http://www.wideyed.org en-gb wideyed.org 2010-3-9T00:00:00Z wideyed.org http://www.wideyed.org/page8.htm#60183 Toran Natak is one of four surviving traveling theater groups in Gujarat India.In a state which has lost thousands to communal violence in recent years these 25 artists coming from varied castes and religions reaffirm the idea of peaceful and positive coexistence.In the 1970s traveling troupes were at the height of their popularity. Supporting over a hundred artists and a repertoire of over 50 plays from different genres competition between rival troupes was immense and many performers were nothing short of being stars.Since the 1990s television and mainstream cinema have practically destroyed their livelihood. With the number of people attending performances dropping every season the remaining troupes find it very hard to continue. For the government these artists simply do not exist. They are provided with no support monetary or otherwise in fact putting on a show often involves paying bribes to various government institutions.Election times are particularly ... 2010-3-9T00:00:00Z http://www.wideyed.org/page8.htm#60109 Ishan Tankha is not a coffee drinker. But hes nonetheless drawn to caf233s.The Indian Coffee Houses are particular havens of an old world charm that is rapidly fading with the encroachment of modern sanitised globally franchised competitors. More than just a place to get a cheap drink theyve long afforded a public space for people to meet discuss politics and sport or just sit and idle time away. Theyre practically institutions.Customers and staff share an ease and familiarity that only years of patronage can bring. The rooms with their characteristically high ceilings hold rich aromas and the charm of age and gentle neglect.Tankhas fascination is with ambience and space. In his photographs he attempts to encapsulate the timeless essence of the Indian Coffee House.Ishan Tankha is a Delhibased photojournalist whose work has been featured in a number of publications including India Today Suomen Kuvalehti and Open Magazine. He has worked on a broad range of subjects from the... 2010-3-8T00:00:00Z http://www.wideyed.org/page8.htm#59964 21 year old Sophie Ashraf is an artiste of her times a creative force informed by the post 911 world a daring new voice like no other.Its like when you really like a band you wear Tshirts of that band... Well we really really like Islam so we wear the burkha. I rap because I cant sing. But I love music so it had to be rap. Soon the burkha and the rap formed an identity and people started recognising me as The Burkha Rapper.The Justice Rocks Concert was the first platform where I felt the setting and the timing was right to talk about Islam. The Mumbai attack had just happened and everyone was waiting for a proactive Muslim to come out and say what Islam was about. I was just blown away by the response.People tend to think that someone who tries to be different and someone who breaks the rules are the same. I work within the rules but I find those little loopholes that allow me to do my thing.There are those who are not convinced about the burkha sure. Now that we wear i... 2010-3-7T00:00:00Z http://www.wideyed.org/page8.htm#59592 2010-3-2T00:00:00Z http://www.wideyed.org/page8.htm#58725 Carlo and Nick invite you to the opening of the brand new Empty Shop HQ.Set over two floors and featuring 6 exhibitions this is the biggest Empty Shop event yet and also celebrates the opening of our first ever full time venue.The event featuresThe 2nd Annual Empty Shop OpenWork by the new Empty Shop studio group The FreebirdsThe first residency in the new Stairwell GalleryA new mixed media exhibition by photographer Toby LloydOriginal wall drawings by the Cloud CommissionExpanse Gallery Expanse The smallest gallery in the world curated by 50ft Long Horse6pm 9pm Friday 19th February 2010Empty Shop 35c Framwellgate Bridge Durham City DH1 4SJRichard and me will be there tonight we just have to see what fresh direction Tobys thing with Greggs sausage rolls is takingcheers Lucy 2010-2-19T00:00:00Z http://www.wideyed.org/page8.htm#57976 MAstars is an annual online selection of the most promising artists from the UKs leading MA courses. Selected by influential artists curators academics and arts professionals MAstars keeps you up to date with the artists to watch and gives you an insight into the future of the UK art scene.For more about Richard and other MAstars follow this link. 2010-2-8T00:00:00Z http://www.wideyed.org/page8.htm#57063 North East Photography Network yesterday released the details of its first major event Photography where a two day symposium and portfolio review.Explore some of the pressing issues facing contemporary photographers and share some of your ideas with our panel of leading curators editors and practitioners. What new opportunities exist for photographers What are the pitfalls and how can we sustain our professional practices in the current economic climate How are new photographic practices being supported and disseminatedSymposium Saturday 12th March Photographer Sarah Pickering will be the keynote speaker. The roundtable discussion will be chaired by Alessandro Vincentelli Curator Baltic. Portfolio Reviews Saturday 13th March An exciting opportunity for onetoone conversations with reviewers of your choice. Each review will last approximately 20 minutes and booking is essential.Reviewers Camilla Brown Senior Curator The Photographers Gallery LondonMalcolm Dickson Director Street ... 2010-1-26T00:00:00Z http://www.wideyed.org/page8.htm#56144 News just in that the Tattoos of the Tees Valley exhibition will definitely be touring to two more venues this year. It will first open on Saturday 30th January Saturday 20th February at the Maritime Museum in Hartlepool and run there until sometime in April 11th then afterwards ship to The Head of Steam Railway Museum in Darlington for the 2010 summer season.Well post more precise info as it comes in updated 22012010.Cheers Lucy 2010-1-14T00:00:00Z http://www.wideyed.org/page8.htm#53578 It took Richard and me longer than we thought to get to Cowshill for Louises opening but though we were late there were still quite a few people there and plenty of wine and nibbles. These pix were all taken by Louise before we arrived though the place was heaving all afternoon she said so the event was obviously a success In the photo above you can see people holding or leafing through their copies of the centenary book.Louises photo exhibition is part of a multifaceted heritage project undertaken over a period of a year. With other members of the Heatherycleugh community Louise has been involved with many aspects of it a massive amount of work and a fantastic achievement And as if that werent enough she also cooked us dinner before taking us down the local pub for the evening. We got another chance to see the exhibition this morning before heading home and it was packed out again. It runs until 5th December and for anyone passing next Saturday morning the bacon butties are also hig... 2009-11-28T00:00:00Z http://www.wideyed.org/page8.htm#53445 So Louise is opening Centenary tomorrow afternoon.Information above and also on the Centenary page of the What Weve Done section of this website. 2009-11-26T00:00:00Z http://www.wideyed.org/page8.htm#53088 Directed by Franny Armstrong The Age of Stupid casts Pete Postlethwaite as a mournful archivist in 2055 looking at footage from 2008 of flash floods and rampant air travel and wondering where it all went wrong. Guardian6pm on 1st December theres a screening of the film at the Friends Meeting House Skinnergate Darlington... AND ITS FREE. 2009-11-22T00:00:00Z http://www.wideyed.org/page8.htm#52726 Arts collective BLIMEY are hosting an event on the theme of social 28pm on Saturday 21st November at the Darlington Railway Institute. Curated by James Lowther BLIMEY members and selected guest artists including Wideyeds own Louise Taylor who will be giving a sneak preview of some images from her upcoming exhibition Centenary will show and create work and the event will end with an auction.For more info about the programme and participation email blimeydarlingtonyahoo.com or look for BLIMEY on Facebook. 2009-11-17T00:00:00Z http://www.wideyed.org/page8.htm#52527 We were all too busy chatting and scoffing jelly babies last night so by the time any of us remembered to take any shots of the preview the gallery was closing...But this installation shot of Richards work couldnt have been taken before the end too many people in the way.The man himself in situ.Zhou Lucuns installation.And Zhou Lucun. His piece about employment prospects for the nearly 2.5 million students who graduate in China every year is really interesting.Class of 2009 from the left Zhou Lucun Siwan Liu his work is amazing but best seen in print Yu Zhu whose piece on homosexuality in China is interesting too Patritsia Panayi and of course Richard Glynn. Congratulations everyone 2009-11-13T00:00:00Z http://www.wideyed.org/page8.htm#51644 First outing for Wideyed this month Details of Richard Glynns MA show opening at NGCA below.And for more info about Richards part of this exhibition see Lost Waltz in the What weve done section. 2009-11-9T00:00:00Z http://www.wideyed.org/page8.htm#51692 Fifty Crows is running a series of posts on its blog showcasing international collective of women photojournalists EVE Photographers.The six women that make up the EVE Photographers Marizilda Cruppe Agnes Dherbeys Benedicte Kurzen Justyna Mielnikiewicz Lourdes Segade and Newsha Tavakolian are inspiring sources of new work from around the world. While each individual focuses her camera on the vital stories in her region together the collaboration of their work provides eloquent observations and commentary on profound global topics such as disease access to water and motherhood. By highlighting the different perspectives of each woman in her specific global location the viewer is able to interpret the world from many angles and glean understanding and compassion.Image 9400 Jerome Delay 2009-10-29T00:00:00Z