Dreaming Utopias event
The Dreaming Utopias event took place on Saturday 30th of April 2016 at Bow Church.
The event aimed to provide an open space for local people to dream about their ideal places (their Utopias) and the future of Bow. The day offered a variety of creative activities and opportunities to reflect, to talk to one another, interact with artists and create visions of a utopian Bow.
One hundred and forty people engaged with the activities in some way.
We set up a table outside the church and a lot of people talked to us about their Bow Utopia. We asked them to write a word on a label to express what utopia means for them. The labels were tied to helium balloons that were attached to the church railings to create a tapestry of ideas and dreams.
The event aimed to provide an open space for local people to dream about their ideal places (their Utopias) and the future of Bow. The day offered a variety of creative activities and opportunities to reflect, to talk to one another, interact with artists and create visions of a utopian Bow.
One hundred and forty people engaged with the activities in some way.
We set up a table outside the church and a lot of people talked to us about their Bow Utopia. We asked them to write a word on a label to express what utopia means for them. The labels were tied to helium balloons that were attached to the church railings to create a tapestry of ideas and dreams.
A good number of people also ventured inside. They were greeted by a slideshow presenting the history of utopias through architectural, artistic and community renditions of utopias relating to place.
Further into the church participants could engage in dreaming, talking and making pictures and models of utopias.
The dreaming space was a small semi-transparent cubicle with soft furnishings in which participants could listen to voices and dreams about utopias. The voices were streamed from an area outside this cubicle containing a recording box where everybody could record their own dream of a utopia. Over thirty people shared their dreams, creating a highly emotional and reflective experience.
The dreaming space was a small semi-transparent cubicle with soft furnishings in which participants could listen to voices and dreams about utopias. The voices were streamed from an area outside this cubicle containing a recording box where everybody could record their own dream of a utopia. Over thirty people shared their dreams, creating a highly emotional and reflective experience.
The centre of the space was more focused on making, using a variety of arts and crafts materials. Some people simply wrote their thoughts about aspects of utopias on a piece of card and attached it on a washing line of ideas. Others created their own images, collages, and models of their ideas.
Many themes emerged from the discussions and the artefacts, voices and texts produced. Participants valued the opportunity to walk into a space where they were free to wander around, explore other people’s creations, and share their ideas. The focus on dreaming helped create a playful and relaxed environment. People talked about community, and about core values such as understanding, listening, talking to one another. They talked about peace and conflict, about beating racism, about learning, about play. They talked about greener places. They talked about their love of Bow and about their fights to make places more inclusive for everyone.
There are many lessons to be learned from this event and hope to share more here as we analyse and collate our observations and experiences.
If you want to talk to us please email [email protected]
There are many lessons to be learned from this event and hope to share more here as we analyse and collate our observations and experiences.
If you want to talk to us please email [email protected]
The event was led by the Prototyping Utopias project team: Katerina Alexiou and Theodore Zamenopoulos from the Open University; and Louise Dredge and Sophia de Sousa from The Glass-House Community Led Design. The activities were organised and delivered with the help of Simon Daw (artist), Paul Burgess (artist), Georgy Holden (Open University), Becky Payne and Ruchit Purohit (Open University). Bow Church kindly offered the use of the space and like Bow Arts, Bromley by Bow Centre and Poplar HARCA helped disseminate invitations to local people.
