O, Temperate Pixelstick

What do the worlds of data visualisation, light painting and the temperance movement have in common? Find out at our Pixelstick-augmented tour of the National Temperance Hospital from 9pm on Friday, May 27th as part of One Day in the City and the UCL Festival of Arts.

One Day in the City is a UCL celebration of cities, literature, and the humanities (ably steered by Nick Shepley in our English department), and draws together disparate strands and disciplines. On this occasion, the disparate strands are James Kneale, urban geographer and chronicler of the temperance movement, Duncan Hay, recovering psychogeographer, Carina Schneider, arts event impresario, and myself. I’ll be the one waving a colourful stick around to make pretty pictures.

We have the great fortune to have access to part of the National Temperance Hospital, the behemoth of Hampstead road, and incredibly the first hospital in the UK to be sworn to the avoidance of alcohol in medical treatment. In this unique site-specific event, we’ll learn about the motivations and history of the temperance movement and hospital itself, illustrated with the pixelstick – a unique light-painting tool that allows us to create images, drawings and data graphics in the space itself. This is the first event of its kind, and we hope it to be the first of many – so get in on the ground floor.

Participation is free, but numbers are strictly limited – so sign up now. Bear in mind that much of the event will take place after dark, and some parts of the tour may not be wheelchair-accessible; please enquire if you have mobility requirements.