Join us for an exciting end-of-summer launch party celebrating our newly commissioned public artwork This Sky is Your Sky by artist Bill Balaskas! Selected through an open call and a public vote in 2023, Bill has collaborated closely with our staff, community members, and photography students and tutors from Manchester Metropolitan University to create this multi-layered, site-specific project.

In addition to unveiling the two-part art commission, we will feature a brand-new photographic exhibition showcasing photos taken by local residents and students throughout the project. There will also be some refreshments and sky-themed crafts for kids, making this a fun and engaging event for all ages.

This event is free and open to everyone.

Join us on for an hour-long show on the local ALL FM radio station as part of our 422 community archive project THREADS: Textiles & Tall Tales. Between January-March 2024, artist Holly Graham led a series of craft and community archiving workshops with local residents and creatives working at 422 and in Manchester Art Gallery’s Platt Hall. Their collaboratively produced artworks are exhibited at 422 Manchester’s cafe. You can also find a series of intimate archival contributions including images and oral history segments exploring local textile histories and personal connections to materials, and cloth on the project’s webpage.

This hour-long broadcast on local ALL FM radio station documents these sessions featuring contributions from workshop participants, 422 Arts and the team at Manchester Art Gallery’s Platt Hall.

Listen here!

Join us for a day of free photography workshops led by Manchester School of Digital Arts photography students and tutors Helen McGhie and Ciara Leeming!

These workshops are part of our newly commissioned public art project, 'This Sky is Your Sky' with artist Bill Balaskas, where participants will explore photography as a creative tool to explore and interpret the sky above 422 Arts.

We are offering morning and afternoon sessions. You are welcome to attend either or both:

10:30 AM- Cyanotype printing

Unlock the magic of cyanotype photography in our immersive workshop! You will dive into the enchanting world of this historic photographic process, using UV light to transform objects into images with stunning blue hues. Learn the technique and creative possibilities of cyanotype printing under expert guidance. No experience necessary – just a passion for creativity!

2 PM – Experimental smartphone photography

Explore you’re the potential of your smartphone camera in this hands-on workshop! You will learn composition, lighting techniques and test creative camera filters to capture the world creatively. Guided by creative experts, you will explore creative angles, experimental effects and capture memorable moments inspired by the sky. Join us for an inspiring journey exploring light and lens!

Book Here!

Participants are invited to contribute their photos to become part of Bill Balaskas’ permanent art installation at 422 Arts.

Join us for a celebratory launch of this creative textile-themed project led by artist Holly Graham at the 422 Cafe!

‘THREADS’ is the outcome of a series of creative workshops titled ‘Textiles and Tall Tales’, led by artist Holly Graham as part of our 422 Community Archive project. Working with block-printing, patchwork stitching and oral history interviewing; the project aimed to gather reflections by local people on Manchester’s textile history, individuals’ relationships to cloth, and methods of print design, and to consider links between fabric, industry, empire, and local memory. We will exhibit new work developed collaboratively over these workshop sessions in the form of wall-based textile artworks and oral histories for 422 Arts new digital community archive. Attendees will have a chance to try their hand at their own patchwork swatch to take away, and refreshments will be provided.

This event is free and open to all! Please let us know you are coming using this link.

Join us for a free creative winter celebration with artist Hathaikan Kongaunruan. In this open family-friendly event, we will turn 422 main hall into a winter-themed cardboard city using a wide range of recycled materials and household items. You can help build our city or join us for festive snacks, playtime, and a film screening.

Children must be accompanied by a parent or a carer at all times

About the artist: Hathaikan (Hattie) is a socially engaged artist and cultural producer, often working with children, young people and families in co-created ways to highlight the value of overlooked objects and everyday experience. With increasing grief surrounding climate change and the cost-of-living crisis, her practice is built on resourcefulness, refraining from using new or expensive materials to show the beauty in what already exists.

Would you like to take part in an open and honest conversation about grief? Would you like to speak with others who have experienced bereavement and find common threads? Join artists Chris Alton and Emily Simpson in an afternoon of conversation and sewing and make a textile patch as an expression of your grief

'“After experiencing a significant loss, we (Chris Alton & Emily Simpson) both noticed a lack of space for conversations about grief. We are sharing our experiences through collaborative art-making. Our aim is to create spaces where those living with loss can feel less alone”.*

We invite people who have experienced loss to join us for conversation and sewing. Facilitators will guide you through the process of making a ‘wearable patch’; inspired by historical customs for grieving. No knowledge or experience of working with textiles is required. Chris and Emily will share basic sewing skills and provide all materials. If anyone wishes to bring their own materials this is welcomed.

This workshop is free to attend. Places are limited to 12 participants – so please only book if you are certain you can attend. Please cancel your booking if you can no longer come so we can offer your place to someone else. Refreshments will be provided.

* Please note: Conversations will focus on experiences of grief and living with loss, rather than the particulars of a person's death. This is to steer conversations away from subjects which may be triggering to others. Please be mindful of this when entering the space.

BOOK HERE!

Chris Alton (he/him) is an artist based in Manchester. His practice spans a range of media and approaches, including socially engaged projects, video essays, textile banners, and publications. Each of his projects addresses an array of interconnected concerns, such as the climate crisis, Britain's colonial history, tax avoidance.

Emily Simpson (they/them) is an artist, curator and workshop facilitator. Their work looks at love, lols and loss through textiles, writing, zines, events, print-making and curation, amongst other things. Their work often questions how experiences (of loss, life, language) are shaped by the non-binary perspective and the political implications of this.

Access:

This event is for ages 18+. Parents and carers are welcome to bring those they look after if this makes their attendance possible. Our building is fully accessible. A passenger lift reaching all levels and reserved parking spaces for Blue Badge holders can be found at the back (entry from Hayley St.). Accessible toilets and baby changing facilities are available.

Join us for this open ‘pizza+vote’ event and help choose our newly commissioned building front installation. Over the past few weeks, 422 staff have worked with shortlisted artists Bill Balaskas and Cesar Cornejo as they developed their project ideas and we now invite all interested parties to see the results and have a say!

Join us for a free creative workshop to learn some simple binding techniques, led by book artist George Gibson! During this workshop participants will learn how to fold, sew and manipulate paper using both traditional tools and household objects. Covering three simple book structures, you will leave the workshop with a set of blank publications to turn into notebooks, sketchbooks, or artist book dummies.

BOOK HERE!

Suitable for beginners. Children are to be accompanied by an adult.

George Gibson is a creative based in Manchester, working within book arts, print, and publication design. George is a co-founder of arts collective Shy Bairns, an active member of ABC [Artists’ Books Cooperative], and a technician at Manchester School of Art.

Join us in celebration of our final ‘Fooooood and What’s In Between’ public event organised by A.MAL Projects. Local Satwant Bansal will be sharing delicious Punjabi food and personal tales from her personal archive.

This event is FREE with limited capacity. Book your place here!

Our ‘Fooooood and What’s In Between’ annual programme continues this summer with a series of meals and public events organised by artist and curator Jessica El Mal and A.MAL projects. Join us for a dinner exploring the North African diasporic experience – to hold space, eat, and return.

Koshary is described as ‘food of the poor’, cross-cultural at its core and with debated origins that stem from Egypt’s occupied past. Against the backdrop of old Cairo cinema and Omm Kalthoum, this event will invite guests to eat, connect, process, shake it out and share third culture experiences of longing and loss – and return.

The sacred act of cooking and eating is a touchstone of female solidarity and community in North Africa, and we honour these practices this evening. *This is a women-only event, and we wholeheartedly include anyone who identifies as such within it. If you have any questions don't hesitate to get in touch.

This event is free with limited spaces. Book your place here!

Make your own visual toolkit for creative facilitation!

Do you facilitate sessions with groups? Join us for a free workshop with artist and educator Olivia Glasser.

Using found imagery from magazines, create your own complete set of cards, for facilitating engaging and creative sessions with the groups you work with. Picture cards provide participants with an open-ended set of prompts for meaning-making and self-expression and are a great tool for icebreakers, group discussion and evaluation.

Each participant will leave with a hand-made box of facilitation cards unique to you and the groups you work with. All materials will be provided and are sustainably sourced or recycled, but please feel free to bring your own magazines along, too.

This is a free intimate workshop designed especially for educators, social practitioners and group facilitators, so please make sure to book your place in advance using this link.

Join DURTY BEANZ for the premiere of ‘Takeaway Cultures’ an informal performance playfully presenting their recent research project as part of our 'Fooooood and What's In Between' annual theme. They spent the last few months looking into the sociocultural function of takeaway food outlets across Stockport Road and the different communities it serves in Longsight, Rusholme and Levenshulme and we are looking forward to sharing some of the results with the public. NO NEED TO BOOK! Just join us for this exciting exploration of culinary histories and contemporary economies of food and culture in South Manchester. (AND YES – THERE WILL BE FOOD!)

Join us for a free Ramadan-themed cooking workshop taught by Heart & Parcel. In this workshop, Rawia from Heart & Parcel will take you through an interactive cooking workshop, exploring the practices during Ramadan around starting (Suhoor) fasting, and the different foods and drinks she prepares for her family when breaking (Iftar) fast. Participants will learn the dough and filling and decoration of a popular Syrian sweet cheese filled pancake, Katayef Assafiri whilst sampling the refreshing Tamarind drink Rawia prepares for her family for Iftar. Finally, she will demonstrate the process for Fattet Hummus, a staple for a Suhoor breakfast, and you’ll all be able to join in with finding out more about the everyday lives of Rawia and her family during This special time.  

A relaxed, fun and hands-on workshop for anyone wanting to learn new food, new tastes and flavours as well as a bit of background to one of the most celebrated festivals around the world.   

BOOK HERE!

Mark Frith from 'Growing Togetherness' in Manchester will introduce different techniques for growing your own microgreens and indoor plants at home. Learn how to propagate, compost, and grow your own microgreens at home to produce cost-effective green gifts and edibles. This free introductory workshop is suitable for beginners of all ages (children to be accompanied by adults)

BOOK HERE!

*Due to the great popularity of our free workshops, please make sure to cancel your booking if you cannot make it.

Join us for a free natural fabric dyeing workshop led by designer and natural colourist Emily Gubbay. Discover the art of natural textile dyeing using botanical ingredients to create beautifully coloured fabrics. We will be using plant-based natural pigments like flowers, roots and bark as well as everyday food waste such as onion skins to produce a range of beautiful colours. Participants will learn different Shibori and ink drawing techniques to make a dyed item of choice.

This free introductory workshop is suitable for beginners of all ages (children to be accompanied by adults)

BOOK YOUR PLACE HERE!

Join us for a Community Fun Day at the 422 Centre with lots of free fun activities and crafty Christmas workshops!

Join us for this free session where we will play games and learn fun circus skills such as juggling, diabolo and hula hoop! (Don't worry, no clowns or lions!) Suitable for children aged 7-11 years. We will provide all equipment and some healthy snacks. No previous knowledge is needed.

Booking is required. Book Here!