October: The Great Experiment

05 oct 2017

Public talk

Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London, London.

Public talk Last update: 16 may 2023

October 1917, and its immediate aftermath of artistic and cultural experimentation, set the terms of the great twentieth and twenty-first century debates around art’s autonomy and its political ‘commitments’. The fundamental argument in the wake of the Russian Revolution – which, according to the Gregorian calendar, took place in November 1917 – that art and culture could, through education and enlightenment, influence the course of history, seems ever more pertinent today, in the context of new cultural and media phenomena that powerfully influence ‘public opinion’, governance and, indeed, elections.

As part of October: The Great Experiment, we are pleased to announce the following events:

Sergei Eisenstein, October: Ten Days that Shook the World, 1928, black and white, still.

October: The Great Experiment
Thursday 5 October, 18:00–22:30
LVMH Lecture Theatre and The Street
Central Saint Martins
University of the Arts London
Granary Building
1 Granary Square
London
N1C 4AA

Franco ‘Bifo’ Berardi in conversation with Laura Mulvey and David Campany
18:00–19:30, LVMH Lecture Theatre

The programme opens with a keynote lecture by the Marxist theorist and activist Franco ‘Bifo’ Berardi, who will be joining us live from Bologna. The lecture will be introduced by filmmaker and theorist Laura Mulvey and followed by a discussion with her and writer and curator David Campany.

October: Ten Days that Shook the World
20:00–22:30, The Street

With an introduction by leading scholar on Soviet film, Ian Christie, we will present Sergei Eisenstein’s October: Ten Days that Shook the World (1928). Celebrated as a pioneer of film, Eisenstein’s dramatization of the 1917 October Revolution combines graphic images with editing of unprecedented inventiveness. Food and drink will be available.

The programme will continue on the Friday with film screenings on the theme of the politics of architecture and a panel discussion considering technology and political protest.

All events are free but booking is essential. Tickets and further programme details are available from the Central Saint Martins website.

October: The Great Experiment is organised by the students and staff of Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London.