Barbican Weekender – Natural Circuits

'Where the Wild Things Are': the Barbican's 'Weekender' of family-friendly events combines the forces of nature and human creativity

The forces of art and technology will fuse together at this year’s Barbican Weekender, where a slew of free workshops and performances will usher in visitors on 3 and 4 November 2012.

The Barbican Centre’s 2012 theme, Natural Circuits, will explore the revolving spheres of digital technology and the arts. The family-oriented activities range from tweet poetry writing sessions to digital band-building, with a host of shows and performances for the less active among participants.

Alongside the weekend’s interactive exhibits will be fantasy opera performances of children’s favourites, Where the Wild Things Are and Higglety Pigglety Pop! Further live performances over the weekend will also come from the London Symphony Orchestra Digital Ensemble and the Barbican Young Poets.

Family workshops are being run across both days, with offerings from 3D prototyping workshop, Black Country Atelier and community organisation, MzTEK. Participants will get the chance to try out activities that involve elements of art and technology, such as 3D printing and the design of sound-producing t-shirts.

Award-winning Welsh artist, Hugh Hughes is to unveil a new multimedia show at the Weekender. The show, called Stories from an Invisible Town, shares Hughes’ childhood memories with the audience by way of short films, animations and audio clips.

The Barbican’s Director of Creative Learning, Sean Gregory explained that the public events will offer “new experiences in a dynamic place where artists create interactive events and performances.” Gregory added, “it’s a great opportunity to enjoy your own creative potential.”