Mr Silke is one of those collective things that seems to pop out of nowhere and amaze you with its scale and ambition. Whether it lives up to its aims remains to be seen but whatever happens the side effects should be positive and interesting. This is taken from Creative Wolverhampton:
From off the streets of Wolverhampton comes the Silke Collective. A group of like-minded, inspired individuals, working together to lead fulfilling, creative lives. Members of the 200 strong collective share resources, ideas and initiatives in order to gain visibility in a notoriously difficult part of the country. Artists, in particular, find themselves leaving university with huge debts and very little chance of paying them back through the profession for which they trained. The collective hopes to improve this situation.
Anyone can join the collective, as long as they are willing to help in its success. It is currently considering art exhibitions, music promotions, publishing and even a regular bazaar of small businesses, artists and crafts-persons.
They currently use the Wolverhampton Little Civic as their drop-in and the first official but very informal meeting is on May 26 between 10am and 3pm. There will also be a small exhibition of art, film and photography alongside readings and poetry recitals. In the downstairs café-bar there will be a book-sale specialising in literary fiction and books to inspire creativity. Everyone is welcome.
When is the next meeting?