Back in January 2011 thinkARK arranged an evening of ‘anti-quiz’ at Cardiff Arts Institute as part of their Future/Cardiff project. The quiz took form in several rounds – first a warm up round to get people engaged with things they might know about Cardiff, moving to rounds that encouraged the participants to think hard about what they really knew about their city, and the people they engage with – from their neighbours to Cardiff heroes. Other questions ranged from examining empty properties and landmarks around Cardiff and what they could be used for, and mapping where they thought a difference to their community could be made, or the three best places in Cardiff they had kissed someone.
The prize for the evening was ‘knowledge’ and the sharing and learning from it – all who came had ideas for its future, whether it was based in the realms of planning, sustainable development, community building and engagement, or the arts.
The night was attended by about 25 people, from many different backgrounds, and all were absorbed debating the ‘answers’ amongst their teams – many of the discussions were full of memories and heart-felt love for Cardiff and how it could be improved, and how to preserve the best parts for the future. Answers were not necessarily right or wrong, and the event provoked discussion, lateral thinking and laughter among the participants.
Groups came up with words to describe Cardiff ranging from beautiful, creative, friendly and vibrant to the less complimentary - decaying, unfulfilled and soulless. Ideas for unused spaces and empty buildings in the picture round (Callaghan Square and SPIN building (formerly The Gaiety) on City Road) included calls for a skateboard park, outdoor pool, work pods or food market; and for the building, a Chapter East, community centre, theatre, circus school, or mosque.
See more photos on our Flickr page – the evening’s discussions and ideas were recorded by Jordan Harrison from the University of Glamorgan, and is available now at www.jghaudio.wordpress.com
Back in January 2011 thinkARK arranged an evening of ‘anti-quiz’ at Cardiff Arts Institute as part of their Future/Cardiff project. The quiz took form in several rounds – first a warm up round to get people engaged with things they might know about Cardiff, moving to rounds that encouraged the participants to think hard about what they really knew about their city, and the people they engage with – from their neighbours to Cardiff heroes. Other questions ranged from examining empty properties and landmarks around Cardiff and what they could be used for, and mapping where they thought a difference to their community could be made, or the three best places in Cardiff they had kissed someone.
The prize for the evening was ‘knowledge’ and the sharing and learning from it – all who came had ideas for its future, whether it was based in the realms of planning, sustainable development, community building and engagement, or the arts.
The night was attended by about 25 people, from many different backgrounds, and all were absorbed debating the ‘answers’ amongst their teams – many of the discussions were full of memories and heart-felt love for Cardiff and how it could be improved, and how to preserve the best parts for the future. Answers were not necessarily right or wrong, and the event provoked discussion, lateral thinking and laughter among the participants.
Groups came up with words to describe Cardiff ranging from beautiful, creative, friendly and vibrant to the less complimentary - decaying, unfulfilled and soulless. Ideas for unused spaces and empty buildings in the picture round (Callaghan Square and SPIN building (formerly The Gaiety) on City Road) included calls for a skateboard park, outdoor pool, work pods or food market; and for the building, a Chapter East, community centre, theatre, circus school, or mosque.
See more photos on our Flickr page – the evening’s discussions and ideas were recorded by Jordan Harrison from the University of Glamorgan, and is available now at www.jghaudio.wordpress.com
For everyone interested in ARK's project 5 – which will be involved in all of the other projects during the next few months – a Wiki has been setup for the beginning of the online Word Hospital.
ARK - Wiki can be found here
Following ARK's launch at the ATRiuM, Cardiff. We have now come up with the first few projects that we will be working on in the coming months.
Project 1 - Lost & Found
It's now been nearly two months and we have setup a small but promising little club. Initially we had started with no name and 'Wednesday Club' was coined by Lyns. We have now finally come up with something which we think fits 'ARK'. We are all very happy with it, and look forward to posting more of our thoughts. As you may have guessed we meet on Wednesday's in Cardiff.
Why not come along to our meeting on Wednesday evenings and see how you can get involved! Click here to view our calendar.
