Civic House Newsletter – March 2024
Hello Civic House community!
It’s March and here’s our monthly update of what you can look forward to at Civic House. We have some exciting events this month across music, film and writing, along with an update on our next Civic House Party, and a very proud moment for Parveen’s Canteen!
Upcoming at Civic House:
Bethlehem Cultural Festival x Habibti Nation
March 9th
We are very proud to be hosting Watermelon Womxn: a musical journey through Palestine presented by Bethlehem Cultural Festival and Habibti.
Saturday 9 March 2024, 7pm to late
Get tickets HERE
Bethlehem Cultural Festival (BCF) was set up in 2020 to put the artists, arts and culture of Palestine and Bethlehem centre stage. This March sees the programming of a project held over from last December’s cancelled festival. BCF x Habibti presents: Watermelon Womxn: a musical journey through Palestine will take place at Civic House, Glasgow on Saturday 9 March and at Two Palms, Hackney in London on Sunday 10 March.
The two early-evening events are framed as a time for reflection. They each feature performances by three female Palestinian artists which will be followed by a Q&A moderated by LUMA.
Performing in Glasgow are Hiba Salameh from Palestine who presents an artist talk consisting of a musical journey through a history of Palestinian music, multi-disciplinary artist Freekeh from Ramallah and Nada Shawa, human rights activist, poet and dancer based in Edinburgh.
Ticket profits will go to Médecins sans frontières.
Cultural Futures in the Crisis – Book Launch and Panel Discussion
March 12th
Join Justin O’Connor for a launch event for his forthcoming book ‘Culture is Not an Industry’, published by Manchester University Press.
Culture is at the heart to what it means to be human. But twenty-five years ago, the British government rebranded art and culture as ‘creative industries’, valued for their economic contribution, and set out to launch the UK as the creative workshop of a globalised world.
Where does that leave art and culture now? Facing exhausted workers and a lack of funding and vision, culture finds itself in the grip of accountancy firms, creativity gurus and Ted Talkers. At a time of sweeping geo-political turmoil, culture has been de-politicised, its radical energies reduced to factors of industrial production. This book is about what happens when an essential part of our democratic citizenship, fundamental to our human rights, is reduced to an industry.
Justin will be joined by Katrina Brown, Abigail Gilmore, and Robert Hollands to discuss the book and the role of culture in the future, particularly in the context of the climate crisis, and questions of cultural policy as we face a UK General Election in the near future. The panel discussion will be chaired by Mark Banks, with Kate Oakley chairing the book discussion.
GSFF23: Welcome to the Multiverse, Late night screening followed by a DJ’s set from Round Earth Theory. Photo by Ingrid Mur
Glasgow Short Film Festival
March 20th – 24th
Check out full programme HERE
We are very excited to welcome back one of our favourite festivals – Glasgow Short Film Festival returns this March for their 17th edition with an exciting programme of films, events and workshops!
GSFF’s 2024 programme includes a deep dive into their archives with rediscovered works and experimental reappropriation; a focus on Moroccan filmmaker Randa Maroufi; a portmanteau film portrait of Govanhill; and a thematic strand in defiance of oppression.
At Civic House you can expect to find some of the festival classics Café Flicker, For Shorts & Giggles and Family Shorts. Alongside this we will be hosting Følkøric a two part strand tracing traditional and contemporary visions of folklore on film, spanning decades of classic folk-horror, subversive storytelling and fresh influences on the folklore canon. You can also catch the Towards Liberation strand of shorts – Towards Liberation will utilise archive, documentary and fictional short films from across the globe to examine threads around imprisonment, imperialism, representation and resistance.The strand will include a programme of Palestinian short films (Weapons of criticism and dedicated consciousness), which will be followed by a live performance by British-Palestinian musician and sound artist Kareem Samara.
Read more about the GSFF 2024 edition here.
Civic House Party (2022) Photo by Tiu Makkonen
Civic House Party: HEALTHY x Curlach w/ food by Mamnoon
April 5th
It’s back! The first Civic House Party of 2024 and this time hosted by HEALTHY and Curlach with dinner bowls by guests Mamnoon, who serve modern takes on Iranian family recipes. Save the date!
April 5th
Open from 5pm, free before 8pm, £7 on the door afterwards.
More details on line-up to be announced soon, keep an eye on our socials and website.
Event Recap At Civic House:
Coorie Doon Party, February 2024. Photo by Tiu Makkonen
Coorie Doon February Party 2024
We had such an amazing time at February’s Coorie Doon party – featuring food by our very own Parveen’s Canteen. This was the first birthday celebration of Coorie Doon at Civic House and it did not disappoint!
Coorie Doon is a hi-fi dance party with a varied and global music policy, inspired by David Mancuso’s Loft party tradition and the unique dancing spirit of Glasgow.
Check out some of the beautiful photos taken on the night by Tiu Makkonen here.
Keep an Eye Out For:
12/04/24 – 13/04/24 – Creatives of Colour Festival – A two-day festival celebrating creatives of colour, with free workshops, film screenings, performances, and discussions programmed by University of Glasgow School of Culture & Creative Arts.
What’s new at Civic House?
Civic House Coworking Studio profiles: Joanna Sim, Fashion Marketer
In the latest Agile City blog feature, hot desk user and Sustainable Fashion Marketer Joanna Sim of Caravan Folk discusses the latest trends in sustainable fashion and provides some helpful tips for anyone wanting to improve the eco credentials of their wardrobe. She also gives us her hot picks of eco fashion brands worth watching!
Click here to read the full article.
Are you interested in coworking at Civic House? Check out more about the products on offer here and get in touch with Natalie at civichouse@agile-city.com to book in a trial!
Parveen’s Canteen staff with Rick Stein
Parveen’s Canteen on Rick Stein’s Food Stories
We are very proud of our canteen operators Parveen’s and their recent feature on the Glasgow episode of ‘Rick Stein: Food Stories’. If you haven’t seen the episode yet, you can check it out on BBC iPlayer here.
Parveen’s share some great company with other delicious offerings in Glasgow such as Gomo Kimchi, Big Counter, Eusebi’s Deli, Bare Bones Chocolate and The University Cafe.
Civic House, photo by Andrew Lee
Civic House shortlisted for RIAS Awards 2024!
We are honoured to have been shortlisted for the prestigious The Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS) awards for 2024!
Thank you very much for the continued support of our building, to read more about the Retrofit of Civic House by Collective Architecture visit the Agile City blog here.
Check out the amazing projects shortlisted here.