Let's go to this!

This would be great research for our show. Book asap, free but will sell out.  I need to cross check dates with timetables but wanted to let you know.

It has emerged from our ongoing Public Wisdom programme here at Cubitt.  With the event we are aiming to set a new agenda around discussions of aging: bringing the conversation out from care homes and day centres, and to the public arena.  

We have invited a range of speakers, from across anthropology, sociology, visual art, architecture and performance to respond to current questions and share their practice. 

Key highlights include Lois Weaver, Counterpoint Dance and Grand Gestures Dance Collective.

It would be wonderful if you can attend and contribute to the debate and ongoing conversation.  If you are interested and able to attend, please reserve a free place through our online booking page: http://publicwisdom2015.eventbrite.co.uk

Full details of the speakers and presentations below. 

PUBLIC WISDOM 2015

26th March, 9.30-5pm

Conway Hall, Red Lion Square, London, WC1R 4RL

Is the aging population a ticking time bomb or an extraordinary asset? 

What would our cities look like if they were designed for an aging population? 

Could older people play a bigger role in public life?

Research has shown that, post-retirement, many people feel less visible in public spaces, less able to navigate the built environment, and less valued in public life.  Isolation and disconnection is a depressing reality for millions of older people whilst new developments, regeneration projects, and urban planning rarely account for the needs and capacities of the older body.

Public Wisdom 2015 is a one-day event produced by Cubitt Education and supported by the Baring Foundation, bringing together anthropologists, artists, performers, sociologists, designers and architects to explore how we can respond creatively and imaginatively to these issues through and within the arts.

The day will include practical and inspiring presentations from leading thinkers and creative practitioners, alongside in-depth open discussion, networking and a delicious lunch. 

• With Richard Sennett sociologist and author of The Fall of Public Man & Together on collaboration, communication and the collapse of the public realm;
• Lois Weaver performance artist and founder of Split Britches Company on sex and aging in public;
• Nick Tyler Chadwick Chair of Civil Engineering, UCL on the capacities of the aging body in the urban environment and re-thinking our cities around connection and community;
• Pollard Thomas Edwards Architects and Older Women’s Co-Housing on a radical co-designed housing development for older women; 
• Artist Sarah Cole on her performance work In Kind, which brought acts of care into the public realm; 
• Anne Karpf journalist and author of How to Age; 
• Performances by Counterpoint Dance and Bolder Voices Choir
• Anthropologist Jason Danely on aging, abandonment and public life in Japan; 
• Sophie Handler urban researcher and author of The Alternative Age Friendly Handbook on working creatively with older people to imagine possible public spaces.

Plus further speakers and presentations to be confirmed.

Limited free spaces for early booking: http://publicwisdom2015.eventbrite.com