10 Years of Fun Palaces in Libraries

with Fun Palaces

This webinar was published on 26 July 2023

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10 Years of Fun Palaces in Libraries
with Fun Palaces

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This event was published on 26 July 2023

What are Fun Palaces – and how can you get involved?

Fun Palaces is both an ongoing campaign for cultural democracy and a weekend of celebration and action in which people make Fun Palaces to put cultural democracy into practice; they come together with their neighbours to create and share the culture, arts and sciences that matter to them. Fun Palaces are about hands-on participation, joining in and not just watching someone else do something. They are as much for adults as they are for children.

"Everyone an artist, everyone a scientist." Everyone an artist, everyone a scientist - and also everyone a historian, digital creator, cultural leader and activist. Fun Palaces are about changing the world from the grassroots up.

Around 50% of Fun Palaces take place in libraries - they are the perfect location for Fun Palaces, as they already have a great connection with their communities. Libraries take part in the Fun Palaces campaign for all kinds of reasons: they bring new people through the door, can be a different way to celebrate and make the most of the communities they serve and provide a way of working that they can use for other things too.

Join Amie Taylor, Fun Palaces Producer; Sadie Green, Fun Palaces Ambassador for Devon, hosted by Libraries Unlimited, and some libraries Makers* who will be sharing their knowledge gathered over the past 10 years on Fun Palaces, common concerns around making a Fun Palace, threshold anxiety, and why people come back year after year to make Fun Palaces in Libraries. (*Makers are people who make Fun Palaces.)

This session is aimed at library staff looking to learn more about creative methods of audience engagement and co-creation.

Photo © Roswitha Chesher

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A webinar from:

Amie Taylor

Creative Producer

Amie Taylor joined Fun Palaces as producer in Jan 2021 and managed the Fun Palaces in Libraries project (2021/2). She supports Makers, delivers workshops, manages the website and creates toolkits. She has also made four Fun Palaces! When she’s not working at Fun Palaces, she’s a writer, theatre-maker, workshop facilitator and producer. She has written three books for children: The Big Book of LGBTQ+ Activities (2020), The Monster Book of Feelings (2022) and Pride Families (Coming Oct 2023)

Headshot of Amie Taylor

Fun Palaces

Social Movement

Fun Palaces supports local people to co-create their own cultural and community events, across the UK and worldwide, sharing and celebrating the genius in everyone

Our year-round campaign works towards a world where everyone has a say in what counts as culture, where it happens, who makes it, and who experiences it.

Part of our campaign includes events called Fun Palaces, which are made by you. You could host fun, free and locally-led activities with your friends or neighbours to share your secret skills. If you’re a public venue, you could hand over your space to your community so they can make a Fun Palace themselves.

On the first weekend of October every year, we support the Weekend of Celebration. This is when thousands of Fun Palace Makers across the UK and beyond run their Fun Palaces on a single weekend and we celebrate similar events happening throughout the year. The weekend is a chance to shout about the brilliance in all communities in a united voice.

Headshot of Fun Palaces