Urban Strawberry Lunch and St Luke’s have always meant a lot to the Fab Collective.  We have exhibited our photos in there three times now – once in 2009 and twice in 2010.  Their support has been invaluable to our development and, we hope, our success over our short lifetime.

Similarly, we have also come to appreciate the great work that USL does.  Not only are they custodians of St Luke’s – keeping its doors open for people to come and look around and to be reminded of why its there and what it means to the city of Liverpool, but USL are champions of the local community.  They support where they can with arts projects, both visual, music and performance.  In so doing they reach out to a number of people who fall under the radar of mainstream life.  The church acts as a magnet to a number of homeless people and rather than seeing that as an annoyance, USL embraces it – seeing an opportunity to do good where many would turn the other way.

Our connection with USL has taught us a lot about what they do and why they do it.  Members of the Fab Collective have all benefited enormously from being involved with projects run by USL.  They have taught us some valuable lessons.

Friday night last week was our chance to give something back in a tangible way.  As many of you know, USL was the beneficiary of an Arts Council grant amounting to about £30,000 per annum.  The government’s arts budget cuts announced earlier this year left us reeling when we learned that that £30,000 had been culled completely.

With the help of Partridge & Bray auctioneers the auction of 22 Fab Collective photos (and one painting from Bernie Howden) raised nearly £1,300 on the night.  That was an amazing result and far exceeded even the most optimistic of our expectations.  When one adds in door takings and bar sales, the total for the night is well over £2,000.

We also recognise and say big respect to the bands who played – John Head, Fabienne Rothschilde, Mervyn Gersh and Hope Street Harmonies. Thanks also to VJ Tristan Brady-Jacobs.

But all this would have been nothing without all the people who came on the night and, especially those who bid for and bought one of the lots.  To you – we say a massive thank you.

An evening of celebration and fundraising for Urban Strawberry Lunch and St Luke’s (bombed out) Church

On Friday 9th September , 6.30-9.30pm, the Fab Collective will play host to One Night Only – a gala evening of fundraising in support of Urban Strawberry Lunch and their work at St Luke’s (Bombed Out) Church.

USL have worked closely with the Fab Collective since 2009, when we held our first exhibition at St Luke’s. Since then we have returned for two more exhibitions, and been a major contributor to USL’s Hollywood Homeless project. See the photo below called “Dialing Dali” shot by Mick Jones, who was one of the participants in Hollywood Homeless.

When it was announced in March 2011 that USL were to receive a 100% cut in Arts Council England Funding the Fab Collective decided that action was needed, and instead of holding our annual exhibition at St Luke’s offered instead to auction the work that would have formed the exhibition. All the money raised from the auction will be donated to USL – the Collective having also paid for the production costs.

The auction will be undertaken by Nick Bray of Partridge Bray Auctioneers, Liverpool’s newest auction house and sale room. Nick has agreed to donate his time for free to the event, and he is inviting his partner Adam Partridge (Flog It!) and former colleague Cathy Hawkes (who has also worked with USL in the past) to join him.

And word of the event has spread, with John Head (Shack) donating a performance. John, local music legend with a loyal and strong fan base, will be appearing with special guests.

USL’s funding cut amounts to £35,000; and together the Fab Collective, Nick Bray and John Head aim to raise in excess of £1,000 towards this target.

The gallery of images for sale is below.  All images are A3 in size and are mounted and framed ready for hanging.  If you can’t come, but are still interested in making a bid, then we can accept bids by email.  Simply send an email to  info@fabcollective.com with your contact details, maximum bid and, of course the title of the photo you are bidding for.  Commissioned bids must be received by 23.59 hours on Thursday 8th September. 

We have also just received this fantastic original acrylic on canvas painting of St Luke’s from local artist, Bernie Howden. Not that we aren’t keen on our photos, but this is a stunning piece.

On 6th August 2011 Liverpool was definitely the place to be for the wonderful Pride march and Summer Of Love event. Photographers from The Fab Collective captured the colourful spirit of the occasion and a broad selection of the beautiful people who, in their multifarious costumes and makeovers, brought a genuine rainbow sparkle to the day.

The atmosphere amongst the crowd was warm and celebratory and the Radio City main stage delivered a stellar line-up of talent to a buoyant crowd of proud Scousers and visitors from all over Europe, united in celebrating Pride. The day was a massive success for the city and is testimony to the ability of its people to create a unique atmosphere celebrating diversity.

The date of the festival, chosen by the community, occurs on the anniversary of the death of Michael Causer; a young gay man who was murdered in 2008. His death united the community and Liverpool city council, leading to the revival of the festival. This event will develop and become a key date in the free music festival calendar in Europe, the success of this has lead to the approval of Stanley Street being designated the city’s gay quarter.

Enjoy the sparkle of the crowd, the wonderful performers, the rainbow colours of the costumes and the glitter and glam of Pride as captured by The Fab Collective in our gallery of Liverpool Pride photos.

The Fab Collective’s group exhibition entitled, Collective Action, presents a diverse range of photographic styles across portraits, street scenes, still life and offers a mix of different formats and printing techniques. As a direct response to A Call to Action, 16 of the Collective’s photographers examine issues close to their hearts such as funding cuts, regeneration and support for young carers.

Location: 1st floor atrium at The Capital, Old Hall Street (corner of Union Street), Liverpool. L3 9PP
Dates: Saturday 7th to Monday 30th May
Opening times: Daily 9am – 6pm
Cost: Free admission

Google Streetview Link
Google Maps Link

Fabness truly is all around in Liverpool at the moment, for not only do the Fab Collective have our current exhibition Giraffe on display at St Luke’s (the bombed out church), you can also see our previous exhibitions in the windows of the former Lewis’s department store on Ranelagh Street, as part of the Shops Upfront project.

The display in Lewis’s windows includes:

• Up to something – our first exhibition from 2009, now updated to include new members’ work;
• Having a do – our popular exhibition from this summer; and
• Hollywood Homeless – an exciting display of photographs taken by the homeless community who took part in the Hollywood Homeless project, a collaboration between Urban Strawberry Lunch and the Fab Collective earlier this year.

All the pictures will be on display from 27th September until the end of November 2010.

Get up to something yourself!

We’d like to offer someone the chance to exhibit (and keep) a print of your own on the theme of the ‘Up to something’ exhibition.

We are looking for the best photos of Liverpool inspired by the following quotes:

“This city of contradictions contradicts itself. It never quite believes it can be what it wants to be.” Will Alsop, 2007

“Liverpool is a city you cannot feel neutral about.” Stephen Bayley, 2007

“You know what scousers are like, they’re always up to something. Please do not repeat that to anyone from Liverpool.” Jack Straw, 1999

“Liverpool is a haven for everything different.” Rosaria Crolla, 2007

“Indeed both sexes in this town are remarkable for their good looks and fashionable costume.” Samuel Sidney, 1851

To enter either:

• add your picture to the Up to something else Flickr group; or
• email a small version to: uptosomethingelse@fabcollective.com (max 1mb initially but if you win then we will contact you and ask for a larger version).

Please remember to include which quote the picture relates to. The best photo will be printed and displayed at a later date.

Closing date for entries will be 10th November 2010 and there is a limit of 2 pictures per quote, 10 in total.

In these gloomy times the Fab Collective want to make you smile – or maybe even laugh – in our new exhibition, part of the Independent strand of the Liverpool Biennial.

The exhibition is a visual exploration of laughter. It includes some photos that are funny in their own right. Others show the simple pleasure of a smile or a shared laugh.

Forget your worries for a while and enjoy the exhibition.

Open from 18th September to 28th November at St Luke’s, the ‘bombed out’ church. Opening times are 12-4pm, Thursday to Sunday, depending on the weather as this is an open air venue. You are advised to check on the day to see if we are open. We’ll keep you up to date on twitter.