Aislinn Evans
Jam the House
East London based artist and writer Aislinn Evans will host Jam the House in summer 2021, a collaborative project with young people across social care services in Barking and Dagenham, with Mayesbrook Children’s Centre.
Through a series of regular sessions the group will explore play, collaborative strategies and non-linear storytelling through DIY video game design.
Aislinn Evans, Metropolis Pie & Mash, 2020
Together, the group will experiment with open-source games engines, Twine and Bitsy, developing new foundational skills in coding. The project will explore the potential of open-source platforms as accessible spaces to meet, interact, play, work and travel. By generating bespoke digital worlds, Jam the House hopes to create safe and democratic space for young people to come together.
The collaboration will culminate in a game jam, in which the young people will work together to design their own games, which will be presented as part of the Becontree estate's centenary programme in 2021.
X Y Z Intergenerational Poetry with Aislinn Evans, 2019, The White House
About Aislinn Evans
Aislinn Evans is an artist and writer from East London. Their practice involves film-making, comics, and experimental lo-fi game design. Their first goal is to make art that anyone can get their hands on, drawing on media with popular and grassroots histories. Common themes include explorations of place, class struggle, and queering folklore. Aislinn is also a youth worker, using games and writing as a medium for social interaction and development.
Recent projects and publications include Chump Change (Live Art Development Agency, 2020); Semaphoria (LBBD Council, 2020); Concrete and Protest Song (SPORAZINE, 2020); The Take Over (The White House and Create London, 2018); The Sofa Slam (Barbican and Create London, 2018); Dungeons & Dagenham (London Youth and Create London, 2018).
Aislinn was awarded the Live Art Development Agency’s Future Proofing bursary and was Shortlisted for the LDC First Graphic Novel Prize (both 2020). They are a National Poetry Slam champion (2018) and founder of The Sofa Slam, Barking & Dagenham's first poetry slam.
Changemakers with Aislinn Evans, 2018, The Broadway
Aislinn Evans: Jam the House is commissioned by The White House as part of New Town Culture, a programme of artistic and cultural activity taking place in adult and children’s social care and curated by the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Jam the House forms part of a broader programme that marks the centenary of the Becontree estate in 2021. This commission is funded by the GLA’s Young Londoners Fund, the MOPAC Violence Reduction Unit, Paul Hamlyn Foundation, and the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
About New Town Culture
New Town Culture is a programme of artistic and cultural activity taking place in adult and children’s social care across the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. We work with artists, social care staff and carers to develop creative ways to support systemic change in social care and to unlock the value of art and culture for all communities. New Town Culture celebrates the incredible stories, knowledge and skills of the residents of Barking and Dagenham through workshops, clubs, exhibitions, live performances and training for the staff and users of social care services.
This ambitious project was piloted with the support of a Cultural Impact Award for the London Borough of Culture, a Mayor of London initiative, and is now extending its scope through further funding from the Young Londoners Fund, the GLA and the MOPAC Violence Reduction Unit.