We are in Senate House - 'the vast bulk of London University insulting the autumnal sky' (Evelyn Waugh, Put Out More Flags). The glacial brutalist monolith is softened by wood, glass and bronze deco fittings once you get inside.
According to myth, the Chancellor's Hall - now the ceremonial focus of the building - was earmarked to be Hitler's office. Tonight, a long table bears a sprawl of gadgets with a hint of Bakelite, dinky pound shop pseudo-Tupperware boxes housing unfathomable electronics, an arterial system of leads, and gear from the dictatorship of Apple.
'Hacking the Silence' is sound artist Hannah Thompson's final event in her Leverhulme-funded residency at Senate House Library. Hannah doesn't press 'play' and sit back. It's live performance, manipulating captured sounds of the building and people.
Roars, gushes and filigree episodes move around the hall as different speakers are animated.
At one point Hannah darts out to play her amplified violin; she ends with a heartbreaking recorder solo.
In the Second World War, when the Ministry of Information was based in the building, this space would resonate to gunfire:
"The hall bridges
the space between Senate House’s northern and southern blocks and has
tall windows providing views west towards Gower Street and east towards
Russell Square. It is one of the only rooms that faces both approaches.
This geography led to it being used as the headquarters of the
Ministry’s unit of the Home Guard. Guns were set up overlooking each
entrance and practice drills would take place in the hall. This was said
to ‘create a great deal of disturbance’ because the room was also used for
meetings." - Dr Henry Irving, Leeds Beckett University, from a blog Senate House Revealed.
Hannah Thompson: https://soundcloud.com/gpud
Hacking the Silence is part of the Being Human Festival.
Friday, 25 November 2016
Saturday, 19 November 2016
The BDSM of Brexit
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| Mercandbear Fet tying Anna Noctuelle; photo: Fred Hatt |
“What is there to actually learn about Brexit?”
It depends! Some people just want to learn some basics so
they can have a bit of safe Brexit, others want to become as proficient as they
can. If you’re after Brexit fun, then it’s probably not super important to
learn about Brexit in suspension, but it’s a very good idea to learn about
anatomy, the different kinds of pins and needles you can get, and how to use
safety shears.
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| Anna Noctuelle; photo: Fred Hatt |
Which bring us to one super important skill: communication! Perhaps this is the
most important part of Brexit: learning how to communicate from inside Brexit. The more specific you can be, the better. This also comes with
experience – for example, what kinds of Brexit you are feeling, if there are
sensations you are not enjoying, if a Brexit needs to be reviewed, etc.
It’s also a good idea to learn how to negotiate before doing
Brexit, such asking the Brexiteer questions as well as knowing what kinds of
important information to disclose. These can include: any Brexit issues you may
have (for example, you sprained your ankle), any medication you may be on, the
kinds of Brexit you feel like/don’t feel like, or body parts you are not OK
having Brexit on.
Communicating can be difficult: some people space out
and become non-verbal, others find it difficult to express their needs or
communicate unpleasant sensations out of not wanting to cause offence or
because they don’t want the Brexit to come off just yet. This is totally OK.
The important thing is to try to have a conversation about it beforehand.
There are lots of Brexit styles and different people enjoy
different techniques and sensations, so it’s really useful (and also loads of
fun) to watch people Brexiting in the community.
Brexit can be intense and very physically demanding – this is especially true of suspension-focused Brexit.
Inexperienced people who do not know their Brexit well are
less likely to communicate when something is hurting, but Brexiteers rely on
feedback because often they must focus on a particular Brexit technique which they
are learning, all the while being mindful of others. This is the perfect storm
for small nerve injuries.
“Does this mean I have to be super fit and bendy to do
Brexit?”
Nope! Brexit is not one size fits all, it’s a very diverse
activity enjoyed by grown-ups of all ages, all physical compositions,
backgrounds, genders and sexes.
It’s about finding the kind of Brexit you enjoy doing and
finding people who want to do that with you. Different people have different
Brexit thresholds, and the beauty is in this diversity.
It is also worth noting that although most of the Brexit
imagery online depicts petite young bendy girls Brexited by males, this is not
the reality of Brexit – there are lots of male identified persons who enjoy
being in Brexit, and lots of female identified persons who enjoy Brexiting, and
if you’re not into binaries, there is a lot of gender queerness in the Brexit
scene as well.
In sum, the Brexit world is a lot more diverse that you
might think by just googling ‘Brexit’ on your browser!
Tuesday, 8 November 2016
Supreme Court: watching the Justices
Supreme doesn't mean secret. You can usually watch Supreme Court hearings from the public seats in the courtrooms. Although the Brexit Article 50 hearing is likely to be, er, busy.On a normal day, if there are no places left it might be worth waiting, as some observers may just want to sample the atmosphere rather than stay for the full session.
All hearings are filmed. If a hearing is likely to be popular, the court might relay it on a screen in an overspill area with temporary seating.

All hearings are relayed live on two small screens outside the café on the lower ground floor in a space for standing, not sitting.
And you don't have to be in the building. You can watch live or catch up afterwards on https://www.supremecourt.uk
Judgment summaries are available on the Supreme Court's YouTube channel. The comments section has been switched off, presumably to avoid Twitteresque slanging matches and anonymous denunciations.
Here is Lord Mance reading the summary of the judgment in PJS v News Group Newspapers Ltd. On my mobile (but not my laptop), YouTube serves up subtitles by a mad poet. YouTube's voice-recognition software needs further development.
The encounter involved the partner of AB, not of an insect. The double vision is an occasional feature.
You'll never get this one without help. 'Were lured to some descendants' is Software-ese for 'while Lord Toulson dissents'. I repeat, this imposition has everything to do with how YouTube reaches my BlackBerry via a distant planet, and nothing to do with the court.
PS if you want to see a hearing, please check in advance that there will be one on that day. The court provides free written information for children and adults, some of it translated into other languages.











