From 10-13 October the Manchester Weekender, the city’s annual celebration of art and culture, returns for its fourth year – and of course we’ve got plenty of activities to tempt you. The Weekender aims to give you a snapshot of the best the city has to offer, from events and exhibitions to secret gigs and themed walking tours, with over 70 events in total – many of them free.
Our Double Indemnity exhibition will be open throughout the weekend, so why not pop in and see our exciting new commissions by Ming Wong and Anicka Yi, investigating themes from Billy Wilder’s classic film noir? The show runs across galleries 1 to 3 and includes a broad selection of other contemporary photography, video, painting and installation work, by high profile artists including Sophie Calle, Jenny Holzer, Laurel Nakadate and Frances Stark; each investigating questions of desire, possession and complicity.
To accompany the exhibition, we’ll be kicking off the Weekender with a free life drawing and photography drop-in That Dame Upstairs on Thu 10 October (18:00–21:00). Part of Vogue’s Fashion Night Out , the event will see underground performance collective The Sisters Gorgeous and D Lucille Campbell of glam electro-goths Die Hexen host a drawing and photography drop-in, painted and clad in a fully-monochrome palette inspired by movie icons. There’ll be lip-syncs of classic noir exchanges as the living statues momentarily spring to life, and true story-telling collective Tales of Whatever will share tales prompted by our exhibition’s themes. With a 1940s/50s soundtrack from DJs Vintage 78s, playing original records on restored gramophones, how could you bear to miss it?
If vintage tunes and outfits are your thing, you’ll also love the Cornerhouse Projects exhibition on display across our Café and Bar. David Chadwick: We Were All Here, Once will exhibit Chadwick’s unique photographs of late 70s and early 80s night spots, including Legend, The Mayflower and Friday’s, together for the first time; giving you an insight into the city as its punk and New Romantic sub-cultures were starting to emerge. All works are for sale, so there’s even a chance to take a piece of this year’s Weekender home with you.
If you enjoy that, you’re sure to like The Lowry’s exhibition Defining Me: Musical Adventures in Manchester. This will chart the cultural significance of the city within music history, as told by the Manchester District Music Archive (MDMA). On Sunday 13 October, MDMA and The Lowry will host Play / Record, an afternoon session of live DJs, music, personal stories and talks, from 13:00-16:00.
Back on the Oxford Road Corridor, Cornerhouse is the meeting point for Two Cultures, One Corridor, a walking tour on the synergies between art and science on Saturday 12 October, and promoter Hey! Manchester’s musical Promenade Tour, which will start with a pop-up gig in Gallery 3 (NB: sold out). And just down the road there’ll be a day-long Un-Convention at Manchester School of Art (MMU All Saints campus) on Saturday 12 October, which promises the creation and manufacture of a complete album – with 200 individually designed sleeves – in just one day.
So there’s no chance of being bored in Manchester 10-13 October – not that there ever is! If you need a breather from all this activity though don’t forget to drop into our Café or Bar, where there’ll be a free brownie with every hot drink for Weekender attendees.
The Manchester Weekender: 10-13 October 2013. Check out the full programme on the Creative Tourist website. And follow the hashtag #weekender for updates and behind the scenes information on Twitter.