As the Autumnal weather hit this week, the feeling of cold crisp mornings arrived and so did a heap of gorgeous brown leaves on the pavement. There are a lot of cultural things happening in the city with new businesses opening and lots of events taking place so take a look below and see if anything takes your fancy.
Ravelin Sports Centre opened this week with a promise of being one of the greenest leisure centres in the country. There are options to join as a member but there is also a chance to have family swim sessions, open to the public on Saturdays and Sundays which is fab news for local residents wanting a swimming fix! Look at the website for more details.
Chimneys is a brand new cocktail bar that has opened on Clarendon Road where the Sunday Post used to be. With theatrical cocktails on the menu, this looks to be an exciting venue that opens on Friday the 7th of October. Check out the post for this on Southsea Folk which will cover the atmosphere, interiors, and cocktails available at the bar.
Nosh Box opened last week and has Pancake Saturdays happening every wknd so check out their socials for news on this.
Southsea Green Community Garden (which resides next to Cumberland House and Cafe Alfresco) has an open day on Sunday the 9th of October from 11am until 2pm. Help the team celebrate another year and enjoy some time in the beautiful garden, meet the volunteers who are working hard to keep it open and thriving. You can ask any gardening questions you need answers to and you can find out about volunteering opportunities. There will be a wishing tree for people to attach their wishes to, a scavenger hunt, and a quiz for kids. There will be refreshments, a raffle, and plants for a donation to help keep the garden operating.
Jack House Gallery has a new exhibition starting on the 6th of October which is the Portsmouth Printmakers and has some lovely work to buy so look out for this. Read here for more details.
Ian Parmiter (aka Lord Sonic) has a solo exhibition at Art Space from the 8th of October until the 29th. ‘Falling Out of a Hole’ takes visitors on a journey from the moment they reach the building and leads them upstairs to a display of recent sculptures and paintings. Curated by Kate Street a resident artist there, the exhibition aims to recreate the scene from within Ian’s elaborate home/studio within a gallery setting. Following on from the huge success of Ian’s previous exhibition at Court X, visitors are drawn into the creative world and mind of an artist who handles living with Parkinsons disease and shines a positive light on his brilliant mind and how he survives his struggles with creating art and sculptures. The 8th of October is an open day and then viewing is by appointment.
When We Were Cows brings his first exhibition since 2018 to The Corner Collective. A well anticipated solo show of work that brings the raw elements of nature to another level. His past work has been about wild creatures, bird nests and inspiration drawn from the foraging that John Ainsworth does on his travels around the countryside and coastal areas he visits. Look out for this exhibition on the 28th/29th. Check out The Corner Collective for more details on this.
Sunday the 23rd of October sees No More Durty Water bring Albert Road and Highland Road alive with businesses all up and down the road opening and holding events for the day! The free events celebrating Southsea’s creatives include; independent traders and venues, live music, DJs and spoken word performances. All this will be happening from 11am until into the evening.
Participating businesses have donated a fee towards the crowdfunder which will help to build two protected springs in Central Uganda and have raised £1’200 so far with a goal of reaching the £1’500 mark!
There will be an artisan fair in the Wedgewood Rooms and there will be lots of shops and businesses opening on the day!
Check out Southsea Folk for an updated story on this project and follow the website above for details of the event and fundraising for this project.
