The Church of Craft

I’m very sad to report that Manchester has lost its newest and most exciting social/community centre for the time being. Due to a number of factors, The Chapel has had to cease using the premises they had. I’m saddened by this not only on the CofC front but also because I saw how much hard work was going into running the other activities and events that went on there. I have made some good friends and there is a lot of passion and energy behind the project so hopefully it won’t be too long until something else is up and running.

At the moment Manchester is a-buzz with creativty of all kinds as Manchester International Festival takes place. I’ve been checking out various bits and pieces as I can. Last Sunday was probably my favourite part so far when I was part of the assembled hordes for  Turner Prize winner Jeremy Deller’s  Procession. I have a lot of love for my home city and the wider region so it was great to see so many aspects of what makes the place represented. I liked the fact that as well as covering the more usual bits of Manchester’s history (the milland the music), some of the more hidden bits of  the city-region were looked at: from the goth/emo kids outside Urbis to the Big Issue sellers. My favourite float was definitely the Celebration of the Chip, and I don’t even like fish and chips.

I was very taken with the beautiful banners, the same way I love the ones in the People’s History Museum. Gorgeously sewn bright banners which looked fantastic in the summer sun. You can go find out more about the Procession at The Cornerhouse gallery or by looking at the website www.manchesterprocession.com