This October, Factory International welcomes Common Frequency to Aviva Studios, a new exhibition and event series exploring the transformative power of music through moving image, visual installation, original film and an immersive soundscape. Created and curated by the 2026 adidas Originals Creator Network North cohort, the free four-day programme brings together 20 emerging creatives from across the North West for a celebration of release, resilience and the many ways music shapes identity.
Taking over the vast North Warehouse from Sat 3 to Tue 6 Oct, the exhibition has been developed over six months with support from Factory International and adidas Originals, while selected days see the installation transform into a space for live music, poetry, creative workshops and conversation.
On Sun 4 Oct, Common Frequency becomes a hands-on creative space with a workshop dedicated to the relationship between music, identity and transformation.
Visitors can move between stations dedicated to album artwork, merchandise design and a photoshoot, creating their own responses to the themes running through the wider exhibition. The session offers a chance to engage with the ideas behind Common Frequency through making, listening and curating a new self through music.
The Common Frequency programme closes on Tue 6 Oct with a chance to meet the adidas Originals Creator Network North cohort and hear directly from the young creatives at the heart of the exhibition.
The free session offers a closer look at the process of bringing Common Frequency together, with the group discussing their experiences of developing the installation and unpacking the ideas that shaped its ethos. DJ and broadcaster Mary Anne Hobbs also contributes to the evening, before a relaxed networking session with a joyous dancefloor celebration brings the evening to a close.
Sat 3 Oct - Tue 6 Oct, Aviva Studios, Water Street, Manchester M3 4JQ
factoryinternational.org
- Words:
- Wolf McFarlane
- Published on:
- Thu 24 Sep 2020
Forming the nucleus of the programme, Common Frequency‘s free exhibition collates work of the adidas Originals Creator Network North cohort in an absorbing installation shaped by sound and image.
Moving pictures, visual artwork, a zine and two original films explore experiences of release and defiance through music, with the work unfolding across the sprawling warehouse space. The result renders a collaborative portrait of the creative community behind the project, with music as the common thread running through each piece.
The exhibition runs from Sat 3 to Tue 6 Oct and is free to attend.