Forge Press
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Friday 2 March 2018
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Sophie Maxwell
@ForgePress
I’m excited to introduce myself as the new Arts Editor! My name is Sophie, I am a second year biology student and a self-confessed arts enthusiast! When I’m not learning about animals and plants, I love to wander around Sheffield’s galleries and museums. Reading is my guilty pleasure, be it classic or contemporary.
Arts press.arts@forgetoday.com
Arts Editor
I have made it my mission to see as many local theatre productions as possible before my time here ends.
I endeavour to share with you all my favourite arts within the city and will even be reviewing some of the beloved books, productions and exhibitions I think are worth sharing.
explore? Indulge in our latest fortnightly Forge fix below to find out more. Happy reading!
Laura and I have a lot lined up for the next few issues, so make sure you keep exploring this jam-packed section. Most importantly, immerse yourself in the wealth of art and culture Sheffield has to offer. You won’t regret it! Looking for a new book to read? An arts festival to attend? An exhibition to
Review
Changing Lives at Weston Park Museum
Faith Dunne
Platform Festival is returning to the Students’ Union from 9-11 March, this time in support of Cavendish Cancer Care. With numerous workshops and acts run by societies such as SUPAS, SUTCo and Film Unit, it’s an unmissable experience! •
On Friday evening, why not kick off that weekend feeling by checking out the SUPAS Showcase?
Review
Sophie Maxwell
D
enmark is consistently ranked as one of the happiest countries in the world by various happiness indicators. Meik Wiking, CEO of the Happiness Research Institute in Copenhagen, thinks this can be explained by one concept: Hygge. Hygge (pronounced hoo-ga) is a Danish word that cannot directly be translated into English to convey its original meaning. Wiking describes it as a feeling or an atmosphere of comfort, safety and contentment. You simply know hygge when you feel it. The Little Book of Hygge: The Danish Way to Live Well captures the reader’s imagination, aided by a range of images and illustrations featuring moments bursting with hygge. Throughout the book, Wiking argues that hygge-living is central to Danish life and a significant step towards achieving happiness. He presents five dimensions of hygge: taste, sound, smell, touch and sight. For each dimension, there is an abundance of hygge to be encountered. Individuality is the beauty of hygge. For a book lover, hygge may be curling up in a cosy chair with a hot drink and a good
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Channel your inner zen on Saturday morning and attend yoga, 11am in the Foundry. Fancy yourself as a director? Head down to Sunday’s Film Making Exhibition at 12:00pm in Gallery Room 4.
Check out Platform Performance’s Facebook page for more information on tickets and a timetable of acts.
The Little Book of Hygge: The Danish Way to Live Well by Meik Wiking book whilst rain patters on the window. Others may envisage hygge to be more of a social activity. This could be considered a simplistic approach, however this familiar senses framework can be easily recalled and implemented into one’s daily life. Wiking hones in on the drivers of hygge specific to Denmark.
You simply know hygge when you feel it Throughout, there are tips which guide the reader to activities that foster hygge, such as recipes and suggestions of new traditions. Here lies the true magic of this book, taking a complex concept and turning it into an applicable daily practice. At times, Wiking may overemphasise the potential role hygge can play in societies dissimilar to Denmark, a socially and economically developed nation. As much as awareness of hygge is achieved within these pages, actually
practicing it in everyday life may be the real challenge facing those who strive to live well. Nevertheless, Wiking writes with wonder and wit. The book inspires us to make simple lifestyle changes in order to achieve more hygge and potentially more happiness. Without a doubt, hygge is certainly a piece in the complex puzzle of happiness.
S
heffield: often referred to as a friendly city, surrounded by the serene setting of the Peaks. However, there is something deeper than this amiable reputation. As the Changing Lives exhibition at Weston Park Museum demonstrates, the city has a fierce history of protest. Stepping into the exhibition is an immersion in protest, from portraits of figures involved with ‘Save Sheffield’s Trees’ campaign and handmade cross-stitches of the craftivism movement to inflatable dinosaurs declaring the fight against fossil fuels. The exhibition documents Sheffield’s role in protests over the last 200 years, with the city playing a remarkably large part. The exhibition opens with a timeline illustrating all the protests that have occurred in the city from as early as the 18th century up until last year. Of course, one of the most pivotal and pertinent successes of activism was the passing of the Representation of the People Act in 1918, which was achieved by the women’s suffrage movement. Evidence of the dedication and laborious work that many women invested into this movement can be found throughout the exhibit. As well as heavily publicised global protests, movements which are more localised to Sheffield are displayed. For instance, the actions of rebellious
ramblers from the early 1900s that secured public access to the city’s surrounding countryside today are highlighted. A large montage of the posters and pictures of the year-long miners’ strike, anti-Conservative representations and a display about the closure of the steel factories complement each other to reveal the city’s historically liberal, left-wing attitude. The black and white evidence of past protests stands in contrast to the colourful displays of more recent
Sheffield has a fierce history of protest movements, including Black Lives Matter and the inevitable anti-Trump banners. In fact, one of the most entertaining (and certainly most colourful) posters of the exhibition compares the US president to a Wotsit. Need any more be said? See the exhibition for free until Saturday 1 July.