Nest Residencies | Nest Bonds | The Nest Code | Getting to The Nest
The Nest
Adjacent to the Daimler Powerhouse on Coventry Canal, The Nest is a new home base and shared workspace for Talking Birds – and a place for people to come together to imagine better ways of doing things.
It is somewhere to expand our Nest Residency programme and our other artist support, development & collaboration opportunities such as Open Cast, Festival of Ideas and F13 and, through all of this activity, to build a welcoming, values-driven, climate-conscious, regenerative, creative community.
Third Fridays at The Nest
The doors of The Nest open every third Friday for Talking Birds’ Creative Co-Working Afternoons for the Midlands’ creative community. Let us know you’re coming, bring your lunch and laptop and we’ll see you there. The Third Fridays programme also includes F13 meetings, Open Cast and our Nestival of Ideas panel discussion events. Tea & coffees are on us. Full Programme and more details available here.
Nest Residencies
Nest Residencies are designed by artists, for artists. They are simple, adaptable and flexible, and aim to focus on the early stages of idea or project development: to give space to the artistic process through supporting time to play, experiment, dream and meander.
NEW FOR 2022: Talking Birds celebrates its 30th anniversary of making work in Coventry this year and, to mark this scarily big, round number, we are offering three distinct Nest Residency strands throughout 2022: Hatching, Nestival and Remix. Full eligibility details and how to apply, here.
Nest Bonds
We have commissioned locally based artists Janet Tryner, Michael Snodgrass and Frances Yeung to produce illustrations to feature on the £10, £20 or £30 Nest Bonds. Andy Moore has done some graphic design magic and the bonds have been expertly hand printed at Common Ground in Coventry by Kate Rossin.
By buying a Nest Bond you are not only getting a lovely piece of art (or 3) for your wall but you’ll also get that warm glow of knowing you are supporting artist development in Cov!
The Nest Code
Coming Soon
A Tour of The Nest
A regenerative producing ecology
We aim to develop a more sustainable producing ecology around the creative community connected to The Nest by helping artists to think about the choices they/we make in relation to materials and processes; and supporting the development of regenerative models for artistic practice; connecting artists with each other and with other local support networks to explore artists’ roles in imagining, inspiring and building a better future; and centring all of this work within a very tangible environment of care.
We believe that this focus on care, stewardship, social and ecological responsibility and our ongoing exploration of how artists can inspire and develop new, inclusive and regenerative ways of living and working, will help develop and amplify the values embodied in The Nest: inspiring, encouraging and supporting individual actions that evolve into collective action and help drive the systemic change we need to fight the climate emergency and build a better, equitable future for all.
The Nest Library
The Nest Library boasts an impressive and growing collection of books – many of which have previously featured in one of our Wednesday Recommendation blogs.
We are also delighted to have been able to label each book with a bespoke bookplate designed by locally-based illustrator Lotte Tophill.
Getting to The Nest
The Nest is a 20 minute walk from Coventry city centre – or a 10 minute cycle (a docking station for the West Midlands Cycle Hire (Beryl app) network is 100m away on Sandy Lane). We have pedestrian access from the canal towpath (via Electric Wharf) or from Sandy Lane, which is also well connected to the local bus network. There is ample bike parking on site and two car parking spaces, which are reserved for those for whom travelling without their car would be a barrier to accessing the building.
Getting to The Nest by bus
The 13 bus from Coventry City Centre to Holbrooks stops at Elly’s Road (opposite the gates to Sandy Lane Business Park]. You can get info on bus times on moovit and via this QR code.
The Nest is adjacent to, and forms part of, the Daimler Powerhouse and our friends and colleagues based next door are Cov legends and all round good eggs Imagineer Productions, Highly Sprung, Open Theatre and Media Mania.
Please note that googlemaps still tends to send you (unnecessarily) from Sandy Lane into Electric Wharf before you get into the business park, and be aware that the last part of the route (into the Sandy Lane Business Park itself) currently involves a slightly tricky speedbump. The industrial estate is shared with vehicles and our neighbours tend to have a lot of deliveries through the day, so please take care.
Nest Residencies | Nest Code | Nest Handbook | Nest Bonds
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