Home

Publications

Thinkpieces logo THINKPIECE SERIES

Our ambition at the Manifesto Club is to start to develop the theory and substance of a new progressive politics. As part of this, we have launched our Thinkpieces series: these are deep-thinking, spirited proposals for how to do things better in a particular area of life, written by Manifesto Club members from all over the world.

ABOUT THINKPIECES, by Josie Appleton, convenor of the Manifesto Club

CURRENT THINKPIECES

The Case Against Vetting logo CASE AGAINST VETTING REPORTS

The vetting of adults in the name of child protection is out of control. Those now being vetted include 16-year-olds teaching younger kids to read, parents volunteering at school, and foster carers’ friends. Running an after-school club is now subject to more stringent security tests than selling explosives. The Manifesto Club is campaigning against the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act, which makes it compulsory for all adults who work or volunteer with children to be criminal records checked.

The Manifesto Club reports, THE CASE AGAINST VETTING, HOW THE CHILD PROTECTION INDUSTRY STOLE CHRISTMAS, and HOBBY CLUBS, show how the expansion of vetting is damaging community life. Our BRIEFING DOCUMENT responds to the government's new timetable for the implementation of the Act.

AA logo

BOXED IN: PROVOCATION ESSAY

A Manifesto Club provocation essay, by artist Sonya Dyer, argues that diversity schemes and targets are pigeonholing black and Asian artists. She calls for an honest debate within the sector, and for artistic value and curatorial independence to be placed at the centre of arts funding.

See the Boxed In page, including feedback and comments. Download SCREEN or PRINT version.



FUSION NOW!FUSION NOW! More light, more power, more people

FUSION NOW! was an exhibition curated at the Rokeby gallery, London, by the art critic and Manifesto Club member, JJ Charlesworth. FUSION NOW! asks what art and society might look like if we thought positively about a world based on more energy, not less. It includes work by artists including Liam Gillick, Roger Hiorns and Sam Basu; and writing by fusion scientist Professor Mike Dunne, and technology writers Joe Kaplinsky & James Woudhuysen. (See Jonathan Jones' review of the exhibition on the Guardian arts blog)

Read JJ Charlesworth's introduction to the exhibition. Read the full FUSION NOW! publication, including essays and artworks.

Attention Please logo ATTENTION PLEASE PHOTOESSAY

'Attention Please' is a photo-project to explore the way in which public space is polluted by a host of needless warning signs - slash tape over a crack in the pavement, or a puddle marked off with police cones. This project questions what such useless bureaucratic signage means for the look and feel of urban life - and calls for a more rational approach to public space.

A PHOTO-ESSAY, by designer Tom Mower, shows up the visual language of safety signage: Attention Please: A walk interrupted by safety signage