Agile City Newsletter – April / May
Hello Agile City Community!
May is in full bloom! The days are at their longest, the sun is staying out later, and there is a vibrant energy taking hold as we head toward summer.
Scroll down to catch up on all the highlights from our April activities, get a sneak peek at the exciting plans we have in store for May, and read through some special announcements you definitely won’t want to miss.
Upcoming Events:
I Am Loud: Spoken Word Showcase
1st May 2026, 19:00pm
Civic House, 26 Civic Street, Glasgow, G4 9RH
I Am Loud is hosting masterclasses with some of the UK’s top spoken word poets! Don’t miss your chance to learn from former Birmingham Poet Laureate and award-winning slam champion beatboxer jasminegardos, author of Poyums and host of BBC Scotland’s Arts Mix @misspunnypennie, and 2023 Loud Poets Grand Slam Champion and host of the Loudcast @rjhunterpoetry.
They’ll be hosting another open mic section for local poets to share their poems at their Glasgow Showcase. Sign ups will be open on the day, so come down early to snag a spot!
Save the dates, find ticket links, and further information on their website!
Graphics by Anesu M.M
Creatives of Colour Festival: Workshop – Formal Rebellion with Candice Chung
9th May 2026, 11:00am – 13:00pm
Civic House, 26 Civic Street, Glasgow, G4 9RH
Creatives of Colour Festival will return for its third iteration from May 7-10, 2026 in Glasgow, and is hosting a workshop at Civic House!
The annual Festival celebrates a collective identity as people of colour, as well as the intersectionality and diversity of their stories, cultures, and art forms. The Festival’s performances, screenings, and workshops centre the voices, experiences, and creativity of BIPOC creatives in Glasgow.
The organisers are eager to share the full programme next month, which features a brilliant lineup of performances including spoken word, music, and more. The event also offers a suite of creative workshops led by expert facilitators for BIPOC attendees.
Photo from Tiu Makkonen
Coorie Doon
23rd May 2026, 20:00pm – late
Civic House, 26 Civic Street, Glasgow, G4 9RH
We will soon revisit that familiar loft magic as everyone’s favorite party returns to reclaim the dancefloor. The Coorie Doon crew will curate a magical night, celebrating three years of this journey with special surprises ensuring their third birthday will be one for the books.
Tickets will be highly prized and availability will be limited, so if you want to attend, sign up to the Coorie Doon mailing list to access the ticket link.
Photo from SURF – 2025 Creative Regeneration
SURF Awards Workshop: Creative Regeneration
28th May 2026, 10:00am – 14:00pm
Civic House, 26 Civic Street, Glasgow, G4 9RH
This free half-day workshop explores how creative arts and culture drive successful regeneration. Supported by Creative Scotland, the event features insights from the 2025 SURF Award winners in the “Creative Regeneration” category, offering transferable lessons on building lasting community impact.
Attendees will hear from category winner Lift D&G regarding their “Art Cabin” placemaking approach in Lochside, followed by presentations from highly commended projects: the ambitious 300m Alloway Railway Tunnel mural and Inverclyde’s traditional Galoshans Festival. The session concludes with a chaired panel discussion on wider policy issues featuring representatives from Creative Scotland and Creative Lives.
Find out more information and get your tickets now!
Upcoming Events in Glasgow:
Photo from AHF website
Architectural Heritage Fund: 50th Anniversary Exhibition
1st-16th May 2026, Monday-Friday 9:00am – 17:00pm, Saturday 10:00am-16:00pm
The Briggait, 141 Bridgegate Street Glasgow G1 5HZ
To celebrate their 50th anniversary, the Architectural Heritage Fund (AHF) has curated a special traveling exhibition, 50 Years of Reimagining Heritage. This showcase highlights the profound impact that heritage reuse has on individual lives and local communities alike. Throughout the year, the exhibition will tour the UK with scheduled stops in Belfast, Glasgow, Cardiff, and London.
By sharing these extraordinary success stories, the AHF aims to inspire more people to get involved in rescuing local historic buildings – ultimately empowering communities, improving public spaces, and securing a sustainable future for our built heritage.
For specific opening dates in each location, please visit their website.
Events Recap:
RISO Club 100
Showcasing 400 vibrant risograph designs from across the globe, this free, immersive exhibition offered a bold, joyful look at how risograph printing could bring an absolute burst of colour into everyday life.
Visitors stepped into an immersive and interactive visual playground. Whether they were seasoned printmakers or simply people who loved a pop of neon, the exhibition served as a completely free, hands-on celebration of international design.
Workshops, held by Anthony Burrill, Raissa Pardini, Marina Willer, and Angela Kirkwood, were also hosted in celebration of RISO club 100. From analogue composition and sticker-led layering, to typography-driven poster design and riso animation loops, each session was a vibrant celebration or experimental print!
You can see full details on RISOTTO’s Instagram and website.
Like Ancient Drops in Future Tides
What happened when memories, gestures, and storytelling merged with stories of the landscape? Like Ancient Drops in Future Tides explored the environmental meaning of storytelling through the lenses of gender and diasporic narratives.
Civic House was the venue for this event, which featured: Le Nemesiache’s film The Sybils (1978); a collective reading ritual, directed by Sarah Shin, on Trinh T. Minh-ha’s book Grandma’s Story (Silver Press, 2025); and Vashish Soobah’s video-installation Perles fanné par tous ( = Sprinkled Pearls, 2024). This project is supported by Thinking Culture funding 2025-26, awarded to PhD researcher and curator Sara Guidi.
Counterflows: Small Publishers Fair
Scotland’s longest running festival of experimental and marginal music was back. Over the 4 days of the festival, there were live performances, club nights, film screenings, a small publishers fair, and discussions.
Civic House hosted their traditional Sunday fair with welcoming stalls from their favourite small publishers. Attendees expected records, cassettes, books, zines, and various other nick nacks.
The Night With … Ensemble Offspring
Ensemble Offspring returned to The Night With… from Australia after their first Scottish tour in 2019 with a programme combining music from Scotland and Australia. The programme featured the world premiere of Beneath the Surface by Matthew Whiteside, an audio-visual work exploring humanity’s impact on the seabed through footage he had shot while scuba diving and had edited with his long-time collaborator Marisa Zanotti.
Alongside this was a new work by Australian composer Alice Chance and works drawn from Ensemble Offspring’s award-winning Songbirds project, where composers responded to the songs of Australian birds.
Looking for a new company base?
Civic House Studio is a welcoming, collaborative hub for cultural and social enterprises.
We currently have spots open for:
✨ Hot-desk membership
✨ Trestle desk membership
✨ Fixed desk membership
Not sure where to start? Pop in for a free trial, or if you’d like to find out more information, please email hello@agile-city.com
Thank you to everyone who helped contribute to this newsletter!
If you’d like yourself or your event to be featured, please reach out to us.