Ahead of her upcoming print release this summer, we’re delighted to announce that Rebecca Strickson is hosting a banner-making workshop at Enter Gallery to coincide with Brighton’s Pride celebrations.
Join us on Thursday 3rd August from 7-9pm for a creative evening where Strickson will help you to plan and make your Pride-worthy banners.
RSVP to secure your place.
In today’s blog, we’re chatting to Strickson about the origins of her fascination with banners, and learning a little more about what you can expect from the workshop.
Viva la Résistance
Rebecca Strickson is a contemporary illustrator with a love of combining 60s psychedelia with uplifting slogans inspired by trade union banners. Her galvanising art radiates optimism for a better future and reminds us to get out there and fight for our rights.
“I’m fascinated by how trade union banners look, their design aspects and how they feature certain symbols. Protest banners date back to the 17th century, and back then there were a lot of people who couldn’t read so symbols were really important, and they remain so.”
“The ultimate symbol is colour and Pride flags are a great example of this. There’s different flags and different flags mean different things. They’re not just pretty rainbows, they hold much significance. It proves that banners are as relevant today as they’ve ever been.”
Fight the Power
When you look at media coverage of protests, it’s often the banners that catch your eye, with people using the medium to express their feelings in powerful, innovative and often hilarious ways.
“Banners are having a renaissance! People want to turn up to protests with something that expresses what they’re thinking and what they think is important. This workshop gives you an opportunity to make a banner that is personal to you. I believe something far more interesting comes out of these kinds of things when you make your own, rather than borrowing them. There’s something truly beautiful about a homemade banner.”
Yes We Can
At the workshop, you will be making a banner fit for a protest or for hanging in your home. All materials are provided by Strickson, who tells us:
“I turn up with a hell of a lot of material. Everything we use in my workshops is recycled - you find so much interesting material when you recycle. I take donations and I also go around Margate visiting clothes designers, upholsterers and fabric people picking up their excess bits.”
“It’s nice to give people the opportunity to make something that they wouldn’t normally have the chance, time or materials to create. I’m happy to provide a space for people to express what they’re feeling.”
Tricks of the trade
We asked Strickson to offer some tips on banner-making, so that those who fancy joining us can have a little think about what they might like to create. She tells us:
“In the workshops I always dedicate some time to helping people come up with what they want to say. There will be pencils and paper for you to sketch out your designs and I have lots of prompts and practice of working out how to condense what you want to say in a snappier fashion.”
“When you’re making banners, you’ve got to be quite concise, as you don’t have a lot of space or time to get people’s attention – especially with protest banners it’s about making something quickly, but also making it relevant, and snappy so you can get your point across fast.”
“Don’t overthink it. Just come along and see what comes up. It’s a making event but also an opportunity to learn. You get to see what other people find interesting and what people think is important. Working together on things always feeds in because when you work with a group, you always end up thinking of things that you wouldn’t have come up with yourself. It’s going to be a lot of fun, and the most important thing is that you make something!”
Tickets for the workshop are £15, with all proceeds going to Switchboard – a LGBTQ+ charity that has been listening to, supporting and connecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer communities since 1975.
Secure your space at Rebecca Strickson's banner-making workshop here.
