May 15, 2008

exhibition

sweettalk

trans08

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SweetTalk Belfast

CandyCollective in association with TwoStep Presents (that’ll be me), The Rogues Gallery & Trans ‘08 proudly present a whole day of creative events culminating in a special edition of SweetTalk.

Saturday 26th July;
4-8pm - Waterfront Foyer
Exhibition launch & live-drawing (+ DJs)
w/ Gavin Strange, Klingatron, WASTE, Richt, Sums, Danleo, Filth + more tbc
Free

8.30pm - Waterfront Studio
Special Edition SweetTalk w/ Ben Drury (Mo’Wax Creative Director), Gavin Strange (JamFactory), M&E & more to be announced
£7 (available from Waterfront Box Office)

So starting with the exhibition launch (with most excitingly lots of the Xynthetic guys displaying) featuring screenprints, paintings, decks, custom vinyl figures and such - we’ll move into some live drawing for a while before the doors to SweetTalk, allowing you to check out the awesome & have a few beers. Then an absolutely belter lineup for the special edition SweetTalk itself, with Ben Drury, Gavin Strange and M&E all currently confirmed to be speaking. Absolutely amazing in my opinion, you’d be a fool to miss it! Something more official in the way of press and full confirmed details will be shared as soon as.

Oh, and check out the poster!

May 14, 2008

barcamp

Belfast

conference

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BarCamp Confirmed

As previously discussed, BarCamp is returning to Belfast for the second year running, now with me at the helm. I’m now happy to report that we have a confirmed date and venue for the un-conference which thanks to it’s nature is more than enough for the rest of the planning to begin perpetuating itself.

BarCamp Belfast ‘08
Saturday 21st June, 9am - 5pm
Queens University Belfast, Peter Froggatt Centre

Just to be clear (as I’ve had a few emails about this already) - if you’re interested in giving a talk or presentation at the event, all you need to do is pre-register under “Speakers” on the wiki and show up on the day prepared to present - you don’t need permission from me, but I’ll be in contact with the details of the setup in due course. Also, if your name is on the Attendees list, it should also be trying its best to be under Speakers too - everyone has something of interest that they can share with the group, so long as it’s vaguely related to technology or an interesting tangent. Information on sponsorship, setup and my master plans for lunch and merchandising are on the way!

And please, share a link to the wiki or this blog post on as many groups, blogs, twitter feeds, IRC channels, mailing lists and address book contacts as possible!

May 12, 2008

coworking

demands

proposal

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Coworking issues demands

After sitting down with the council to discuss the possibility of some cash, we’re submitting a proposal for consideration this week - and getting the ball rolling on establishing a not-for-profit as well as applying to smaller funding groups. We’re getting to the guts of it now - where interest needs to become definite answers - and money starts (finally!) playing into the conversation.

• Are you willing to take a desk full-time at Coworking Belfast?
• If not, are you interested in signing to part-time contracted hours in the space for a reduced rate?
• Are you in a position to pay up front for more than the first months rent + deposit?
• Are you willing to invest financially beyond that?
• Are you willing to provide, if not cash, but assets to the space - such as computers & furniture?

Anyone who has previously expressed interest should have received this questions in an email last night - if you didn’t please get in touch with me as soon as you can - we want to include as many names in the final proposal as possible to reflect the support the space has been receiving. If you’re planning or taking a desk or not, a few kind works in the comments that would suit quoting would be welcomed also. I’ll put the final version up for everyone to see later in the week.

May 11, 2008

flickr

meetup

photography

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Belfast Flickr Meetup

One of the first Belfast Flickr meetups to happen for quite a while took place yesterday lunchtime. While it was only the four of us, it was actually really interesting to poke round some of the lesser spotted areas of the city center (read: we dug around in alleyways) and get a bit of practice in for the meetup in a few weeks time.

It’s interesting how people - not too long ago - were happy to tout that the internet would completely destroy standard social structures as people flocked to social networking. Not too much time has passed between those statements and the advent of Flickr meetups, OpenCoffee and even local Mac User Group meetups - all of which would never have started without the internet as a bootstrap. Support the movement - NIMUG on the 19th, OpenCoffee on the 21st and Belfast Flickr Meetup on the 24th!

May 7, 2008

belsonic

festival

music

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Belsonic Festival

Details appear to be sketchy at best right down, but word of a new festival from the people behind Shine & The Stiff Kitten - Belsonic - have started appearing both online and in local newspapers. Held over (at least) four days at Custom House Square, The Flaming Lips have been confirmed as headliners for Monday 11th August - with local indie-popsters Oppenheimer also chipping in as support. Expect more of the lineup to emerge in the coming week as the site goes live to deal with tickets for the ‘Lips this coming Monday (12th).

Not discounting The Flaming Lips - who put on one of the most amazing live performances I’ve ever witnessed - this has the potential to be exciting yet. Expect regular updates!

Update: The Zutons now confirmed to headline the 15th.