jamaaladeen Tacuma, legendary jazz bassist from the USA, will be performing in Simon Best’s work Tort . Federico Sanguinetti from Italy will be here to perform the narrator’s role in Berio’s Laborintus II, which will be conducted by Marco Visconti-Prasca, also from Italy. Lithuanian concert pianist Lauryna Šablevičiute will be performing a John Cage portrait concert on Sunday night.

Thursday 26th April
Evening concert: Listening Cities
Featuring works by artists from Italy, Greece, France, Austria and Salford.
Start: 7:30pm
Venue: MediaCityUK 0.11 Digital Performance Lab
Later Event: Audio-visual works I
Music with digital systems
Start: 10:30pm
Venue: MediaCityUK 0.11 Digital Performance Lab

Friday 27th April
Evening Concert: Cornelius Cardew’s Treatise
Featuring the virtuoso flautist Richard Craid and clarinetist Alex South
Start: 7:30pm
Venue: MediaCityUK 0.11 Digital Performance Lab
Later event: Jan Kopinski “Mirrors”
With his jazz ensemble, Jan Kopinski will perform his latest work ‘Mirrors’ currently gaining considerable press coverage and awards.
Start: 10:30pm
Venue: MediaCityUK

Saturday 28th April
Evening Concert: University of Salford Sinfonietta & guests
Performance of Luciano Berio’s Laborintus II and Simon Best’s Tort, by the University of Salford Sinfonietta featuring students from UoS along with national and international artists.
Conducted by Marco-Visconti Prasca; Featuring ‘soloists’ Jamaladeen Tacuma (internationally acclaimed jazz bassist) and Federico Sanguinetti (son of the famous Italian poet Edoardo Sanguinetti who composed the text for Berio’s work), who will narrate his father’s text, for the first time in the UK.
Start: 7:30pm
Venue: Maxwell Hall, Salford University
Later Event: Audio-visual works II
Including improvised music with digital systems and a presentation of Kelman Stories featuring the actor Gordon Munro.
Start: 10:30pm
Venue: Lower Maxwell Hall, Salford University

Sunday 29th April
Evening Concert: John Cage Centenary
Featuring pianist Lauryna Šablevičiute, who will present works by Cage interspersed with works by Mozart (often referred to by Cage as a favourite composer of his from the past).
Start: 7:30pm
Venue: Maxwell Hall, Salford University
Later event: Adelphi Contemporary Music Group concert
A concert involving music students from the University of Salford in the Adelphi Contemporary Music Group – the programme will feature several surprising works by Cage.
Start: 10:30pm
Venue: Islington Mill

All events are free. To register, please visit https://supporters.salford.ac.uk/NetCommunity/SSLPage.aspx?pid=796

Creative Hive Live 29 May

Just a quick note to tell you that the programme for Creative Hive Live 29 May (2pm – 9pm) is now live at: www.creativehive.org/live/prog/

The event is a celebration of storytelling, media, music, performance, art, design and technology from the University and beyond. There will be wine tasting and a chance for free meals for you and your friends at Wagamama next door to the space. The event has an afternoon and an evening session and is free to attend for anyone that registers at:
www.creativehive.org/live/registration

CfP: Feminist Critical Analysis

Call for Applications for the upcoming Feminist Critical Analysis course, which will take place in Dubrovnik (Croatia) from May 28 to June 1. Note that the extended deadline is April 28, but we urge you to apply as soon as possible.

We would also like to draw your attention to the stipends offered to doctoral/PhD students by the Inter-University Center in Dubrovnik. You can find more information here: http://www.iuc.hr/hesp-osi.php.


Center for Gender Studies Jove Ilića 165 11000 Belgrade

---------------------------------

Feminist Critical Analysis
Inter-University Center (IUC), Dubrovnik
May 28th to June 1st, 2012

The Center for Gender and Politics of the Belgrade University (Political Science Department), Womens and Gender Studies at Rutgers of the State University of New Jersey, and the Department of Gender Studies of the Central European University (CEU) in Budapest are pleased to announce the next annual postgraduate course in

Feminist Critical Analysis: Science, Bodies and the New Materialism.

The course will be held at the Inter-University Centre, Dubrovnik (www.iuc.hr) from May 28 to June 1 (2012).

The course is co-directed by Dasa Duhacek, Center for Gender and Politics, University of Belgrade, Ethel Brooks, Womens and Gender Studies Department, Rutgers University and Anna Loutfi, Gender Studies Department, Central European University (CEU).

The course is built on the intellectual dialogue among a diverse body of scholars from different geographical locations and the participating faculty is drawn from different universities.

Topic

The seminar invites discussion of a key issue currently bringing together disciplines from across the humanities, social, physical and life sciences: the nature of materiality. What are the significant philosophical and theoretical contributions to materialism, past and present? Why does it become necessary for political or social theory to engage with particular ideas of materialism or materiality at certain historical junctures? What does it mean to speak of the social, cultural, political and historical meanings of natural or material concepts? How might the natural sciences incorporate social theories of ontology and agency, and how might the social sciences incorporate issues around materiality as they surface in, say, neurobiology or physics? How can knowledge help situate and make sense of embodiment and lived experience? We encourage explorations of ecological frameworks that challenge reductionist, mechanistic, and exclusively molecular approaches to life and living systems. We encourage reading and debate around the work of contemporary thinkers in the fields of biopolitics who interrogate the politics of life itself? (e.g.Giorgio Agamben). We also invite discussion around the work of the new materialists. This is a rich field that takes on a wide range of modern philosophical traditions. These include, but are not confined to, vitalistic theories (e.g.Henri Bergson, Gilles Deleuze), neo-Marxian materialisms (Bourdieu, Balibar), phenomenological accounts of agency and materiality (Merleau-Ponty, Heidegger), theories of psychic power as a materialist force in the world (Nietzsche, Freud), feminist re-engagements with materiality, lived experience and biology (Moira Gatens, Elizabeth Wilson, Coole and Frost, Elizabeth Grosz), as well as social scientific investigations of problems in the neurosciences, such as the problem of consciousness or the mind-brain relation (Fernando Vidal).

ELIGIBILITY

IUC courses are conducted at a postgraduate level. All postgraduate students interested in the topic may apply for participation. Participants should seek funds from their own institutions to cover travel and accommodation costs. Limited financial support is available for participants from Central and Eastern Europe. All meetings are conducted in English.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE

A short narrative (up to 250 words) explaining your interest in the topic and your C.V. with your current complete contact information should be submitted by e-mail;

Final deadline for applications is April 28, 2012

Please send your applications to the Center for Gender and Politics University of Belgrade, Faculty of Political Sciences, at studijeroda@fpn.bg.ac.rs with Dubrovnik 2012 in the subject heading.

Proposals are now invited for Hazard 2012

Deadline 6pm Friday 31 May 2012:

Hazard 2012 – Saturday 21 July 2012 – Manchester City Centre

Presented by Word of Warning, produced by hÅb and Larkin’ About in collaboration with the participating artists.

A micro-festival of incidental intervention and sited performance, with a hint of mischief! Chance encounters and random occurrences… cheeky, thought-provoking and sometimes raunchy sprees of eccentricity…

In a 2012 Britain, seemingly obsessed with the notion of games and playing, Manchester’s unique micro-festival of all things bizarre and mischievous returns for its fourth outing and is inviting you to come and play with the city… and to see if it will play along with you..!

So far we’ve wrapped Cathedral Gardens in fluttering hazard tape, given the image of banking a makeover, circumnavigated the city by canoe and created a wheelchair moonlanding… Look out for a flash of yellow and black to see what 2012 will bring…!

To date Hazard has produced three micro-festivals of sited performance and intervention - over 60 artists have taken to the streets of Manchester including: Action Hero, Alex Bradley, Angel Club North, Richard DeDomenici, Eggs Collective, Jordan McKenzie, Michael Pinchbeck, Mkultra, Shahram Entekhabi and the vacuum cleaner.

For a glimpse of previous city onslaughts go to hazardmcr.org

In 2012 we are seeking to do it all again, once more incorporating an outbreak of pervasive gaming courtesy of Larkin' About.

We are also looking for generous people to help support the project – so if you can spare a fiver (or more!) please have a look at our pitch here

CALL FOR PROPOSALS:

This year we are using St. Ann’s Square as our focal hub, with projects happening in, or radiating out from there.

We are now looking for proposals for work that intervenes in public spaces, for a daytime event (12-5pm) on Saturday 21 July in Manchester City Centre.

A small honorarium/expenses is available.

For details and to submit a proposal please go to hazardmcr.org

Closing Deadline 6pm Friday 31 May 2012
Contact: hazard@habarts.org

Slipknot ~ Exhibition and talk: Manchester Photographic Gallery

 

Paul Harries is Britain’s pre-eminent photographer of rock bands who play their music at volume! Over the course of more than two decades, if a group has emerged that are loud and proud of it, chances are its members have stood in the frame of this man’s lens. Paul has amassed a portfolio that amounts to nothing less than a rock fan’s dream. From an apprenticeship served in the photo pit at London’s legendary Marquee Club, he has risen to occupy the position of leading lensman for Kerrang! magazine, the world’s best-selling music weekly. Paul has closed his shutter on such groups as Nirvana, Muse, Green Day, Metallica, AC/DC, Biffy Clyro, Ozzy Osbourne, Red Hot Chili Peppers and, of course, the mighty Slipknot.


In celebration of Paul’s work with Slipknot for over 13 years ~ we are pleased to announce that an exhibition of his incredible photographs of the band, will take place at Manchester Photographic Gallery from Friday 13th April – Wednesday 2nd May. This exhibition was first held at The Strand Gallery, London in 2011 and was both a critical and commercial success.

This is the perfect opportunity to display Paul Harries’ fascinating work that has taken him all over the world. This includes Slipknot’s hometown of Des Moines, Iowa and as far away as Australia. Over sixty photographs will be on display, including behind the scenes and previously unseen images, only possible due to the trust and respect Slipknot has for Paul, allowing him exclusive access.

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‘Paul Harries ~ In Conversation’

Friday 13^th April, 6pm

(2hrs Approx)

Come and see what it takes to occupy the position of a leading lensman for Kerrang! Magazine, Paul will show images and discuss his work that has span more than two decades.

This discussion will be followed by questions from the audience, and a Photographic Exhibition Book signing- Tickets £5 (Redeemable off the Photographic Exhibition book)

Tickets available - 6 Tariff Street, Northern Quarter, Manchester, M1 2FF - 0161 236 7224 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 0161 236 7224 end_of_the_skype_highlighting or Email: bookings@manchesterphotographic.com

Salford "Skills and Enrichment" programme

The Careers and Employability Service are pleased to announce an exciting 2 day workshop run by two of our Enterprise Mentors, Naomi Timperley and Ketan Makwana, who were part of this year’s Enterprise Futures event, which we co-hosted with the Universities of Manchester and Manchester Metropolitan.

Skills Enrichment Programme: Enhancing Employability, Encouraging Enterprise

Monday 30^th April – Tuesday 1^st May, 9am-5pm
Location: Careers & Employability, University House, University of Salford

This “Skills Enrichment Programme: Enhancing Employability, Encouraging Enterprise” is a 16 hour programme in enterprise and entrepreneurship delivered by the Enterprise Lab. It includes sessions on idea generation, pitching and social media. It is delivered by Naomi Timperley who appeared on BBC’s “Dragon’s Den”, serial entrepreneur, Ketan Makwana and 2010 Future 100 “Future Young Entrepreneur” winner, Sabian Muhammad. For more information, please visit: www.careers.salford.ac.uk/page/enterpriseevents

If you are interested in attending this event it is free to attend but places are strictly limited, attendees must book a place and only register if they can attend on both days, 9am-5pm. Please email futures@salford.ac.uk to register your interest.

Salford's Kirsty Fairclough

Salford academic Kirsty Fairclough has established a new blog, with updates and links on her areas of expertise -- including celebrity studies, feminist theory and media, and Reality Television.

Link here

University of Salford Radical Studies Network: first two talks

Lord Heseltine to deliver next in VC’s Lecture Series

High-profile politician Lord Heseltine will be visiting the University on Thursday, 3 May, to deliver the fourth in the 2011/12 Vice-Chancellor’s Lecture Series entitled UK Competitiveness.

Tickets are limited and registration is recommended for the lecture, which will take place in the Lady Hale Building from 6pm.

More information / booking here

Wall of Sounds conference (13/May)

Manchester's Band on the Wall hosts this free conference on all aspects of the popular music business. Talks and live performances; info here.

Talk: ‘New Post Study Work Visa rules for Researchers’ (8/May)

Tuesday 8^th May – 2.00-3.00pm

Derwent Room, University House

Tahira Majothi, Careers Consultant and Dave Robinson, Visa Advisor

This is a additional workshop added to the SPoRT programme, in light of recent changes to the Post Study Work Visa, which came into effect in April 2012. It is aimed at international students who are interested in working or setting up a business in the UK upon completion of their PhD. Run jointly by Careers & Employability and an Specialist Visa Advisor from Student Life, this session will give a general overview of the legal framework around working in the UK. It will outline recent changes to the Post Study Work Visa rules, how they may affect you and how you can access support from services within Student Life.

To book, please use the SPoRT online booking system: http://www.pg.salford.ac.uk/obs/

Benjamin Halligan on Michael Reeves

Salford's Dr Benjamin Halligan will be at the BFI Southbank this Thursday night, introducing two films from the subject of his 2003 critical biography, "Michael Reeves" (Manchester Uni Press, 2003): a rare early short, "Intrusion", and a classic of Swinging London horror, "The Sorcerers" (with Boris Karloff, Ian Ogilvy and Susan George). Tickets via here and trailer here

Singing and dating potential?

Manchester auditions will be held 13 April; please contact them directly if you're up for it...!

MMP Grad Programme: Facts, Figures and Phone Hacking (28/3)

Facts, Figures and Phone Hacking: Ethical Problems in the British Press

Dr Carole O’Reilly, Senior Lecturer in Media & Cultural Studies, School of Media, Music and Performance, University of Salford

This talk will examine the long-standing problem of ethics among British journalists. It takes as its starting point a 1938 report into the British Press, which mirrors many of the concerns of the current Leveson Inquiry.

Ethical problems relate not solely to social, cultural and political changes in the wider society but also to fundamental changes in the structure and profession of journalism itself. An emphasis on ill-defined ethical frameworks may be masking the real and more pressing dilemma for British journalists – how to ensure the future viability of their occupation in a digital era.

3.10 - 4pm. Weds 28th March. 2nd floor lecture theatre, Adelphi House.

"The Smiths Project"

Message from Salford's Professor Tony Whyton

Project Leader, Rhythm Changes: Jazz Cultures and European Identities

We had a meeting of the Rhythm Changes project team in Lancaster last week, involving a number of international partners. As part of the three day event, Salford PhD student Nick Katuszonek presented a fantastic performance of his practice-based work at The Storey, one of the main arts venues in Lancaster. ‘The Smiths Project’, forms part of a wider study that explores the boundaries of genre and national stereotyping in jazz. If you would like to see a snippet of this, click on the following link: http://www.rhythmchanges.net/?p=1842

If you want to know more about the Lancaster event and the ongoing work of Rhythm Changes, check out our newly-revamped website www.rhythmchanges.net

SMMP Creative Hive Live Event at MediaCityUK 29 May 2012

Creative Hive and The School of Media, Music and Performance, MediaCityUK play host to an exciting creative digital collaboration event using state of the art technology on 29 May 2012, 2pm - 9pm.

Creative Hive Live will form the launch event for Salford University’s School of Media, Music and Performance final year shows, but will draw on the best talent of the University, other Universities and the best creative talent of the North-West of England.

Founder of Creative Hive, Alex Fenton explains, “Creative Hive is an organization based at the University whose goal is to provide real world opportunities and connections between people in education and industry. Creative Hive allows people to showcase their work digitally at www.creativehive.org and in person at physical events.” Alex continued, “We are really happy to be able to stage our latest event at this world class facility in MediaCityUK.”

Creative Hive Live will consist of interactive displays, storytelling, performances, installations, live events and more. The event will be an opportunity to make new contacts and learn from new mixed disciplinary collaborations. There will also be creative speed networking sessions using interactive touch tables allowing creative people to display and discuss their work using the latest technology.

Event curator Angela Tait said, “After the success of our previous events, we are excited about the possibilities that MediaCity brings. One of the primary aims of Creative Hive is to promote cross disciplinary cooperation within the creative industries and so we are particularly looking forward to welcoming collaborative enterprises in this fabulous digital showcase.”

The event will also provide employment opportunities for students and graduates to experience engaging work in this innovative new space. It is a chance to meet new people and potential employers over a glass of fine wine or to sit back and enjoy the event as it unfolds. For creatives, employers and industry the event will provide access to see some of the best emerging talent in the region in this exciting new space at MediaCity located in close proximity to the BBC and ITV.

Professionals and people from industry will tell their stories, promote their work and speak directly to potential new employees or placement candidates. The event is open to anyone to attend or submit an idea for inclusion in the event. The call for submissions and event registration for Creative Hive Live is now open. The event will be free of charge if you register soon at: http://www.creativehive.org/live/. The call for submissions closes on 26 March at 10am.

Hatherley on Pulp

Our thanks to Owen Hatherley (pictured here with Salford's Dr Michael Goddard) for his talk "Britpop vs Class Consciousness - the case of Pulp": artistic apprenticeships on the dole, structuralist influences on the early videos, the murky politics of Britpop, and anticipations of the Simon Cowell-isation of pop...

Manchester exhibition on The Smiths

The Gospel According To... (part 1)

16.03.12 - 04.05.12
Open Monday - Friday 10am - 4pm
Preview: 15 March 6-8pm

The Holden Gallery are pleased to present The Gospel According To... (part 1), a new exhibition conceived in collaboration with CUBE's Creative Director Jane Anderson. Through a range of media this show will explore connections between The Smiths (one of the most critically acclaimed and influential bands in British history) and the work of major contemporary European artists. Full info here. BBC coverage here.

HRH The Duke of Edinburgh to officially open University of Salford's MediaCityUK facility on Friday 23 March

His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh will officially open the University’s MediaCityUK facility on Friday 23 March – greeted by invited dignitaries and around one hundred specially invited University colleagues and students. Further information here.

The Distribution and Exhibition of Chinese and Asian Cinema in the UK

A Chinese Film Forum UK Symposium 28th – 29th March 2012
Cornerhouse, Manchester

Day 1: Wednesday 28th March 

12.00 Registration

12.45 – 1.00 Welcome and Opening Address 
1.00 – 2.00 Keynote Lecture
‘In absentia: marketing the Asian film author’
Dr Valentina Vitali, Reader in Film Studies, University of East London
Supported by the Research Institute for Cosmopolitan Cultures [RICC], the University of Manchester

2.15 – 3.00 Practitioners’ Panel I

‘Asian cinema and the UK arthouse market’
Jason Wood, Director of Programming, Curzon Cinemas

3.00–3.15 Coffee

3.15–4.00 ‘Issues concerning the distribution, exhibition and reception of “Pan-Asian” Cinema both within Asia and in the UK’
Roy Stafford, independent scholar

4.15–5.15 Practitioners’ Panel II

‘The role of specialised festivals and seasons’
Dr Sonali Joshi, Artistic Director, Pan-Asian Film Festival
Sarah Perks, Programme & Engagement Director, Cornerhouse, Manchester

6.00 – 8.00 Screening in conjunction with the Pan-Asian Film Festival, London

11 Flowers / Wo 11 (Wang Xiaoshuai, 2011)

‘An absorbing coming-of-age drama set during the waning stage of China's Cultural Revolution, 11 Flowers takes its place among Wang Xiaoshuai's finest films.’ Variety

We hope to welcome actor Wang Jingchun for a Q&A following the screening

Day 2: Thursday 29th March

10.00 – 10.45 ‘Pirates and Professionals: The Attitudes of Filesharers to Film Distribution Companies’
Dr Virginia Crisp, Middlesex University

10.45 – 11.00 Coffee

11.00 – 12.00 Practitioners’ Panel III
‘Issues in Distribution and Exhibition’
Mark Cosgrove, Head of Programming, Watershed Media Centre, Bristol
Ian Wild, Chief Executive, Showroom & Workstation, Sheffield

12.00 – 1.00 Lunch

1.00 – 2.00 ‘Pink Fans and Subversive Monsters: The Cultification of Japanese Cinema in the UK’
Joe Hickinbottom, University of Exeter
‘NEO Magazine and the Foregrounding of DVD’
Jonathon Wroot, University of East Anglia
2.00 – 2.45 ‘The Uncanny Disruption of British Chinese Cinema: Why British Chinese filmmakers find it hard to get their work distributed’
Rosa Fong, director and producer; and senior lecturer, Edge Hill University
2.45 – 3.15 Closing Remarks: Chinese Film Forum UK

Registration and Fee

The symposium fee includes the cost of refreshments, a buffet lunch on Thursday, 29th March, and admission to the screening of 11 Flowers, Wednesday, 28th March, 6:00pm.
Full £15 / Concs £10
Tickets are available from 9th March via the Cornerhouse box office or website at
http://www.cornerhouse.org/booking-information-prices
*Please note that numbers are strictly limited so early booking is strongly advised.*
For further information about the Chinese Film Forum UK, visit our website at www.cffuk.org
Chinese Film Forum UK events are supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council.

MMP Grad Programme talks 14 March: Internet PhDs + Pulp

Two talks this Weds in the MMP Grad Programme. Everyone welcome!

Internal speaker: Dr Richard Talbot. 3.10-4.00pm

Opportunities and challenges of an Internet-based PhD submission.

Richard Talbot will discuss the process of a web-based PhD project in Performance Studies. The discussion will consider the process of designing, programming, creating and developing content, content- management systems and the user interface. This paper will touch on some challenges with performance documentation and reflection in the context of PhD viva and final submission criteria. He will draw primarily on his own PhD by practice-as-research The Clown Who Lost His Memory: Multiple Faces of the Clown in Practice & Theory (University of Roehampton, 2008). See www.ninaandfrederick.co.uk/pollard

External Speaker: Owen Hatherley 4.10 - 5pm.

Owen Hatherley’s recent publications include the widely acclaimed A Guide to the New Ruins of Britain (Verso, 2011) and Militant Modernism and, on Pulp, Uncommon (Zero Books, 2009, 2011), as well as a chapter for Mark E. Smith and The Fall: Art, Music and Politics (ed. Michael Goddard and Benjamin Halligan, Ashgate, 2010). Hatherley is a regular contributor to Building Design, New Statesman and New Humanist and has also written for The Guardian, Icon, Socialist Worker and Socialist Review. He sits on the editorial boards of Archinect and Historical Materialism, and maintains three blogs, Sit down man, you're a bloody tragedy, The Measures Taken and Kino Fist. Owen's Guardian profile

Britpop vs Class Consciousness - the case of Pulp

Though it is doubtful that actual musicians ever saw it that way, the welfare state and British pop music were mutually dependent phenomena, and both died around the same time. This talk will consider how this starts to come to consciousness in the work of Pulp, an arguable final member of the art school pop lineage, who brought to the surface the largely suppressed class politics of the poujadist 90s pop movement known as Britpop.

All sessions: second floor lecture theatre, Adelphi House

Building 3 on page 3 of this map: http://www.salford.ac.uk/travel/campus-map.pdf

(NB: Not Adelphi Building, and beware of Google Maps that confuses the two).

If you need parking, please let Ben Halligan know ahead of time: b.halligan@salford.ac.uk

New Issue of Subjectivity on Collective Becomings / Bifo

** Article by Salford's Dr Michael Goddard ("Cinematic and aesthetic cartographies of subjective mutation"), concerning the work of Bifo, who delivered a talk at Salford in 2010. Journal can be downloaded for free, but only for a month.


New issue of the journal Subjectivity on the work of autonomist media theorist Franco ‘Bifo’ Berardi. The issue is freely available for the rest of March.

Subjectivity Volume 5 Issue 1 (April 2012)

Special Issue: Collective Becomings

Edited by Stevphen Shukaitis & Joanna Figiel

http://www.palgrave-journals.com/sub/journal/v5/n1/index.html

Franco ‘Bifo’ Berardi is a contemporary writer, autonomist theorist and media activist. He founded the magazine A/traverso (1975-1981), and was part of the staff of Radio Alice, the first pirate radio station in Italy (1976-1978). His work analyzes the role of media and information technology in post-industrial capitalism, in particular drawing from schizoanalysis and aesthetics to investigate processes of subjectification within precarious labor.

This issue of Subjectivity, which is the first major engagement with Bifo’s work in English, focuses on the themes of collective becomings, whether manifest in the eruption of new political movements, within the workings of the economy, or in the artistic sphere. It is not just a collection of essays that take Bifo’s ideas as their starting point, but rather a collection of essays that all start from the conjuncture of Bifo’s ideas, the issues and conditions raised by them, with forms of collective becomings in the present.

The purpose then is not to consider Bifo’s work in isolation, but rather to develop it as a tool, one that is explored through continued usage and application. This conjunctive approach is the most productive and valuable feature of Bifo’s writing, and autonomist analysis more generally: its ability to act as a kind of crossroads for bringing together different forms of political analysis and social theory, to act as a bridge between them.

#digcult12: Theory, Context and the Internet

13-14 June, 2012
University of Salford, MediaCity:UK
Registration details will be provided shortly: http://www.digcult.org/

Organizers
Ben Light and Marie Griffiths, University of Salford
Siân Lincoln, Liverpool John Moores University
Steve Sawyer, Syracuse University

Keynote Speakers:
Dr. Terri Senft, New York University, USA.
Everything I Ever Wanted to Know about Micro-celebrity, I Learned from the Camgirls

Professor James Newman, Bath Spa University, UK.
Dead games: the National Videogame Archive and the preservation of play
Conference Theme

In a world of virtual communication and social media, it can be argued that we face challenges regarding the theorization and contextualisation of Internet mediated activity. The desire to generate new knowledge coupled with the hyperbole and ‘upgrade me’ mindset that so often surrounds the Internet means that often new theoretical approaches are introduced as a way to understand current uses and meanings where perhaps they are not necessary. In terms of context, contemporary experiences can sometimes be decoupled from prior experiences, resulting in rhetoric of ‘the new’. The outcome of this can be an emphasis on discontinuity for example as demonstrated in discourses regarding the pre-Web 2.0 era. Web 2.0 is conceptualised as new, contextualised in a simplistic fashion and claims are made regarding the necessity of new theory to understand such a ‘revolutionary new world’. While clearly, societal change and socio-technical change are occurring variously across the planet (although the two may not necessarily be linked) continuity is also present – empirically and theoretically. There is therefore, a need to consider the history of Internet mediated arrangements and, to continue an interrogation of the abilities of extant theory to respond to and facilitate understandings of contemporary situations.

We call for contributions that do 2 things:

• One, engage with an aspect of Internet mediated activity and historically contextualise it
• Two, engage with/generate theoretical approaches in a reflexive fashion.

Themes that papers might address include (but are not limited to:
Dating, Commerce, Gaming, Politics, Play, Social networking, Privacy management, Sex work, Home working, Entertainment, Celebrity, Music production and consumption, Pornography, the intensification of work and Work-life balance, mediated youth cultures, learn/educate, health and well-being, travel/tourism, search information and media consumption, blurring boundaries between work and non-work times and places.

Following from the previous workshops, we see this conference as an outlet for digital media, ICT and technology related research which may not readily sit within conventional disciplinary areas.

We seek extended abstracts of up to 1000 words (excluding references) that engage with theory, context and the internet. We also welcome panel proposals incorporating three presentations. These should comprise 3 x 1000 word abstracts and an outline of the purpose of the panel of no more than 750 words.

We are hoping to see fully polished papers this year and as related to the conference theme. However, we will also consider research in progress/poster sessions for work that is more generally related to digital culture or which might be in earlier stages of development. Our desire for more focussed and complete work is two-fold. First, in engaging the structure as above, we hope to generate a more intensive and reflexive discussion about the Internet than might be possible with more fragmented approaches. Second, we intend the conference to be the starting point for an edited collection of papers in the area and contributors will be invited to submit to a wider call.

This follows in the tradition of previous conferences – for example, a special issue of the journal Information Technology and People entitled ‘Digital Culture: New Forms of Living and Organising , based partly on based on the 2010 workshop published in January 2011 (please see http://www.emeraldinsight.com/journals.htm?issn=0959-3845)

Abstracts should be submitted to Siân Lincoln at s.lincoln@ljmu.ac.uk by 6 April 2012. Please also email Siân if you require any further information at this stage.

4 x PhD studentships, University of Manchester

The Humanitarian and Conflict Response Institute (HCRI), University of Manchester, announces 4 PhD studentships - two in peacebuilding and two in any discipline. While these are primarily orientated to the social sciences, HCRI would welcome applications from students interested in the relations between the arts and humanitarianism.

More information at:

http://www.hcri.ac.uk/study/phd/index.htm#Studentships

Our thanks to Dr Sian Barber

Our thanks to Dr Sian Barber for her fantastic talk on the BBFC during the 1970s: it's fascinating to get this dispatch from the frontlines in term of the history of the organisation, as it is now being written, and the many myths that Sian dispelled in relation to -- as her book terms it -- "the decade that taste forgot"!

MMP Grad Programme talks, Weds 29 Feb

Internal session: Professor Seamus Simpson

Public Service Journalism and Converging Media Systems
Concepts and practices of public service have been an integral part of the evolution of communication media systems for decades in Europe and beyond. However, the process of media convergence has called forth an examination of the place of public service in communications. Ideas of public service have been an important part of the development of journalism and have too come under increasing pressure in the era of media convergence. This session will commence with an exploration of some of the key ideas that have shaped articulations of public service in media systems and journalism. It will then go on to explore some of the challenges and opportunities for public service journalism which have arisen from the development convergent media platforms and services. It will conclude by exploring the extent to which public service journalism is relevant today in our diverse-yet-converging, highly commercialised, digital multi-media systems.

External Speaker: Dr Sian Barber

Sian Barber is a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Department of Media Arts at Royal Holloway, University of London. She completed her PhD at the University of Portsmouth as part of the AHRC-funded 1970s project and has published on British cinema and cinema going. She has recently completed a book on the British Board of Film Censors in the 1970s which draws heavily on unused archive material. Her other research interests include cultural history in an online environment and the challenges posed by websites and the internet to methods of research. She is currently working on the EUscreen project which aims to provide online access to Europe’s television heritage.

Reading the BBFC archive: Film Censorship in the 1970s
This seminar will draw upon work recently undertaken at the British Board of Film Classification to explore film censorship in Britain in the 1970s. My examination of over 250 files offers new evidence about the operation and implementation of active film censorship in this period. Yet what can these individual files tell us about standards of permission and popular taste in a given period? And how can this material be used to further debates about film and censorship?

The BBFC files provide a wealth of unused material which reveals the operation, history and development of a crucial and often secretive part of the British film industry which deserves critical attention. Yet the BBFC itself is uncertain how best to present its material to researchers and is concerned about the way in which such material may be used and how it reflects upon them as an organisation. This talk will consider the ethical and practical issues of ‘reading’ this archive and how these challenges can be addressed to provide new insights into British film censorship, both historic and modern.

Times for All Sessions:

3.10 – 4pm:     Internal Speaker

4.15 - 5.10:      External Speaker

5.30:                King’s Arms for refreshments

All sessions: second floor lecture theatre, Adelphi House

Building 3 on page 3 of this map: http://www.salford.ac.uk/travel/campus-map.pdf

(NB: Not Adelphi Building, and beware of Google Maps that confuses the two).

University of Salford Nations & Regions Media Conference 2012

12 & 13 March 2012, Media City & The Lowry, Salford Quays

Exploring media production, policy and opportunity throughout the UK

Keynotes:

JEREMY HUNT MP, Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media & Sport; ADAM CROZIER, Chief Executive ITV; GEORGE ENTWISTLE, Director BBC Vision.

Confirmed Speakers:

Beryl Vertue, Tony Wood, David Davies, Barbara Slater, Moz Dee, Niall Sloane, David Wheeldon, Diane Coyle, Tom Gutteridge, Alex Connock, Gillian Reynolds, Mark Chapman, Pete Wishart MP, Nigel Smith, Phill Clark, Sunandan Wallia. Conference Chair Steve Hewlett.

Sessions:

· A VERY BRITISH DRAMA: With British TV exports now a £1.4bn business, the incentive to create the next hit drama has never been greater. We explore the snakes and ladders of making great international drama.

· STRUCTURED REALITY – THE INSIDE STORY: We peer past the fake tans, six packs and vajazzles to find out exactly how structured reality is produced.

· INDEPENDENT TELEVISION?: With the question of Scottish independence soaring up the political agenda we ask the SNP’s Westminster spokesperson for Culture, Media & Sport what independence would mean for the UK’s radio and television sectors.

· A QUESTION OF SPORT: Our ‘who’s who’ of sports media panel explores how well are consumers served by the current sports media landscape.

· WATCHING THE RADIO: Is radio visualisation the key to keeping radio relevant amongst a mass of digital media? We explore the oldest of broadcast media’s newest trick.

· DIANE COYLE: The Vice Chairman of the BBC Trust in conversation with Steve Hewlett.

· IF I WERE JEREMY HUNT: What would you do if you were the person in charge of broadcasting in the UK? Three industry professionals tell us what they would do if they were the Secretary of State.

Plus BBC ACADEMY WORKSHOPS exploring 3D, HD, and pitching - FREE and EXCLUSIVE to our delegates. Places are strictly limited and are going very quickly – don’t miss out on this great chance to access an afternoon of fabulous free training from the BBC!

Register Now: www.nationsandregionsmedia.org

Twitter: @nationsregions

Salford PGRs: free to attend, but email Maxine McKeever by 6/3 to register: m.mckeever@salford.ac.uk