PlayToon PlayBack

The PlayToon exhibition will be part of an autumn encore at the Holy Biscuit in Shieldfield, Newcastle. PlayToon kicked off four shows, the other three featuring work by local schools. The Holy Biscuit want to bring parts of all four together; all the shows shared a theme of work by people often left out or over looked in the great corporate schemes of things. For PlayToon we will be showing some new photos and videos, including videos of the PlayOut day, and any NE skaters, BMXers, scooter kids and blades are welcome to show work (contact michael.jeffries@northumbria.ac.uk). We reckon over 1000 people came by the see PlayToon. Meantime the city is out there, waiting to be played. PlayToon may be little quite but just out of sight, round the corner listen for the sound of trucks and bikes....

"This is just my place"

How it all started, in 2009 with a doodled map from a BMXer, Jonny Kenyon, in Toon for uni. "It's not so much the places. My whole journey is the place. I'm clueless as the where i am. This is just my place. My place is with my bike".Which is the most important geography in the world.

Plug and play

Many thanks to everyone who took part in PlayToon and PlayOut. 1000+ came through the show and came away with a very different take on what they had assumed about the streets of Tyneside. The PlayToon book (50 pages, full colour, photography and interviews, £8) is on sale in Native Skates or contact michael.jeffries@northumbria.ac.uk. But it is not over; some of the show features inthe London Festival of Architecture 2102, more details at http://lfa2012.org/events/view/plug-in-play-74. Meanwhile elves and pixies have crept out a started to rebuild a new wasteland in Byker.....

A village fete, only more airborne

PlayToon and the PlayOut day was a gem: many thanks to all the Urban Games crew: the half pipe team North east Parkour, the Rough Diamonds and Michael and Monjer for pulling this together. The Late show crowd piled in too. Over 800 visitors through the exhibition so far, stunned and moved by the sheer quality of skater, BMX and free running graphics, video and words. Show stays open Monday and Tuesday 11-4pm.

PlayToon Late Shows tonight, 7pm+...

 PlayToon hooks up with the Newcastle Late Shows. Plus the lauch of the PlayToon book. Holy Biscuit, 7pm+

"A thousand furlongs of sea....

...... for an acre of barren ground". Shakespeare's skaters? Perhaps with the new graff at Bridges, although Gateshead Council's Construction Services are worried because some of the graff is wthin 5m of the road which means they have to do something about it.... even though one of their staff has a nostalgic glint in his eye for skating. Meantime here is another view of Bridges from the PlayToon show.

PlayToon show goes up.....

...and looks stunning. Skateboard, BMX and parkour photography, huge in-your-face colour prints, rasterbator half tones, stunning and sweet video. Plus some more mysterious 3D items, including a remnant from the Wasteland. Here is Sebastian towards the end of the put-up day. Exhibition is open 15th-22nd May, 11am-4pm, with two specials. Friday 18th as part of Newcastle Late Shows 7pm-11pm and on Saturday 19th the Urban Games team host the live action with half pipe, parkour, urban dance and DJs from 4pm onwards. All welcome, free, bring your board, BMX, skates.