Commoners in Common
Exhibition, Mental Mapping Project, Walking Tours and Parties
London Festival of Architecture 2023
1 - 30 June 2023

Velorose's 'Commoners in Common' showcases an edit of a 2021/2022 original Craftspace touring exhibition, ‘We are Commoners’, for the London Festival of Architecture 2023, the theme for which is 'In Common’

Curated by Craftspace and Velorose, the exhibition also acts as the starting and ending points of two idiosyncratic walking tours led by David Rosenberg for the Twentieth Century Society. 'Commoners in Common' literally starts and ends with celebrations to which all are naturally invited

Commoners in Common
Exhibition: Mapping and Walking the City with Craftspace at Velorose
1 - 30 June 2023

'Commoners in Common' invites the viewer / you the artist to become, or recognise yourself, as a 'commoner'. The commons is historically thought of in relation to land and resources that are held for common use. Now it also includes the cultural commons such as open source software and knowledge in the digital world. Increasing privatisation, individualism and the impact of austerity have eroded the commons; this exhibition activates the verb 'to common' as a way to renew public life, especially after the many shared and unshared impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic across the globe

With a focus on 'Mapping your Commons', an ‘instructable’ activity devised by Deirdre Nelson, 'Commoners in Common' allows every visitor - in person and online - to become an artist in common. Nelson's activity and her work sits alongside that of Alice McLean and Justine Boussard, Ele Carpenter, Alinah Azadeh, ODG Assembly with Hefin Jones, and Kate Hodgson / Heart of Glass

See LFA for more information

Mapping your Commons
Mental Mapping / Mail Art Project inspired by Deirdre Nelson’s ‘Map your Commons’
1 - 30 June 2023

With the Velorose Mental Mapping / Mail Art project 'Mapping your Commons', you the artist get to make your private world public

Take inspiration from our ‘Commoners in Common' exhibition, and specifically from Deirdre Nelson’s ‘Map your Commons’ ‘instructable' and video, to create your own map of Velorose's locale: Charterhouse Square (former plague pit and semi-public park), the Barbican and Golden Lane Estates (open and closed, public and private spaces), or where you live, work or study. Print, photograph, illustrate, embroider, paint, collage and more; base your map on detailed observation, or test yourself by doing it all from memory! Everyone is encouraged to make their submissions from pre-existing materials (from home, the gallery, or the local environment). You can make your map in person at the exhibition at Velorose, or from the comfort of your home - and even if you can't make it to the exhibition at all

Maps are stories of places, often used to illustrate tales of real life and fantasy; they are typically more subjective than we like to think, and this version of Velorose's Mail Art Project series invites you to map your own experience of shared urban space

No constraint on size or media used. Submissions will be exhibited as they arrive / are left at the gallery. Contact gallery@velorose.com with any queries

Vernissage / Opening Party
Thursday 1 June 6pm - 9pm

Finissage / Closing Party
Friday 30 June 6pm - 9pm

An opening party and a closing party bookend the month of June, and LFA2023

See LFA for more information on the Vernissage and the Finissage

(Mapping) The Barbican Estate with David Rosenberg for C20
Uncommon Antisocial Housing Walking Tour
Saturday 17 June 11am - 1pm

This is the first of two walking tours which highlight the vagaries of the public-private worlds of these Modernist housing schemes, and which focus equally on the mental map that one might create of each estate. Expect the unexpected, including a Barbican tower flat viewing, and creating your own map of the Barbican Estate

Bookable via the Twentieth Century Society

(Mapping) The Golden Lane Estate with David Rosenberg for C20
Uncommon Social Housing Walking Tour
Saturday 24 June 11am - 1pm

This is the second of two walking tours which highlight the vagaries of the public-private worlds of these Modernist housing schemes, and which focus equally on the mental map that one might create of each estate. Expect the unexpected, including creating your own map of the Golden Lane Estate

Bookable via the Twentieth Century Society