September 2021 — Jan 2023

We Have The MEANS

Our ambitious new initiative to let people lead and make live events, artworks and experiences where they live.

We are creating 6 exciting real world projects celebrating Macclesfield and its people. Working with local people, businesses and organisations to share skills, gain experiences and create opportunities.

Current Project: SILK ROAD CELEBRATION

Sign up to join our free creative sessions and be part of the team making amazing things happen!

Partners

  • Discover Shift Cheshire East Cultural Team Logo
  • Macclesfield Community ArtSpace

Supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England

We have the MEANS

People Powered

We will bring people together to form teams and work on real-world projects across their town. Participants will gain practical making skills to be stakeholders designing the local “experience” economy (including in a Covid-secure way). Planning, organising, promoting and building their own experiences: artworks, performances, games. The initiative will culminate in an arcade to showcasing the town’s talents and celebrating community-made culture.

How it Works

MEANS will help us create a production line to regularly make innovative, community-driven artworks and projects.

This means:

  • Groups won’t have to start from scratch for every project but will already have stakeholders, resources, templates, structures and audiences in place and we can ensure that everything made is Covid-safe.
  • We can make more ambitious artworks, scaling-up, involving more people and making more interesting collaborations. Making more ideas become viable and achievable. Giving more participants confidence to become makers. Breaking down ideas in a modular way – allowing specialisms and innovation in parts of our work.
  • We can learn and improve. Focusing on putting quality into our work and making things that people want and communities need. Showing makers that their ideas can make a difference.
MEANS will allow us to get better at explaining our processes so others get involved. Regularly using online digital platforms and recording videos to share skills more widely, working in new ways and broadening our skill base. Working with our brilliant existing groups like Macclesfield Community ArtSpace and making new future community owned makerspaces, eco-hubs or tool libraries conceivable.

Sharing Resources

Resources will be reused in each new project, and video tutorials will share and recycle knowledge. Our aim is to snowball – With each workshop series and project building on the skills, resources and knowledge from the project before and utilising community skills. Each will be a catalyst for creative exploration based on open themes that celebrate the town and its people, with participants designing, making and then sharing with others. We aim to involve more participants, develop their ideas, find new opportunities and increase confidence.

Workshops & Showcases – Coming Soon

We will be releasing workshops and showcases here. If you would like to get involved or be kept informed, please get in contact here.

Find IDST! Resources

We have the MEANS Gallery

Macc Hackathon Watery Monsters Experiments
See our Showcase

Our Crew

We are IDST!

*IDST! are a group of makers, artists, techies and experimenters working together to make community artworks.

* Creating artworks, performances, games and events that are playful, purposeful and people powered and celebrate community strength.

*Collaborating with others, training and running experiments, workshops and projects so people can learn and get involved and communities can own their ideas.

More about IDST!