LEGO Minifigure Large Display Case Frame Holds over 100 figures also in whiteYesterday I took my grandson to see the Lego Batman Movie at a cinema complex in town. It was great fun, even if much of the film was a little over the head of the 7 year old boy. Such cinema complexes aren’t my usual choice of venue for movie going. Several people had warned me about the price of popcorn prior to the visit, and I expected to be marketed at from all angles, so I didn’t think I was going with any illusions. But as much as I enjoyed the film, the experience was sullied by coming away feeling that the boy and I had just been fodder for a slick and well organised advertising industry. After fog stopped two previous attempts at more walks for my Graphic Commons project, I finally managed to get out again today. Thankfully, despite weather reports of fog in this region, Ipswich seemed to be unaffected. The project has moved on somewhat since I did the Easternmost onshore drift walk, as I have now categorised many of my photographs from my previous dérives.
As Graphic Commons develops, it has turned into themed observations of different categories I have identified within graphic design, with each forming the focus for separate chapters in a bigger book I am planning; the overarching context being how graphic design inserts itself into our everyday shared environments. Today’s walk was primarily in search of convenience stores on the peripheries of Ipswich town centre as I’ve become interested in vinyl graphics and the product shots that adorn these ‘little and often’ shops’ windows, and how these crude and often very similar graphics affect the ambience of a location. As with my previous posts about these drifts, I’m logging some of these photographs here as a record of the walk rather than as any finished outcome. Walk duration: 4.6 miles Ground covered: Town centre peripheries In discussing 2016 election campaigns with a student recently, I mentioned that to have a true understanding of the topic, it was necessary to research publications that they might not agree with—the Daily Mail, the Express et al.
It has to be said that most of the critiques I’ve read of both the EU referendum and American Presidential election campaigns do so from a liberal arts perspective. In considering this I proffered that, unfortunately, we might have to accept that despite any feelings of abhorrence towards the UKIP Breaking Point campaign, it was in fact a brilliant piece of propaganda on their part. Today I visited the Design Museum in its new Kensington home. Primarily going to see the Design of the Year 2016 show with students, being a big fan of the museum, I was also keen to see how the relocation from Shad Thames had been managed. There is much in the move to the former Commonwealth Institute building that is impressive. It is an incredible site and there is real drama as you enter the huge atrium and look up at the stunning roof. This drama only expands as you move on up through the floors. You need many strategies to teach graphic design, and resources can be key to effective delivery.
But if there is one piece of equipment I find it hard to teach without, it is a wipe board. I’m not neat, and I often respond to students comments intuitively when writing / drawing on these magnetic metallic sheets of white—if you walked into a lecture theatre just after I had finished my session that explores the contexts surrounding the sleeve of the Velvet Underground’s first LP, you wouldn’t be able to make head nor tail of what was on the board. (It is fair to say you have to be there.) I’ve just written a review of the excellent Gee Vaucher exhibition, Introspective, at Colchester’s Firstsite gallery for Eye Magazine’s blog. I completed another Graphic Commons walk this week, and I chose a location I’m not overly familiar with: Lowestoft—the Easternmost point in Britain. Like other Graphic Commons posts here, this serves as an immediate document of my drift, and the photos, (only crudely edited at this stage), will feed into a write-up of the walk I plan to do soon.
The writing that accompanies the photos will form a key part of any final outcome, but for now I won’t be posting what I write on Field Readings as that aspect is very much a work in progress. Walk duration: 2.7 miles Start time: 09:17 (train from Ipswich) Ground covered: Town centre and side streets onto a main road that divides the town from port. Then on to the Ness, the most Easterly point, and back into town via an industrial area and what is known locally as a ‘score’—a narrow alleyway.This page lists changes to the BFI Southbank programme, not represented in the published Guide. Preview from 10 Feb, Opens 17 Feb p10 This film has been given a 15 certificate and runs 111min. Following its Academy Award wins, including Best Picture, we’re delighted to announce these additional screenings: Mon 27 Feb 14:30 Studio, 18:10 NFT3; Tue 28 Feb 14:30, 20:50 Studio; Wed 1 Mar 14:30, 20:50 Studio, Thu 2 Mar 14:30, 18:15, 20:45 Studio; Fri 3 Mar 18:15, 20:45 Studio;
Sat 4 Mar 16:10, 18:25 Studio; Sun 5 Mar 15:40, 17:50, 20:10 Studio; Mon 6 Mar 20:45 Studio; Tue 7 Mar 18:15, 20:30 Studio; Wed 8 Mar 20:50 Studio; Thu 9 Mar 20:45 Studio We are pleased to advise that all screenings will have Audio Description available. As a tribute to the late, great John Hurt, we're pleased to announce this special screening which will be introduced by film critic and broadcaster Mark Kermode: Mon 27 Feb 20:35 NFT1With John Hurt, Anne Bancroft, Freddie Jones, John Gielgud, Wendy Hiller. Charting the experiences of John Merrick, a severely deformed man who is rescued from freak-show indignities by a sympathetic doctor, only to become the focus of another form of morbid curiosity as the toast of Victorian high society, the visually extraordinary film paints a part-lyrical, part-expressionist portrait of Dickensian London; its emotional power, however, derives almost entirely from John Hurt's superbly expressive evocation of tender, delicate refinement and untainted innocence.
Tickets £11.75, concs £9.20 per film (BFI Members pay £1.65 less). On sale to BFI Champions Sat 4 Feb 11:30, BFI Members Sat 4 Feb 12:30 and to the public from Sun 5 Feb 11:30. We are pleased to announce this late addition to the programme: Preview: Carnage - Swallowing the Past + Q&A with Simon Amstell Tue 28 Feb 18:00 NFT1 Please note this will now start at the slightly later time of 18:10 and the film runs 65min and not 90min.With Martin Freeman, Joanna Lumley, Dame Eileen Atkins, Lindsay Duncan, Alex Lawther, Gemma Jones, Linda Basset, Marwan Rizwan and John Macmillan. Playing themselves are Kirsty Wark, Jme, Lorraine Kelly and Vanessa Feltz. Stand-up comedian Simon Amstell directs his first feature length film Carnage - Swallowing the Past, for BBC iPlayer. Set in a utopian 2067, Carnage looks back at a time when human beings ate other animals. For the young people of this time, the idea that their grandparents could have been complicit in a bloodbath of unnecessary suffering is wholly unimaginable.
The film aims to break the taboo around Britain’s animal eating past, whilst showing compassion for a generation now seeking therapy to cope with the horror of their unthinkable actions. Carnage combines archive with original drama and is narrated by Simon Amstell, who gives a unique comedic peek into a future where animals live equally amongst humans. We are delighted to announce that the chair for the panel discussion will be critic, presenter and writer Mark Kermode. Carnage will premiere on BBC iPlayer in the Spring and follows on from the success of previous iPlayer film premieres such as the critically acclaimed Fear Itself, Adam Curtis’s HyperNormalisation and The Rack Pack.On sale to BFI Champions Thu 9 Feb 11:30, BFI Members Thu 9 Feb 12:30 and to the public from Fri 10 Feb 11:30. Wed 1 Mar 18:00 NFT3 p24 To clarify this screening will take place in NFT3 as listed on the calendar, and not NFT1 as listed on p24. Certain Women + Q&A with Kelly Reichardt
Fri 3 Mar 18:00 NFT1 p8 River of Grass + Q&A with Kelly Reichardt Sat 4 Mar 14:30 NFT3 p17 Kelly Reichardt in Conversation Sat 4 Mar 16:30 NFT1 p9 Wendy and Lucy + intro Kelly Reichardt Sat 4 Mar 18:30 NFT3 p17 WOW and African Odysseys present: London Premiere: Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise + discussion Thu 9 Mar 18:10 NFT1 p11 WOW present: Beyond the Pantsuit: Women and Power Fri 10 Mar 13:15 NFT3 p11 We're pleased to announce that publisher/writer Margaret Busby will take part in this discussion. CTRL ALT DELETE Live Fri 10 Mar 18:10 NFT3 p10 Please note this event will now take place on Sat 11 Mar in NFT3 at the slightly later time of 18:30. We apologise for any inconvenience. Sat 11 Mar 18:10 NFT3 p18 Please note this event will now take place on Fri 10 Mar in NFT3 and start at the earlier time of 17:45. We are pleased to announce the winner of the March Audience Choice: Alien: The Director's Cut
Sun 12 Mar 20:15 NFT1 p31With Sigourney Weaver, Ian Holm, John Hurt, Veronica Cartwright. The Alien phenomenon began here, in a carefully paced thriller. The crew of the Nostromo are woken from stasis by the ship's computer and grudgingly sent to investigate a transmission of unknown origin. They discover a deadly alien species, and as the crew are picked off one by one Ripley takes her place as the ultimate sci-fi heroine. This iconic classics features designs from HR Geiger and a brilliant script by Dan O'Bannon (Dark Star). Tickets on sale now. Dougal and the Blue Cat Tue 11 Apr 14:30 Studio; Sun 30 Apr 13:00 NFT3 p64 This film will be shown on video. Fri 7 Apr 18:00–19:15 NFT2 and NFT3 p19 To clarify, this screening will no longer take place in NFT1 but NFT2 for general ticket holders (the seating will now be unallocated) and in NFT3 for VIP package ticket holders. The Author of Beltraffio Sat 8 Apr 11:00-12:20 NFT3 p20 We regret to announce that, due to work commitments, Sir Ridley Scott will be unable to attend.
Please check for further guests to be announced. Life After Planet Earth II Sat 8 Apr 11:30 - 12:30pm NFT1 A look back at the making of Sir David Attenborough's wildlife blockbuster, plush an exclusive preview of what we can expect from BBC's Natural History Unit this year. With NHU executive Mike Gunton. Tickets £11.75, concs £9.20 (BFI Members pay £1.65 less).On sale to BFI Champions Fri 24 Feb 15:00, BFI Members Fri 24 Feb 16:00 and to the public from Sat 25 Feb 16:00. The BFI & Radio Times TV Festival Quiz Sun 9 Apr 17:15-18:15 Blue Room p29 Tickets £2 per person, maximum of six per team. Tickets can now be booked online as well as by phone or in person. The Sky at Night at 60 Sun 9 Apr 14:15 NFT2 Join us to celebrate a great television institution on this its 60th anniversary. Current presenter Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock will be guiding us through the show's history and how it has changed and developed with each new advance in astronomy to bring the wonders of the universe in to our living rooms.
We also look forward to the show's special anniversary edition.Please note the amended dates for booking are: On sale to BFI Champions Thu 16 Feb 11:30, BFI Members Thu 16 Feb 12:30 and to the public from Fri 17 Feb 11:30. From Verdi to Tchaikovsky, see the finest opera this season broadcast live from The Met at BFI Southbank. Sonic Cinema presents The Unfilmables - Wrangler and Francesca & Mica Levi Fri 9 June 19:00 NFT1 The history of cinema is teeming with stories of mythical films which never made it onto screen. Works such as Stanley Kubrick's Napoleon, David Lynch's Return of the Jedi and Alejandro Jodorowsky's Dune are famously unproduced masterpieces; masterpieces simply because they can only ever exist in the imagination. The Unfilmables is a response to the greatest films never made. Wrangler (featuring Stephen Mallinder, ex-Cabaret Voltaire, Benge and Phil Winter from Tunng) and Francesca and Mica Levi (Under the Skin Original Soundtrack, Jackie Original Soundtrack, Micachu and the Shapes) calibrate film, music and imagination to bring lost film concepts to life in two live audio-visual performances.
The Tourist - As imagined by Wrangler. Visuals by Chris Turner and Dan Conway Regarded by many as one of the greatest sci-fi scripts never made, The Tourist tells the story of a sex-charged alien underworld in the heart of Manhattan. After attracting attention from luminaries of the film world including visionary director Francis Ford Coppola and Quadrophenia's Franc Roddam, the film ultimately fell into production limbo. Centred around Stephen Mallinder's position as one of the world's foremost electronic music pioneers through his work with Cabaret Voltaire and featuring Phil Winter of Tunng and acclaimed electronic producer Benge, Wrangler will provide a live soundtrack to the dark script with visuals from Chris Turner and Dan Conway. The Colour of Chips - As imagined by Francesca and Mica Levi Based on the brilliant Armenian filmmaker Sergei Parajanov's most famous work The Colour of Pomegranates, Oscar and BAFTA-nominated composer and Micachu & The Shapes bandleader Mica Levi and her sister Francesca Levi's The Colour Of Chips reinterprets the obscure gem as a lost British classic set in the North of England.