CELEBRATING ART; SUPPORTING COMMUNITY

#WickEDForever

Hackney WickED Community Interest Company (CIC) was formed by a group of local creatives to celebrate, support and promote emerging artists, local businesses and the wider East London community.

The highlight of the Hackney WickED calendar is the annual Hackney WickED Art Festival - championing creativity through Art Exhibitions, Open Studios, Fate For The WickED, Film, Music, Theatre, Workshops, Artists Talks, Critical Debates & more...

Your contribution will help us to deliver an even better annual, free, inclusive, cutting edge Art Festival, whilst also helping to inspire and educate through Hackney WickED's year-round programme of Art and Development events.

In exchange we are offering a number of rewards which will allow you to access, take part in, experience & support the Art Festival, whether you can make it or not.

How will your pledge make an Impact?

The first £6,000 will be used to boost Hackney WickED Art Festival 2013’s creative and inspirational potential, as well as provide additional infrastructure so we are in a position to deal with any extra demand generated off the back of this campaign:

We plan to use the remaining £1,500 to support our long terms goal to become a sustainable promoter of the arts throughout the year:

Hackney WickED Art Festival only takes place because local artists and businesses work together as one collective, generous and supportive community to barter materials, share resources and coordinate their creative inspiration.

As the festival has expanded over the years Hackney WickED relies on additional financial support to pay for the infrastructure required to safely host the increasing number of visitors.

All contributions will be considered a valuable addition to this funding drive - the more people making donations the more collective power and dynamism the festival will have.

The more funds we raise the more WickED we can achieve! 
 

Previous Years Press & Reviews

  "Hackney Wicked was a brilliantly varied three-day event which – in the energy, optimism and improvisation stakes at least – topped the capital’s more established art fairs" Saatchi Gallery Online Magazine

 "It's like a post-apocalyptic world where only the artists survived" Run Riot

 "The most vital art event of the summer" NY Arts Magazine 

Hackney Wick & Fish Island - The Area

Welcome to The Wick - a post-industrial urban landscape located on the dividing line of the boroughs of Hackney and Tower Hamlets, with a unique artistic community.

East London has undergone a raft of transformations over the last decade putting it center of the map for creative arts in Europe. Just a little bit further East, between the Olympic Park and Victoria Park, lies an urban "Isle of Wonder". The area known as "The Wick", is a cauldron of creative and artistic talent. The areas iconic industrial warehouses harbor a mass of art organisations, creative businesses and studios associated with the some of London’s top artists.

"With more artists per capita than any other place in the world (probably), it's only fair that Hackney Wick hosts the East End's biggest art festival" Culture Critic

Now in its 6th year, Hackney WickED CIC has:

- Strived to make art events free, accessible and inclusive through the curation of four Hackney WickED Art Festivals since 2008. Drawing crowds of 10,000 in 2010 and 15,000 in 2011, Hackney WickED has established itself as one of London's biggest and certainly most unique Arts Festivals.

- Delivered a cutting edge program of events, encouraging artists and curators to develop their practice - transforming buildings, disused spaces, streets, canal paths and public spaces in the process.

- Commissioned site-specific artworks and engaged with art collectives both locally and internationally.

- Provided free access to a high level of art, entertainment, performance and music to all sections of the community especially those (young families, children, students and the elderly) least likely to be able to afford access to similar ticketed arts based events.

- Been committed to deepening the community relationships by organising a community Education and Development programme to inspire young people and involve both the wider residential population and local businesses. 

- Increased employment by becoming a sustainable event and attracting new consumers to the area for artists and local businesses.

- Been a stakeholder in the East London arts community. Providing an infrastructure and platform for local artists, galleries and studios to work together alongside established and international names.

- Continued to evolve, adapting to the changing social and built environment whilst remaining a dynamic force for promoting local culture and community issues.

Hackney WickED Art Festival - Plans for this year

Friday 16th - Sunday 18th August 2013

As the Olympic dust settles Team WickED are pleased to announce that 2013 will see Hackney WickED return to a three-day Art Festival, with a varied programme of events taking place in venues throughout The Wick.

FRIDAY 16th August 2013 6-9pm

• Grand opening at Hackney WickED HQ, from 6pm
• Previews of art exhibitions and open studios
• Special guest performance and live art

SATURDAY 17th and SUNDAY 18th August 2013 12-9pm

• Exhibitions
• Open studios
• Acoustic music
• Fate For The WickED
• Performance and live art
• Film screenings
• Pop-up events
• Workshops, tours and talks as part of the Education & Professional Development programme curated by Exchange Projects to forge long term partnerships within the wider East London Community including Local Primary Schools & Community Centers.

For full listings details see: www.hackneywicked.co.uk

Whilst the team here have been hard at work to ensure this year's festival is ready to go the story does not end there.....

Hackney WickED CIC - Long term mission

- Establish a Space from which we can work ALL YEAR round allowing Hackney WickED to provide further opportunities for artists through exhibitions, funded residencies and international exchanges.

- Forge Links between The Wick's artistic community and the new Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in order to keep artistic creativity within the East End of London and make sure that artists' needs are recognised within the changing cultural landscape. 

- Further Increase Employability by bringing increased sales to local business both during the festival and throughout the year as new customers and clients are introduced to the area.

- Education and Development programme aims to inspire young people & involve wider residential exchanges and establish links between them.

- Inspire those members of the community (families, young children, students and the elderly) that are least likely to be able to afford access to ticketed events through the provision of free, interactive & inclusive creative arts experiences.

Rewards

• A WickED Festival T-Shirt. Forgot to pick up a T-shirt during the Festival. Here is your chance: