ABOUT

Shuffle Festival is a community-focused art, science and film festival operating in Mile End. It aims to promote the importance of quality public spaces, and to connect people within these spaces.

It's run by a small group of individuals and aided by hundreds of volunteers. It was born in 2013 in the grounds of St Clements Hospital - a derelict former workhouse and psychiatric hospital in the heart of Mile End. It currently operates from the beautiful Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park, London's most urban woodland. We have been funded by the Wellcome Trust, Canary Wharf Group and The Arts Council.

I am part of the small team that run Shuffle, and design and build our structures, signage, graphics & website. I am also extensively involved in the planning and production process.
We have hosted three events at St Clement's hospital, the first Shuffle Festival was curated by Danny Boyle in the summer of 2013. The programme included films, art, performance and a family fete day - attracting thousands of visitors. My role involved building everything required from materials found on site.

In December 2013, Winter Shuffle took place - with an even more exciting programme of films, storytelling, theatre, art and science lectures including exciting guests such as Jarvis Cocker, Martin McDonagh, Irvine Welsh, Danny Boyle, Julien Temple, Tamsin Greig, Nicolas Roeg & Professor Brian Cox. I designed all print media and website for the event and designed & installed an outdoor wintery forest restaurant filled with pine trees and log seating.

In February 2013 we were funded by Heritage Lottery to curate an exhibition on the history of St Clement's Hospital from it's beginnings as a Victorian workhouse. I designed, framed and hung the exhibition.

The most recent incarnation of Shuffle Festival was a 5-day summer event in Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park in July/August 2014, at which our short film prize (judged by Danny Boyle) was launched. I designed the site layout, lighting plan, created signage via workshops with volunteers, designed and built two pitched-roof bar structures, two stages, and decorated the site. We mainly worked with recycled/donated timber for all builds.