The Nerve Centre arts festival takes residence at Rapid

The Nerve Centre brings together brave culture, ideas and discussion to the old Rapid paint shop.

Rapid Hardware, Liverpool

We’re big fans of the ‘don’t let a disused building go to waste’ thinking, especially in a city as great as Liverpool, and so it’s great to see the former homes of Rapid Hardware getting some use of late - this time it’s their paint shop, next to Lewis’s.

First there was the excellent exhibition of gig posters during this year’s Liverpool Sound City, and next week sees the start of The Nerve Centre, a new arts ‘n’ culture ‘n’ everything else event being held within the Rapid space.

Bringing together organisations like Philosophy in Pubs, the Windows Project, How Why DIY and Next To Nowhere Social Centre amongst others, the month-long event is designed to “bring the people of Liverpool together to share ideas on art, culture and ways of improving our city and surroundings”.

Its creative and DIY (excuse the pun) approach extends to the schedule: local historical film screenings, poetry and community talks rub shoulders with blogging and podcasting workshops, live music (including bands playing in the shop window), slideshows and all manner of interesting ways to spend an afternoon and expand your thinking.

You can check out the full schedule on their site - it’s an impressive selection of stuff and a nice idea to filter all the fractured grassroots culture that goes on throughout the city into one place. Highly recommended.

The Nerve Centre, until 11th September
The old paint shop, Renshaw St, Liverpool (next to Lewis’s)
www.catalystmedia.org.uk/nervecentre

- Image by Somedriftwood