Website – DADI Awards 2010

Now in their fourth year the DADI Awards, in association with Leeds Live it Love it, has become synonymous with digital effectiveness, where agencies, clients and individuals from across the UK show the depth of their online thinking and the breadth of their digital design.  The panel were looking for evidence of clear strategic thinking, innovation and effectiveness and they were extremely impressed with the entries.

The museum’s website was submitted by our digital agency Reading Room.  We are delighted that we are one of five finalists in the Best Not-For-Profit/Charity website or campaign category.

The results will be revealed and the trophies handed out at the awards ceremony taking place on Friday 12 November in the Royal Armouries in Leeds.

Left Bank cafe bar – Manchester Food and Drink Festival Awards 2010

Our new cafe bar, The Left Bank, has been shortlisted for an award as part of this year’s Manchester Food and Drink Festival. 

The Manchester Food and Drink Festival Awards provide a benchmark for excellence in the hospitality industries throughout Greater Manchester.  The judges had some tough decisions to make this year, resulting in a very strong set of contenders in all categories.

The Left Bank cafe bar is shortlisted in the Best Coffee Shop or Casual Dining Venue and is up against five other venues.  Now you can have your say and vote for your favourite.  Go to the Food and Drink Festival website to vote for The Left Bank cafe bar.

The Gala Dinner and Awards ceremony will be held on 11 October at The Hilton Hotel Manchester where the award winners will be announced.

Building – Building of the Year Award 2010

The museum is one of seven Greater Manchester buildings in the running for a prestigious local award. The developments are all being considered for the Greater Manchester Building of the Year Award 2010 awarded by Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce.

The list of potential winners includes three Stockport developments the redeveloped Aquinas College, the Stockport Plaza restoration, and the Stockport College Town Centre Campus project. These are joined by the Point at Lancashire County Cricket Club, the new Patient Treatment Centre at the Christie, the People’s History Museum and 1 New York Street in Manchester city centre.

A final shortlist will be announced next month with the winning project being announced at the Section’s Annual Dinner at the Hilton Manchester on 14 October and the award will be presented by Sir Howard Bernstein.

For more information visit the Chamber of Commerce website.

On 16 August 1819 hundreds of people gathered on St Peter’s Fields to hear Henry Hunt speak about social and political reform.  It was a peaceful meeting but interrupted by the cavalry charging the crowd and fifteen people died and more than 600 people were injured.  It became known as the Peterloo Massacre. 

In recognition of the anniversary of the Peterloo Massacre, the Lord Mayor of Manchester will visit different points of interest around the city which are linked to this important historical event.

10.45am – Peterloo Blue Plaque, located on Southmill Street (off Peter Street) on the side of the former Free Trade Hall building (now the Radisson Edwardian Hotel).

11.15am – John Rylands Library, 150 Deansgate
An historic manuscript recording compensation given to those injured in the 1819 massacre will be viewed by the Lord Mayor. It has recently been chosen by Unesco as a ‘memory of the world’ to protect and promote significant archive material.

12.05pm – People’s History Museum, Left Bank, Spinningfields
The new museum galleries start with a permanent display about Peterloo. 

The Lord Mayor of Manchester, Councillor Mark Hackett, will take part in a historic trail around the city tracing important items and documents relating to Peterloo.

The blue plaque, which pays tribute to the events of 1819 is located on the site of St Peter’s Fields where the meeting was held (now the Radisson Edwardian Hotel) and this is the first location the Lord Mayor will go to pay his respects.

He will then visit John Rylands Library to view an important historical document, detailing the compensation paid to the victims of Peterloo. Unesco – United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation – has identified the document as a ‘memory of the world’, which should be preserved as part of a project to protect and promote significant archive material.

The Lord Mayor’s tour will then end at the People’s History Museum, which tells the story of Britain’s struggle for freedom and democracy over two centuries.  The story begins with the Peterloo Massacre and it is this section of the story that the Lord Mayor is visiting specifically.  Among items of interest on display is a truncheon taken from a Special Constable at Peterloo by the great-great grandfather of Thomas Stone Williams, a former Lord Mayor of the city. After taking the truncheon, Williams’ ancestor is then said to have hidden in a public house in Factory Lane on the corner of Rochdale Road, Barnes Green. The truncheon was donated by the Williams family in 1999 and is now on display in the Peterloo section of the new museum.

The Lord Mayor of Manchester, Councillor Mark Hackett said: “The 16 August marks Manchester’s proud history of fighting for democracy, freedom and justice and we should remember all those Mancunians who gave their lives for this cause.

“We must preserve this history in order that future generations can learn about the city’s radical past and I am very much looking forward to following this historical tour around the city to commemorate such an important date in our history.”

Plans are currently underway to create a permanent monument in the city to honour Peterloo, which will be located in St Peter’s Square as part of the town hall transformation project.

Produced by the International Brigade Memorial Trust, the exhibition sets out the reasons why the volunteers took the extraordinary decision to risk their lives in a foreign war – in which more than 500 of them died. The role of the British Battalion in many of the key battles in Spain is described, along with brief biographies of outstanding individuals who took part.  Antifascistas also details the heroic work of the medical volunteers in makeshift hospitals near the front line.

In addition, the exhibition considers the cultural and artistic impact of the International Brigades and their historical legacy, underlining the importance today of remembering their example of international solidarity.

Using many contemporary photographs and striking images, Antifascistas brings to life the idealism, commitment and sacrifice of these exceptional men and women who served in the International Brigades and continued the fight against fascism during the Second World War and beyond.

For further information about the International Brigades, visit their website www.international-brigades.org.uk

With the museum only re-opening a few months ago after a £12.5 million redevelopment, it will now welcome a new Director to lead the team who have delivered the project.

Katy Archer will start as Director on Monday 9 August.  She comes from a museum background having worked in the sector for the last 12 years; starting out at the National Railway Museum in York before taking up posts at the Royal Engineers Museum, Leeds Museums and Galleries and most recently the Galleries of Justice Museum in Nottingham.

Katy’s previous post in Nottingham was Director of the National Centre for Citizenship and the Law (NCCL); the educational division of the Galleries of Justice Museum which operates on a regional and national scale. Katy’s role as Director was to provide strategic direction and vision for NCCL, to oversee the programme of award-winning learning services and to lead the fundraising and business development activities needed to sustain this independent museum in the East Midlands. During her time in Nottingham Katy successfully secured funding from local government for commissioned services and from national government for NCCL’s work at the Galleries of Justice as well as for the planned creation of a National Centre for Citizenship in London in 2011.

Katy Archer said;
“I am extremely excited to be joining the People’s History Museum as Director at such a significant time in the museum’s history and development.  It is the start of a new era for the museum where we will be building on the successes of the past and looking forwards to new opportunities for development and growth.  With our new and improved building, galleries, exhibitions, learning services and resources, as well as our fantastic collections, our library and archive and our conservation studio; we have everything in place for the museum to take its place at the forefront of the sector in the North West and nationally.  I’m looking forward to working with the team to make this happen!”

Nick Mansfield joined the People’s History Museum in 1989. He was responsible for the opening of its first premises at 103 Princess Street and the development of its Textile Conservation Studio and the Labour History Archive and Study Centre. This included the acquisition of the collections of the Labour Party, the Communist Party of Great Britain and the Department of Work and Pensions. In 1994, the museum opened its second site at the Pump House and earlier this year the £12.5 million refurbishment and enlargement was completed. During Nick’s time, the museum became accredited and its collections were ‘designated’ as nationally important.  A respected historian as well as a museum Director, Nick is leaving the People’s History Museum to pursue an academic career and has been appointed Senior Research Fellow in History at the University of Central Lancashire in Preston.

Wed 28 July
Story Time – Mr Ordinary’s Prize
Someone has stolen Mr Ordinary’s Thinking and Doing!  What will he do without them?  Join in the adventure as Mr Ordinary and his friends try to get them back. 
Suitable for under 7s and their grown ups. 
Booking required.
£1
11.00am – 12.00pm

Tues 3 August
Create A Crowd!
Come and get creative with clay by making your own character to add to our People’s History crowd.
Suitable for all ages.
No booking required.
£1.50
1.30pm – 3.30pm

Mon 9 August
Print Power!
Get messy with mono and poly printing and learn about the signs and symbols you will see around the museum.
Suitable for all ages.
No booking required.
Free
1.30pm – 3.30pm

Thurs 12 August
Mary Poppins
As part of the Family Friendly Film Festival the museum is screening the classic family film, Mary Poppins.  This includes a lot of creative activities and an exclusive chance to explore the galleries after hours.  Fancy dress optional.
Book direct with Family Friendly Film Festival or call Quay tickets on
0843 208 0500.
Free
5.30pm – 10.00pm

Tues 17 August
Fab Felt Banners
Have a go at felt making and be inspired by the museum’s brilliant banners to make your own felted mini banner.
Suitable for over 5s.
Booking advised.
£2
1.30pm and 2.30pm

Wed 18 August
Story Time – Beeing Special
Follow Little Bee’s adventures to find out how he becomes the hero of Victorian Manchester.
Suitable for under 7s and their grown ups.
Booking required.
£1
11.00am – 12.00pm

 
Mon 23 August
Get Carried Away with Collage!
Put yourself in the picture and get involved with our colossal collage on the Engine Hall floor – inspired by the photographs in our fantastic Carried Away exhibition.
Suitable for all ages.
No booking required.
Free
1.30pm – 3.30pm

Mon 6 September
Story Time – Under the Rainbow
Help Matilda solve clues to get to the end of the rainbow and find what she is looking for.
Suitable for under 5s and their grown ups.
Booking required.
£1
11.00am – 12.00pm

To make a booking contact People’s History Museum on 0161 838 9190 or info@phm.org.uk

Leanne Tonkin has been studying in our Textile Conservation Studio since September 2009 and has now been offered a full time job as a Conservator at the museum – watch her at work on this short video on youtube  

Skills for the Future offers work-based training in a wide range of skills that are needed to look after buildings, landscapes, habitats, species, and museum and archive collections, as well as equipping people to lead education and outreach programmes, manage volunteers and use new technology.  Its focus is on vocational learning, helping meet the skills gaps identified by heritage bodies, and on encouraging potential trainees from all walks of life.  Trainees will learn how to engage families, schools and communities with their heritage, bringing heritage sites and collections alive for the next generation. 

For more information about the initiative see the HLF website

Find out more about the Mapping Memory project.

From the moment when, as a little girl, she realizes that her skin is a different colour from that of her beloved mum and dad, to the tracing and finding of her birth parents, her Highland mother and her Nigerian father, the journey that Jackie Kay undertakes in Red Dust Road is full of unexpected twists, turns and deep emotions.

In a book shining with warmth, humour and compassion, she discovers that inheritance is much more than genes: that we are shaped by songs as much as by cells, and that our internal landscapes are as important as those through which we move.  Taking the reader from Glasgow to Lagos and beyond, Red Dust Road is revelatory, redemptive and courageous, unique in its voice and universal in its reach.  It is a heart-stopping story of parents and siblings, friends and strangers, belonging and beliefs, biology and destiny, and love.

Jackie Kay was born in Edinburgh and brought up in Glasgow. She is a poet, playwright, novelist and writer of short stories and has enjoyed great acclaim for her work for both adults and children. Her novel Trumpet won the Guardian Fiction Prize, and she has published two collections of stories with Picador, Why Don’t You Stop Talking? and Wish I Was Here. She teaches at Newcastle University and lives in Manchester.

Free

To book contact the People’s History Museum on 0161 838 9190 or info@phm.org.uk

Jackie Kay is available for interview.  For further information, please contact Camilla Elworthy on 020 7014 6178 or at c.elworthy@macmillan.co.uk

Over 50 Venture Arts students have been working on Open Book for the past year. The artworks explore the many different interpretations of what a book might be, using a wide range of materials including tin, wool, old plastic bags, ceramics, 3D, and collage.

This exhibition makes a substantial contribution to promoting a positive image of people with learning disabilities, as well as being a significant showcase for their creative achievement, and how transforming that can be.

Thursday 29 April 2010 @ 7.30pm

The museum is delighted to be hosting a special event next Thursday evening (29 April) by Future Everything. 

Please join us for a live audiovisual remix of the third UK General Election TV debate.  In the apt surroundings of the new museum, view Brown, Cameron and Clegg in their final showdown, as artists Sosolimited offer a dizzying array of word-usage analysis, highly stylised charts and visualisations, and an illuminating perspective on what the candidates are actually saying.

Sosolimited, a stunning USA design group, use custom software allowing them to sample and analyse the video, audio, and closed captioned text of the television signal. Reconstituting the material, it reveals linguistic patterns, exposes content and structures, and fundamentally alters the way in which the debates are watched.

The performance turns politics into entertainment and also serves to dissect and analyse in real time the content of the debates. The legibility of the debates is maintained throughout the performance – we don’t want the audience to miss a word of it.

To book a ticket (they’re free), go to

http://sosolimited.eventbrite.com/

This event is a trailblazer for the forthcoming FutureEverything Festival which runs from 12-15 May 2010.

Sosolimited is an art and design consultancy formed in 2003. The group specialises in interactive installation and audiovisual performance. Working at the leading edge of technology, they create immersive works that play on the immediacy of live media. Formed by three MIT graduates with backgrounds in physics, computer science, architecture, and music, SoSoLimited operates at the intersection of experience and information. They continue to create unique works for clients and galleries around the world. http://www.sosolimited.com/

The festival formerly known as Futuresonic – after 15 years, Futuresonic returns as FutureEverything, at venues across Manchester, 12-15 May 2010.  World premieres of astonishing artworks, an explosive city-wide music programme, and visionary thinkers from around the world across 4 festival strands – Art, Music, Ideas and Showcase.  FutureEverything is an award winning, world class organisation using mass participation in creativity and social innovation to bring the future into the present. It has a strong global network and international profile, and is recognised around the world for leading pioneering projects and important international debates. In 2009, the audience for the festival was 75,000, and the media footprint was 48.5 million (SKV). www.futureeverything.org