2NQ is a programme delivered by The Agency of Citizens, a not-for-profit organisation developing arts, cultural and heritage programmes with local communities.
2NQ continues its programme of arts, culture and heritage work. Over the summer we have been busy developing the next stage of the Hybrid Space programme. We want it to build on the critical work we have done in and around Finsbury Park during the pandemic - reaching out to people with mental health issues, those unable to get out of the house and people in general.
Our most ambitious project to date starts in September, one that connects people up across England (and Wales). We are simply asking people ‘what happens next?’, while we also remind ourselves of some important guiding principles of a creative life.
What is active listening?
How do we sense the world?
What is it like in Sheffield, Plymouth and Colchester right now?
Can our understanding of bigger things influence our comprehension of the day to day stuff?
Hybrid Space brings together 15 people from all over the UK. A series of guests reveal some of their truths. We connect in both the physical world and the emerging interstitial spaces of Zoom.
It’s like a reality TV show online.
The results of the 6 week process will feed into the Hybrid Space conference in Manchester in November, as part of DM21, Design Manchester.
Hybrid Space is funded by Arts Council England.
Finsbury Park in lockdown, 15 May 2020, photo © Kasper de Graaf
In 2019-2020, 2NQ delivered a wide-ranging programme of community-based cultural and geritage activities in Finsbury Park, North London to highlight the shared experience and rich diversity of the communities who love around the park in eight wards across three London boroughs: Haringey, Hackney and Islington. Celebrating and building on the park's 150th anniversary in August 2019, the People + Heritage programme was funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and London Borough of Haringey.
The Coronavirus pandemic interrupted the programme halfway through, and the remaining activities were redesigned to work in lockdown conditions and beyond, at a time when community and shared experience became more important than ever.
People + Heritage comprised five main programme strands:
Working in partnership with eight primary schools in Haringey, Hackney and Islington, the outdoor adventure learning programme engaged children in the heritage of the park and its natural assets, teaching skills that are beneficial in diverse parts of the curriculum, including geography, history, English, art and design as well as soft skills such as leadership and teamwork. 338 children took part in 12 half-day sessions over the course of the programme.
To find out more, read the report.
We organised five heritage talks – three in Finsbury Park Café and two online following lockdown – attended by 226 people. The topics covered were: the history of People’s Parks in London; Objects that tell a story about the contemporary archaeology project that took place in Finsbury Park in 2019; the Suffragettes’ connections with the area; Finsbury Park in the 1930s including fascist and anti-fascist demonstrations; and the history of Hornsey Wood before Finsbury Park was built.
To find out more, read the report.
Safe Space was conceived as a series of weekly workshops in the Art Hut near the Stroud Green entrance for older people and carers, but in the wake of lockdown it was redesigned as an online series with landline support. A workbook packed with art lessons and heritage information about the park was produced and sent to participants together with artist materials and other items used in the workshops. Participants included residents in care homes, individuals supported by carers, and others living alone.
To find out more, read the report.
Digital innovation offers exciting potential for platforming the park: giving people a window into the past, as well as the future direction, of their park as a place for learning, adventure, leisure and wellbeing, community events and celebrations. The programme included two digital innovation projects: a three-dimensional LiDAR scan of the whole park offering new potential for engaging with this heritage as well as opportunities for modelling planned developments and improvements; and a technologically groundbreaking augmented reality trail accompanying the People’s Park exhibition.
To find out more, read the report.
A smaller exhibition last year to mark the 150th annversary of Finsbury Park was well received and elicited many new stories and suggestions from members of the community, including local historians and archivists. The expanded People’s Park exhibition in the Hope Picnic and Play area near the lake presents over 150 photographs and accompanying stories, arranged over 32 weatherproof panels on 16 secure wooden A-frames. The exhibition was on display in the park from 26 August until 30 October, and it is also available online here.
To find out more, read the report.
The island in the lake, 9 August 2020, photo © Kimi Gill
