Today I am heading to City University London, for an Ethnomusicology seminar called: Skinny jeans, Persian carpets, and indie rock: expressions of identity in Tehran's unofficial rock music. Bronwen Robertson, from University of Melbourne spent a year doing research, living, performing and working with Tehran's unofficial musicians. During this presentation he explores the findings of his research and demonstrates the ways in which today's upper middle class Tehrani youths are using Facebook, Myspace, and other online network communities to raise the profile of their music as well as express questions of their changing identities. The seminar is free, and all are welcome. The event is from 2-4pm in room AG09 College Building entrance on St.John's Street. FRIDAY 27th FEBRUARY - I'm packing my bags.. and ready to go
How many of us have been at a crossroads in our lives where we have had to choose the next step not knowing which direction to go or where it would lead us? A travelling suitcase exhibition opening in DMT Galleries in The Camborne Centre in Cornwall, reflects migrant workers' journeys in search of new beginnings. Created by Bridging Arts in partnership with University College Falmouth, the exhibit presents work by 3D design students as well as films made by migrants from around Europe and beyond. The exhibition entitled: I Packed This Myself, Who Am I?, runs from the 7th till the 21st of March. Entrance is free. A preview party will be held on the 7th from 6:30-9:30pm and will encompass a performance by Sophie Maura.
How many of us have been at a crossroads in our lives where we have had to choose the next step not knowing which direction to go or where it would lead us? A travelling suitcase exhibition opening in DMT Galleries in The Camborne Centre in Cornwall, reflects migrant workers' journeys in search of new beginnings. Created by Bridging Arts in partnership with University College Falmouth, the exhibit presents work by 3D design students as well as films made by migrants from around Europe and beyond. The exhibition entitled: I Packed This Myself, Who Am I?, runs from the 7th till the 21st of March. Entrance is free. A preview party will be held on the 7th from 6:30-9:30pm and will encompass a performance by Sophie Maura.For more information please email info@bridging-arts.com
SATURDAY 27th FEBRUARY - A newly renovated Pitt Rivers
I was very excited the other to find out that the Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford will be re-opened in May following a major face lift of its entrance, education facilities and environment. The museum contains an amazing collection of archaeological and ethnographic objects from around the world. During the refurbishment, 5,342 objects were removed in order to let building take place. These have been safely returned with the addition of eight new display cases focusing on painting and decorative styles. The re-opening of the museum will be celebrated with a programme of activities. Click here to find out more about the new facilities and changes at the museum.
All over the country there are exhibits in museums and galleries, articles in the newspapers, programmes on t.v. and most recently special edition stamps to celebrate Darwin's bicentenary. Darwin, whose theory of evolution revolutionised the way we view our relationship to animals and our understanding of the diversity of species, is still a controversial figure to this day. For more information on events, activities and programmes around the country and the fascinating history of Darwin man and legacy, take a look at this fantastic website .MONDAY 2nd MARCH- Project IDK " I didn't know"
Today I am heading to Goldsmiths University, Room RHB 256 at 5:00pm for a film screening and Q & A session about a project run by Cambridge House in partnership with Young People's Project. The project called IDK , ' I didn't know' involved recruiting young people and staff from Camberwel, Bermondsey and Rotherhithe to participate in workshops which reflected upon extreme historical examples of prejudice and their outcomes and repercussions in our current lives. As part of the project the group took a trip to Germany and Poland to the Holocaust Memorial in Auschwitz- Birkenau. The film explores the group's experiences, feelings and journeys throughout the project. The event is free, and everyone is welcome. To find out more about the event and the project itself, look at this website. TUESDAY 3rd MARCH- Stories of childhood through clay
The Director of the Foundling Museum, Lars Tharp, is a ceramic expert who has lectured extensively all over the world about ceramic history and material culture in 17th and 18th century England. He is well known on BBC One's Antique Roadshow and on BBC Four. On Friday the 13th of March, he will be giving a talk at the Foundling Museum illustrating childhood images in clay. His collection commences with the traditions of England expanding internationally. The talk is 10 pounds. Booking can be made by calling 020 7841 3600. WEDNESDAY 4th MARCH- North American Textiles: A cultural history
Textiles of the North American Southwest is a fantastic website created by The Smithsonian Centre for Education with the collaboration of the Department of Anthropology at the National Museum of Natural History and the Mexico-North Research Network. The website displays, through the use of images, object descriptions, a timeline, map and glossary, the way in which Native North Americans and Hispanic residents of the North American Southwest have expressed the changing circumstances of their lives and their sharing of ideas through their weaving traditions. 
