June 21 2024 - Senses
June 21st 2024 was the premiere of Senses.
The even was a collaboration between Arif Michael True from OverRhythm and Matt Needham from Studio Ende.
The idea of the night was exploring exploring a few important ideas.
The first was the overall idea of the 3rd space. The concept of the 'third space' is crucial in understanding the social dynamics of modern life. Historically, third spaces like community centers, libraries, and parks served as crucial social hubs beyond the confines of home and work. However, contemporary trends indicate a contraction of these communal areas, with work and home increasingly dominating individuals’ time. Sociologist Ray Oldenburg highlights the importance of these spaces for community vitality and individual identity in his work on the 'Great Good Place.' Today, the accessibility to traditional third spaces is diminishing, with many individuals finding their only remaining communal interactions occurring in commercial establishments like cafes, bars, and clubs. This shift raises concerns about the quality of social interactions and the depth of community ties in our increasingly commercialised social arenas.
Combining a club-night and art exhibition.
The concept of 'third spaces'—essential for social connection—varies widely in their accessibility and impact. For example, club nights serve as dynamic third spaces where social bonding is facilitated through dance and music.
Such environments, characterised by their intense sensory experiences, can significantly promote social cohesion among attendees. However, these settings may not be universally welcoming. For individuals who are neuro-divergent, the overstimulation and crowd density often associated with these venues can be deterrents, preventing them from benefiting from the social opportunities these spaces provide.
This disparity highlights a crucial issue in the design of third spaces: while some find profound social connection, others may feel alienated or overwhelmed.
Furthermore, even among those who are not neurodivergent, the intense environment of club raves can sometimes lead to feelings of discomfort or dissatisfaction. In contrast, more serene environments like art exhibitions offer a different kind of third space. These venues are typically more open and quieter, fostering spaces for discussion, contemplation, and explorative thinking.
Recognising the varied needs and preferences of individuals, SENSES aimed to merge the vibrancy of musical environments with the contemplative nature of art exhibitions. This hybrid approach aimed to create a third space that emphasises interdisciplinary engagement and accessibility, catering to a broader spectrum of sensory preferences and social interaction styles.
What are the senses? The mediator of ‘the thing in itself’ as the phenomena. The psychic cookie cutter that humans use to shape and interpret the raw data of reality into coherent experiences and concepts.
Vision, Audition, Olfaction and Tactility. We sense our bodies in a space and how a space interacts with us and others as social creatures.
Our senses are inherently limited by our human biology. We possess only three colour receptors, which restrict our ability to perceive the full spectrum of colours; in contrast, the mantis shrimp, with twelve colour receptors, allows it to experience an unimaginably richer visual world.
The range of light wavelengths we can see is confined; there are vast stretches of the spectrum, such as ultraviolet and infrared, gifted to bees and birds but that are invisible to us.
We can hear sounds within a frequency range of 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz. Elephants can detect high-pitched sounds that are inaudible to humans, while whales can perceive extremely low-frequency sounds that travel vast distances through ocean depths.Much of the sensory world is beyond our reach, shaped by the limitations of our human senses.
Dance floor.
So - how do we celebrate our gift of the senses, how do we maximise their capacity, how do we reach the highest heights of movement, colour, sound and touch?
In a small alcove of modern culture we make an attempt to celebrate our senses; it takes place on the dance-floor, the exhibition, the festival. These spaces act as immersive environments where sound, light, and movement converge, allowing us to dissolve boundaries and express ourselves freely beyond the everyday constraints of social identity and normality.
Notions of the Dance floor.
Intensely sensory spaces like these may feel intimidating, as they detach us from the familiar world.
Sometimes we like to throw ourselves into fear and danger - the layman might associate the ‘club-night’ with desolate growls and screeches of a Northface DJ. The intense sounds of a warehouse rave, surrounded by throngs of people, can transform fear into exhilaration. Venues from as large as Warehouse Project to as small as XLR in Withington aim to create this atmosphere, using minimalistic, dark settings and harsh, driving music to heighten the sensory experience.
Evoking fear in a venue has its role; the thrill of skin-crawling brutal techno can be exhilarating.
However, when events focus solely on inducing fear, they do a disservice to what could be: they fail to provide a complete sensory experience. This approach limits the range of emotions and beauty that can be explored on the dance floor. Fear should be just one aspect of the experience—carefully controlled and curated. Your night out experience should be much more, your primary experience on your weekend off should give you the sensory sublimation you deserve.
Community and Artistic Practice.
All over Manchester, artists are shaping and developing their practice. Visual artists, musicians, florists, designers, tailors, writers and speakers. The multi-displinary work of each creator deserves a space an audience and cross-creative collaboration. Creatives today take to platforming their work primarily in the digital world, converting their work into short form presentations of their mind’s toil and their hand’s labour. Again, it is a disservice to these creators work - their practice should be experienced in a space with people in person as the primary medium. To begin with the primary experience of audience is essential: the dialogue & the ‘aura’ - the digital content can follow. SENSES facilitates this ethos for all of our creators involved.
Why Summer Solstice.
SENSES will take place on the 22nd of June 2024. The significance of this date is the years Summer solstice. The summer solstice holds profound cultural and historical significance, traditionally viewed as a time of renewal, celebration, and a profound connection to nature and the elements around us.
It marks a pinnacle of light, a moment when the sun bathes the earth in its fullest potency. By choosing this significant date, SENSES aims to maximise the natural heightening of our sensory perceptions that the increased daylight offers.
It symbolises a peak sensory experience, echoing the festival’s mission to elevate and intensify the collective and individual encounters with art, sound, and communal connectivity. This alignment with the solstice enriches the experiential aspect, promising attendees a unique fusion of natural and orchestrated wonder.Why Summer Solstice.
SENSES will take place on the 22nd of June 2024. The significance of this date is the years Summer solstice. The summer solstice holds profound cultural and historical significance, traditionally viewed as a time of renewal, celebration, and a profound connection to nature and the elements around us.
It marks a pinnacle of light, a moment when the sun bathes the earth in its fullest potency. By choosing this significant date, SENSES aims to maximise the natural heightening of our sensory perceptions that the increased daylight offers.
It symbolises a peak sensory experience, echoing the festival’s mission to elevate and intensify the collective and individual encounters with art, sound, and communal connectivity. This alignment with the solstice enriches the experiential aspect, promising attendees a unique fusion of natural and orchestrated wonder.
Thank you to all our artists:
@annabillany : Fashion & Prints
@matt_n_creative : Lights and Projection
@jamiesjunglemcr : Scents and Nature Installation
@black_dahliaaa_ : Art & Visual
@willbelshah : Art and Visual
Audio:
@_chxmist_
@noellenoelleno
@william.tomaas
@the_velvetshadow
@rainbowguevara
@ayrtonhood_dj
@elliepollardmusic