Coming together for a cosmolocal purpose should be soulful, fun and funny. These two event-makers show how
We’re always on the look-out for new kinds of meeting and event, which combine the convivial and the deliberative. We came upon these organisations - Don’t Sleep On Us, and Freedom and Balance, as they collaborated at a recent “conversation game” at London’s Rich Mix venue, called Sandcastles. As they described it:
A playground for grown ups, SANDCASTLES is a space that mixes games, music, creativity and good conversation. An evening for anyone who wants to be a little more playful on their Friday nights.
So far, so fun. But dig into these organisations a little more, and you find some fascinating practices and ethics - close to the kind of creativity and friendliness around collective action that we associate with the CAN concept.
Freedom and Balance turn out to be a collective of artists and educators who believe they are reinventing the idea of the art school - as a tool-kit for living and thriving in society, as much as a craft and history of art. They devise curricula that happen on a weekly or seasonal basis - see some of their courses below [screen grab, link here for live connections]:
Their culture comes through in their FAQs":
What do you mean when you say ‘Art College’?
A community of people who produce art. We also call this community the Alumni.
What do you mean when you say ‘Artist’?
Anyone who works with heart.
What do you mean when you say ‘education’?
The process of understanding your world better through exploration.
What do you mean when you say ‘curriculum’?
A big question, explored through small questions, packaged as creative exercises.
What do I ACTUALLY learn in a Freedom & Balance curriculum?
Besides what each curriculum suggests: Creative literacy. Emotional Intelligence. Entrepreneurship.
What’s that useful for?
The personal, professional and social aspects of your life.
Don't Sleep On Us comes from a slang phrase - ‘Don’t sleep on’, used to describe a person who should not be underestimated. They explain their event philosophy:
In our case, it’s a term which warns not to underestimate the Global Majority… We bring people from minoritised backgrounds together in a way which hasn’t been done before. DON’T SLEEP ON US is networking done differently.
Our events are exhilarating with a dancefloor and DJ, laugh out loud funny moment and an anti-cliquey vibe. Feedback from our community shows our audience feels heard, seen and understood - a feeling of being at home.
When we started in April 2018, our aim was to leave everyone feeling like they can take on the world. To send a message from our community that we will no longer be underestimated at work and in wider society.
This was the start of many large scale events. DON’T SLEEP ON US is now a thriving community of over 1500 people having attended at least one event, and a newsletter reaching over 700 change makers. You can watch some short videos of the events here.
An event in Feb this year, Unbamed, clearly articulates their “community”. The event’s topic was how “black and non-Black people of colour have historically been grouped together as a monolith, and why it’s essential to unravel our diaspora identities in all their multitudes.” Umbamed was a mix of DJs, dancing and performing, with designed conversations and open-mic moments.
Their collaboration earlier this month focused on a conversation card game called Sandcastles, designed by Freedom & Balance, examples below:
In our exploration of cosmolocal community structures (called CANs), we are looking for the combination of elements that these organisations are providing - strong traditions of collective joy and conviviality, but with either an agency or a plan of action arising from, or framing, the revelries. We’d love to hear from both organisations, to see what we can get up to!