Produce UK to curate and manage the Curious? festival of knowledge
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Produce UK curated and managed the Curious? festival of knowledge at King’s Cross, on Saturday 23 July 2016. The family festival aimed to get Londoners’ brains fired up with events and offerings from a huge range of different sectors including science, culture, media and history.
This was second year that Produce UK had been invited to curate the event. They had been jointly commissioned by The Knowledge Quarter at King’s Cross and KCCLP. All events at the festival were free, although some required prior registration.
The Knowledge Quarter is a partnership of 73 organisations based in the King’s Cross area who all create and disseminate knowledge. The area is a focal point for one of the greatest knowledge clusters anywhere in the world, located in a small area including the Euston Road and Bloomsbury. Within a few hundred meters you can find knowledge resources ranging from the world’s earliest books and manuscripts to the latest fashion and creative designs and cutting-edge medical research.
The festival breadth is reflected in the volume of contributions that were showcased, from talks and discussions, to exhibitions and workshops from organisations including:
The Guardian
The British Library
Royal Collage of Physicians
University of London
PRS for Music Foundation
Wellcome Trust
The School of Life
The Foundling Museum
Psychology Department of Birkbeck Collage
Poet in the City
Last year’s highlights included The Guardian Children’s Book Festival, madcap science from the Francis Crick Institute, interactive history, language workshops, spontaneous poetry, and even a pop-up opera flashmob.
Catherine Borowski, managing director of Produce UK said: “This is a truly innovative festival that gives us the opportunity to work with some of the most exciting organisations in the King’s Cross area. Our curatorial role gives us a chance to flex our creative muscles and collaborate with some of the most forward thinking and creative minds in the UK. 2016 is going to be a brilliant year for the Curious? festival and we’re delighted to be a part of it.”
Speaking about the festival Jodie Eastwood, Knowledge Quarter lead, said: “Curious? will bring together visitors from the local community and across London to experience the resources, expertise and knowledge of these great institutions all situated within one mile of Kings Cross, we are delighted to be working alongside King’s Cross and Produce once again to deliver London’s festival of knowledge.”
Speaking about the festival, Anna Strongman, Argent (King’s Cross), says, “We’re delighted to welcome back Curious? this year at King’s Cross. We’re excited to collaborate with the Knowledge Quarter again to present this celebration of knowledge fusing science, art and culture; we now celebrate at King’s Cross. We’re sure the activities on offer on the day will challenge all of us to think critically about science and its role in our lives, now and in the future.”
