City – Page 2 – Arts at University of Southampton Blog

SOTSEF 2020: artist Susannah Pal reflects on her exhibition, ‘Stopping the E Waste Tsunami’

Between 8 and 15 March, for Southampton Science and Engineering Festival (SOTSEF) 2020, artist Susannah Pal took up residence and exhibited a range of oil paintings and ink collages in the foyer of University of Southampton’s Hartley Library.

Susannah’s exhibition focused on the problems of eWaste, the fastest growing waste stream in the world, and was the result of a collaboration with Professor Ian Williams of the Faculty of Engineering and Physical Science.

Back in March, much of the original SOTSEF 2020 festival – including the annual Southampton Science and Engineering Day – had to be suddenly postponed due to the then increasing threat posed by COVID-19. Susannah’s exhibition was able to go ahead, however.

Now, the resourceful SOTSEF team at University of Southampton’s Public Engagement with Research Unit have brought the festival back in digital form, with activity taking place between May 22 and July 25 of this year.

To coincide with the digital rebirth of SOTSEF, we are publishing a blog post by Susannah Pal in which she reflects on her exhibition and the experiences she had during the original SOTSEF week.

#InternInsights, a Friday night concert and Turner Sims’ top 5 online music highlights

The team at Turner Sims have been working hard in the run up to the first week of term, preparing a feast for your ears to support you through that ‘back to school’ feeling.

This Friday 24 April, Turner Sims is streaming a free-to-watch concert from Clara Sanabras and Harvey Brough to help you wind down after a week of study and their team of student Interns have been busy preparing the soundtrack to your week in their #InternInsights playlist series. To top it all off, Turner Sims has provided a round-up of their top 5 online music recommendations to be enjoyed during lockdown.

The Ancient Mariner Big Read and John Hansard Gallery’s online arts recommendations

In the week that we welcome students back to a new term at University of Southampton, we’ve got a veritable toolbox of cultural wellbeing goodies lined up for you to dive in to. Though so much has changed, we’re #InThisTogether and here to help you relax with your culture fix.

In our first blog post of the term, we share details of an amazing online cultural project hot-off-the-press – The Ancient Mariner Big Read – launched this weekend. We also bring you a top 5 choice of online cultural encounters to be had, selected by the team at the University’s own John Hansard Gallery – enjoy! Stay tuned for another top 5 recommendations from the team at Turner Sims, coming up later in the week.

The Show Must Go Online: animating Arts at University of Southampton in the digital sphere

hrm199 (Siobhan Coen and Haroon Mirza), *Dreamachine 2.0,* 2019. Courtesy hrm199. Photo: Thierry Bal

During these challenging times and faced with the new normal, Arts at University of Southampton is joining our friends at Mayflower Theatre, Southampton, in pledging that The Show Must Go On(line).

John Hansard Gallery and Turner Sims are both exploring ways to focus their energies within the digital sphere, seeking to animate online spaces to bring you inspiring art and culture. Alongside this, Arts at University of Southampton’s digital channels will be dedicated to sharing with you the best of the arts to be accessed remotely. We’ll also be inviting the talented creatives and artists in our own team to contribute ideas and showcase their practice.

Kindred: Thoughts on a Work in Progress

by Thea Hartman, Arts Ambassador

A well-known figure in the Southampton arts scene, as well as an Artist Facilitator for the University of Southampton-led project Connecting Culture (focused on understanding the impact of the arts on Southampton-based young people aged 5-25), Anna Carr is a theatre maker who works across different platforms to create autobiographical theatre experiences.

Kindred is one such experience. The self-produced show, exploring the story of Carr’s grandparents and seeking to understand the harrowing experience of abuse undergone by her grandmother, was part of the a celebration of Sotonian theatre, the Make it SO Festival. The festival took place in NST City’s Studio space across most of February and showcased 19 ‘work-in-progress’ productions, proving just how much exciting theatre is being made locally.