A FESTIVAL OF FOOTBALL IDEAS
‘HEADING’ TO BRISTOL
THIS SUMMER!
What
do you think about when you think about football
fans? The majority of people are
likely to say the same few things. Most
people would not associate football fans with art and literature: football fans
aren’t meant to read poetry, and artists certainly aren’t meant to like
football. However, with this summer’s World Cup in Brazil imminent, SHOP and a group
of Bristol artists and football enthusiasts decided now was the time to put
these stereotypes to bed and realise a long-held dream at the same time. Thus, the Festival of Football Ideas was born: a two week long celebration of
football, literature, art, film and
music.
SHOP's Brett said of his own experience: “At art school I would often use
football as a theme for my work. However,
I was repeatedly told football wasn’t an
appropriate subject for art. I used
to think to myself, those people had obviously never seen Eric Cantona’s volley against Wimbledon
in ‘94. Since then, I’ve always been
interested in marrying up my two loves.”
The Festival of Football Ideas will
take place in the most appropriate Bristol
landmark for such an event – The Big Silver Football on Millennium Square, or as it is usually
known, The At-Bristol Planetarium. The Festival will run each night from Friday 30th May – Saturday June
14th in the build-up to the World Cup and will feature talks and performances from artists, academics, musicians, playwrights
and comedians, including:
·
Broadcaster, writer and FA-commissioned
poet, Musa Okwonga
·
Photography from Olivia Mann and Alison Palmer, who
have been following the England Women’s Team
·
The Guardian’s Daniel Harris. Carrie Dunn and writer
for The Independent and Mirror, Darren
Richman
·
A DJ live sound-tracking the
first round tie between Spain
and Holland
·
Playwright, Paul Jenkins performing his BBC Radio 4
commissioned play, Red Star Newport.
·
Academics, Dr
Jean Williams from DMU, and Dr
Mike O’Mahony from UoB,
·
Experimental art-works
created by Bristol-based CFPR Editions
and Colourstory.
Each evening will consist of two
talks, split into two ‘halves’ of 45 minutes, with a half time break –
oranges are optional. Tickets for most events will be £5 and can be booked
through the website from the end of April.
The Festival is not-for
profit and has been created, curated and run entirely by a group of friends
and volunteers, for the love of Football
and Art. Brett again: “A few
years ago I visited the Arnolfini in Bristol
with my friend and co-organiser of the festival, David Abbott. We went to watch a double bill of football
films and were excited at the thought that Art had invited Football into one of
its hallowed institutions. We looked forward to meeting
kindred-spirits. On entering the
auditorium, we found there were only three other people there. By the end of the first film, it was just the
two of us left. This experience planted
the seed of the idea for the festival. I knew there were plenty of artists and
creative people who also liked football – we just had to gather them all
together.”
***********************
FFI:
Website: www.fofi.org.uk
Twitter: @Bristol_FOFI
Facebook: The
Festival of Football Ideas
People who like football are people, just like us. Some of these
people have other interests too. Some of them creative ones. It turns out
artists like football.
Poets like football. Academics, writers, comedians and even
musicians; they all like football. Many
of them even love it. Sometimes they all overlap gloriously.
Imagine. This is the
Festival of Football Ideas.
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