Culture Syndicates CIC

   24th October 2017  In  Exploring History This month sees the celebration of the 30th year of Black History Month (http://www.blackhistorymonth.org.uk/section/news-views/). This blog post aims at celebrating the contribution that black people have made to British history and the fact that this is finally beginning to filter into mainstream British historical contexts. The Blue Plaque scheme The Blue Plaque scheme, now run by English Heritage, began 150 years ago with the first plaque erected to commemorate the poet Lord Byron at his birthplace, 24 Holles Street in 1867. There are now more than 900 plaques across London and the type of people celebrated continues to be expanded. English Heritage has recently “recognise[d] the need to increase the racial diversity of the [Blue Plaque] scheme in order to properly reflect London’s cosmopolitan and culturally vibrant history” (http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/blue-plaques/themes/londons-black-history/). Currently, there are 9 indi

   18th October 2017  In  Exploring History As you may have read earlier in the year on this blog, I am a bit of a fangirl when it comes to King John of England. In January, I wrote ‘King John: Notts all that bad?’ (http://www.culturesyndicates.co.uk/2017/01/king-john-notts-all-that-bad/). The final line of this post was: “The debate surrounding King John may continue forever but I, for one, am still a fan. I am really looking forward to exploring the areas that played significant parts in his lifetime”. Whilst on holiday in the Cotswolds this month, I had the opportunity to do exactly that. Although, I wouldn’t say that  lifetime  is exactly the right word. Sightseeing Alongside many of the amazing places to visit within the area, we took a day trip to Worcester. At first, I was excited to see the Royal Worcester Museum, the home of Edward Elgar, but more importantly, the Cathedral. There has been a place of worship on the site since 680. However, the current building was started in 1

   16th October 2017  In  Churches ,  News And Opportunities Stained glass windows have been part of church’s architecture since 7AD. But the style and skills went out of fashion after the reformation in England. In the 19 th  Century, however, the practice was enthusiastically resumed as part of the Gothic Revival in architecture. Architects, designers and artists such as Pugin, Morris and Burne-Jones championed the style and craft of stained glass. Why was the ‘gothic’ revived? Architect Augustus Pugin aligned Gothic architecture with morality and a more pure and true life. He wrote his argument for the revival in  Contrasts,  in which he compared medieval architecture to 19 th  architecture. He themed it upon a contrast between Christianity and Utilitarianism. The medieval buildings symbolising Christianity, in which people looked after each other, and the 19 th  Century buildings, which championed functionality irrespective of humanitarian elements. The revival as a whole can be se

   10th October 2017  In  Training And Employability After working as a Resilience Syndicate Intern for nearly a year, my time at Culture Syndicates has come to an end and I am looking forward to starting my new job. Since starting in November 2016, I have learnt so much at CS and at the British Horological Institute (BHI) Museum. The Resilience Syndicate internship has given me skills in museum documentation, collection care and management, audience engagement and project work. It has also allowed me to work alongside and learn from some very talented professionals within the sector.  I have travelled all over the country participating in training and conferences, including, the Group for Education in Museums (GEM) Conference in Hull in September and the Care of Archives and Ephemera Collections training at RAF Cranwell in May. When I started my role, I was mainly interested in working with museum collections. I was very excited therefore to have the opportunity to help care for and d

   9th October 2017  In  News And Opportunities Culture Syndicates are delighted to announce that the Life Lines project has been recognised for its innovative volunteering model under the Volunteer Empowerment category for the East Midlands Heritage Awards. Last year, Culture Syndicates were awarded £10,000 by Heritage Lottery Fund’s  WW1 Then and Now  scheme. This project empowered amateur researchers to create a handling box to enable teenagers to discuss local WW1 history in comparison to contemporary life. Themes include relationships, censorship, human rights and the social impact of war. The University of Nottingham lend these boxes to schools free of charge. The Life Lines group was established to research their WW1 family history in 2013. They chose to write a book showcasing their family research and personal collections. This has been donated to all local studies libraries in Nottinghamshire. With the expertise of the team at Culture Syndicates, the volunteer group were empo

   3rd October 2017  In  Training And Employability Well those 11 months passed quickly, where did the time go? It is hard to believe that the transition from completing my Masters, applying for the internship, securing the role, and now starting a new job has all taken place over the last year. A year of new experiences, learning opportunities and exploring heritage sites. Teaching an old dog new tricks The internship provided me with the opportunity to have practical, hands on engagement within the heritage sector. Putting into practice the theory that I had learnt during my Masters, I gained experience through working within the museum setting. The internship brought forward some personal challenges, such as living by myself and discovering a new city. As the oldest intern, I felt I had a lot to learn, both inside and outside of the workplace. Whilst at Culture Syndicates, I have had the chance to undertake audience evaluation, surveying and audience engagement. I have also attended