Date: Monday 26th July

Time: 10.00am-12.00pm

Location: City Business Library, Aldermanbury, London EC2V 7HH

Booking ESSENTIAL. e: cbl@cityoflondon.gov.uk, t: 020 7332 1812

W: www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/cbl

This month, Bracket will join them to talk about collaboration:

How can you join forces to win new business? This interactive and practical session will give you tips to help you find creative ways to network and collaborate to further your business.

Date: Wednesday 28 July

Time: 12:00pm – 2:00pm (with networking until 3pm)

Venue: The Fashion and Textile Museum, 83 Bermondsey Street, London, SE1 3XF

To register for this event call 020 8522 5700 quoting Fit for Business or email fitforbusiness@newham.ac.uk

Last month, on 8^th June, the first RewireLondon event took place, at Rich Mix in Shoreditch – a collaboration between Bracket and 8Fold.  RewireLondon was an unconference for the creative sector, an interactive and flexible event where the attendees were the driving force.  This meant that rather than curating the schedule completely with invited speakers, it was mostly left open for artists, writers, designers and other creatives to suggest and run their own sessions.

We started the day with Araceli Carmargo-Fitzpatrick of THECUBE presenting her concept of “Ideas Engineering” and David Rowan, editor of WiredUK, discussing the iPad and the future of publishing.  As attendees got inspired by what they heard on the main stage, the schedule slowly filled up with a range of diverse and innovative sessions.  There were project showcases, collaborative problem solving, informal discussions and even meditation! The full list of sessions that took place is here.

What people commented on most throughout the day was the number of connections they were able to make with others across all creative sectors.  We’d intentionally set out to create a mix, as we know that the most innovative ideas can come from multi-disciplinary collaboration. And that was a key theme throughout the day – many sessions touched on this topic with in-depth discussions on how to kick-start creative ideas.

Everyone was keen to continue the conversations after the schedule had ended, so we were lucky to be able to do this over the delicious punch provided by the Courvoisier The Future 500.  As the cocktails flowed, so did the business cards – it was a great ending to a fantastic day!

Thanks to all involved – we’ve already had many requests to keep the event going, so watch this space.

www.rewirelondon.org

The day is for freelancers, independents and micro-businesses working as trainers, consultants, project managers, advisers, coaches and mentors and will provide the time, space and structure for attendees to reflect on their practices against current business challenges. Throughout Concourse 2 there will be opportunities to network, listen to experienced and diverse speakers and refresh thinking.

Bracket will be running a workshop on ‘effective collaboration in the creative sector’ as one of eight options to help attendees expand their skills knowledge and experience.

Event details
Concourse 2 – Yes, No, Maybe
9^th July, 10.00am-4.00pm
Wellcome Collection, NW1
£50

For more information and to book a place, visit the Concourse 2 website.

One session will be dedicated to collaboration, so Bracket were delighted to be asked to contribute.  We’ll be speaking alongside Margo Selby, Textile Designer and Natalie Melton, Commercial Director of Arts & Business, looking at successful partnerships and how to make them work.

For more information and to book your place, visit the Hidden Art Forum 2010 website.

Hidden Art Forum 2010
Date: 16 June, 9.30am-5.30pm
UBS Investment Bank, Bishopsgate
£5 (exc. VAT) for Hidden Art members.  £15 (exc. VAT) for non-members.

How will it work?
A team of self-employed creatives will get together w/c 31^st May to brainstorm and develop ideas for an online presence and marketing campaign for Bracket.  Through a mixture of face-to-face meetings, workshops and web-based communication, the team will deliver a solution by 4^th June (see Social Innovation Camp, the 24 Hour Book Project and Launch 48 for similar projects).

This is part paid creative project, part workshop/learning experience/experimental lab!  BracketLab will also be documented in film and image.

We are looking for a:
- web designer
- web developer
- graphic designer/illustrator
- copywriter
- filmmaker
- (also open to other disciplines that can contribute)

All team members will need to be available on 31st May*, and 2^nd and 3^rd June, and have access to the internet on the other days of the project.

What do you get?
- You get paid for your creative input
- Develop your skills in effective collaboration – skills development, peer learning and exchange are a large part of the project
- Be part of an experimental process and new way of working – explore new methods for your business
- Get coverage and exposure – the project will be promoted widely and you will be credited for your work

For more info:

If you are a self-employed creative, open to collaborative and new ways of working, and would like to be involved, e-mail alison [at] bracketprojects.co.uk for more information and to arrange an informal chat.  We aim to have the team confirmed by Friday 21^st May.  If this isn’t for you, please feel free to pass onto others you think may be interested.

*UPDATE: the 31st is a bank holiday, so intro day will take place on 28th May or 1st June.

On 8 June at Rich Mix in Shoreditch, creative freelancers and businesses from across all sectors (art, design, theatre, music) will come together for a day of inspirational talks, presentations, practical sessions, showcases and collaborative design sessions at RewireLondon, a co-created, energising and experimental event for the creative industries.

RewireLondon is an antidote to traditional conferences, celebrating creativity, providing inspiration and exploring new ways of working.  The event is based on the unconference format commonly used in the web sector – interactive, flexible events where the participants are the driving force.  At RewireLondon, you can submit ideas for sessions in advance and create the agenda live on the day.  You’ll come away with new information, tips, fresh connections and collaborations and ideas to action immediately.

The day is shaping up to be very interesting indeed, and we’ve already got some great supporters on board, including Rich Mix, Whipspin and THECUBE.

Tickets cost £25 (£19 if booked by 7 May, or £33 if booked after 4 June).  For more information and to book tickets visit www.rewirelondon.org.  Look forward to seeing you there!

Collaborative working, digital technology and new business models are developing quickly around us.   But as a creative business or freelancer, how do you take advantage of these opportunities while sustaining your business?  We are bringing together a small group of individuals from across all creative sectors (art, design, music, theatre, film) to discuss the opportunities and challenges they are currently facing in their sector. This interactive session, run by creative business advisors Alison Coward and Sinead Mac Manus, will brainstorm solutions for moving forward and help shape a new innovative creative industries event that will take place this summer.

Alison Coward, Bracket (www.bracketprojects.co.uk), an agency/consultancy that helps creative businesses to collaborate effectively, supported by the use of online tools.

Sinead Mac Manus, Creatively Digital (www.creativelydigital.org), a new social enterprise with a mission to enable people and organisations to embrace and value the potential of digital technologies, in their business and their life.

Kindly sponsored by THE CUBE.

To reserve your free place, e-mail info@bracketprojects.co.uk with your name, contact details and the creative sector you work in.

Creative Boom London kindly wrote a fantastic review of the workshop which covers all of these points (and more) in detail.

THE CUBE, based on Commercial Street, E1, offers affordable office and hot desk space for self-employed individuals or young and growing firms, as well as a range of benefits including virtual office assistance, flexible meeting and conference facilities and wifi.  With a growing network of over 60 members from fashion, PR and design to publishing and film, THE CUBE is the perfect place to make connections and develop new ideas together.

Bracket will be providing tips on how online tools can help to turn those creative, collaborative ideas into action.  A few spaces have kept aside for non-members, so visit the event page for more details and to reserve your place (BOOKING ESSENTIAL).