An art exhibition and an opera appearing in Manchester both use art to shine a light on a very dark world: the international sex trade, where an estimated 800,000 women and young girls are trafficked into the EU every year.

The Type Tarts exhibition puts the spotlight on tart cards – the means by which London prostitutes advertise their services; small colourful cards often found stuck in phone boxes. They have developed a cult following as items of accidental art, and have influenced the work of mainstream artists such Ray and Nils Stevenson, known best for their work with the Sex Pistols. The exhibition, developed by Dr. Caroline Archer of Birmingham City University, travels between participating universities and invites students and staff to design their own type tart cards. While the exhibition is focused on the cards’ graphic qualities, the organisers also hope to raise awareness of the plight of trafficked women in the sex industry.

The Salford version of Type Tarts is part of a School of Art and Design Typography event, which will be held at the new University of Salford Media City building from 16-25 February. To view a selection of designs submitted to the exhibition, visit the Create@Salford tumblr page.

Meanwhile, Anya17 is a contemporary opera performed by students at the Royal Northern College of Music with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic’s Ensemble 10/10. It is believed to be the first ever opera about sex trafficking, and tells the intertwined stories of four of the estimated 800,000 women and young girls brought illegally into the EU each year.

The opera has a score by the award-winning composer Adam Gorb and a libretto by Ben Kaye. Kaye previously collaborated on ‘Thoughts Scribbled on a Blank Wall’, which told the story of John McCarthy’s time as a hostage in the Lebanon. It will premiere in Liverpool on 7 March, with the Manchester premiere happening at RNCM two days later. For more information, visit the Anya17 website.

Words: Kate Feld. Images (top to bottom): Lucy Baines as Natalia, courtesy of Anya17; from Type Tarts, courtesy of Salford University.

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It is a recent concept but one that appears unstoppable: the rise of ‘fast fashion’, that desire for cheap, new clothes that is best summed up by the rise and rise of arch discount chain Primark. It is a subject close to Observer ethical columnist Lucy Siegle’s heart. A reformed fashion addict, she understands the burning desire to stay on trend. “I used to be a prolific fashion consumer,” she says. “I bought into the idea of fast fashion completely and this wasn’t unusual among my generation. I lived through 15 years of economic growth, had a relatively high income – and a lot of that income went straight to Topshop.”

Whatever her fashionable past, Siegle now argues that there is no getting away from the social, environmental and economic cost of disposable fashion, and she sets out these costs in unflinching detail in her book, To Die For: Is Fashion Wearing Out the World?  And rather than provide a neat list of things that the fashion-lover can do to improve the credentials of their latest fashion fix, Siegle instead sets a challenge: change the way you think. Here, she gives some practical advice on how to start shopping and dressing ethically.

A practical guide to looking good while acting green

Fashion itself isn’t necessarily a bad thing… “Ethical fashion isn’t about fashion-haters or crystal-wearing, carrot munchers,” says Siegle. There is nothing wrong with looking great, as long as you can do so with a clear conscience.

…But you need to re-think it. “Don’t try and replace one pattern of behaviour with another. Mass consumerism has taught us to be passive consumers. We have to change the way we think rather than just look for replacements.”

Find alternatives. “You don’t have to consume fashion to enjoy it. You don’t have to buy a knock-off version of everything you see on the catwalk.” Siegle points to innovative schemes such as Remade in Leeds, or using accessories and make-up to update your look instead of heading straight to Primark.

Embrace hard times. “The recession is having an impact. People are holding on to garments for longer, and so they are changing the way they buy them. They are buying with longevity in mind.”

Do your mam proud. “Look after your clothes. Wash them properly. Care for them and they’ll last longer. It sounds obvious but not everyone does it.”

And act like your gran. “Look at the quality of the fibre. The public does not understand how important fibres are in relation to how long a fabric will last – some last far longer than others. I use my hands a lot more. I’m like an old lady in a charity shop, looking at the seams, holding a garment to the light. It’s like if you bought a melon. You’d give it a quick sniff and a poke before you bought it. It’s the same with clothes.”

Lucy Siegle appears at the Whitworth on Friday 24 February (6.30pm) as part of the Creative Tourist Boutique Weekender. Tickets to this talk are free but booking essential. To guarantee your place, we have three pairs of tickets to give away via our competitions page. COTTON: Global Threads runs 11 February-13 May at the Whitworth. Free.

Words: Susie Stubbs. Images (top to bottom): Lubaina Himid-laughterbuckets, courtesy the artist/Whitworth Art Gallery; Lucy Siegle; Stencilled adire cotton, Nigeria, 1900-25, courtesy Whitworth Art Gallery.

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It came as a huge shock to the region’s art lovers when Manchester’s highly respected Castlefield Gallery failed to win Arts Council funding last year. Kate Feld talks to Director Kwong Lee about what’s happening now.

For the first time in many years Castlefield Gallery is empty. Peer through the windows of the boxy building on the corner of Hewitt Street, and all you’ll see is a lone bicycle near the door and a sign informing visitors that the gallery is closed for renovations. It would be easy to assume the worst; Castlefield Gallery’s failure to win portfolio funding from Arts Council England last year made headlines, and prompted fears it would close permanently, like another much-missed stalwart of the Manchester art scene, greenroom. But – big sigh of relief – it’s not going anywhere. After a grand-scale redevelopment aimed at making the gallery more sustainable, it will be back in the summer with a new exhibition programme and a renewed sense of purpose.

It’s hard to put your finger on what makes Castlefield so special. It’s been in existence in one location or another since 1984 (yep, it’s a year older than Cornerhouse, fact fans). Set up by artists as a place to promote art from Manchester, it is still a proudly artist-focused concern, with an ironclad reputation for showcasing edgy and intelligent work from artists who often go on to make a big name for themselves on the international art scene.

So that’s why it was such a surprise when they failed to win ACE portfolio funding last year. Leo Fitzmaurice (work in the gallery pictured at right) who has been strongly associated with the gallery for years before winning this year’s Northern Art Prize, echoed the reaction of many: “It was the most surprising cut in the North West. You just thought, they can’t cut that.  It’s very much an artists’ gallery – that’s how it was set up and it has retained that as well as achieving the quality and level of an institution. To be both things is quite rare.”

“It was tough to take,” admits Kwong Lee, who runs the gallery with a dedicated team including Clarissa Corfe, Jennifer Dean, Nick Rhodes and Rosanne Robertson. “We always thought that people value what we do. But the charge that we were too reliant on funding from the Arts Council is indisputable. We were.”

The gallery wasn’t snubbed for artistic reasons, but failed to meet strict criteria about funding sources – essentially, it was too dependent on ACE funding alone. The resulting revenue shortfall meant they couldn’t run a full exhibition programme this year, so they’re using this time to work on their strategic planning, develop new partnerships and funding sources. In the past, Lee admits, they haven’t been very good at shouting about the things they do well, like artist development, which he describes as the gallery’s raison d’être. “What we’re good at is talent spotting,” Lee says, citing the gallery’s early support for artists like Fitzmaurice, Olivia Plender and Mark Leckey before the art prizes and first tier solo exhibitions came along.

They’re learning to take ownership of their unique role in Manchester’s arts ecosystem, and are working with academics to develop an assessment system that quantifies their long-game, deferred impact approach to supporting artists. And in the meantime, there will be plenty of opportunities for Castlefield fans to support the gallery. In April, the gallery plans to hold a fundraising event, an auction with art donated by some of its high-profile artist friends and supporters. In the summer, the gallery will reopen with a new exhibition programme. And in the coming months, look out for more events at the gallery – conferences and live events, even concerts like the much-lauded Beating Wing Orchestra gig there during last year’s Manchester Weekender. “We need to reach out more to new audiences, reach out to people who already have an interest in contemporary culture across the art forms,” Lee says. “We’re becoming more socially engaged, and our programme will reflect that.”

And more widely, Lee speaks of the gallery assuming more of an advocacy role in the future. “The arts are not seen as being as important as we’d like them to be, so we need to do something about that collaboratively. We all know art can be entertaining, but it should also be challenging. As a sector, we need to stand up for that and communicate better with society.”

Images: top Jamie Crawford, Leo Fitzmaurice installation by Libby Ralph, all courtesy Castlefield Gallery.

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They’re the work of dialect writer and comedian Sam Fitton, who was entirely self-taught and came from the same working class background as the mill folk, whose concerns he had great sympathy with. The cartoons use comedy to raise awareness of issues like bullying, heath and safety, the treatment of women, and also poke good-natured fun at the millworkers at home and on holiday. They were originally published in Cotton Town Times, a weekly union paper for the workers and their families.

And if you’ve got a budding political satirist on your hands, you’re in luck: to tie in with the exhibition, the museum is running a Cartoons & Comics workshop on Saturday 11 February from 10am-3pm.  Young cartoonists can join professional artist Jim Medway and create their own mini-comic. And while you’re there, don’t forget to check out Picturing Politics, the fantastic exhibition of British political posters we wrote about last month.

Mirth in the Mill, 14 January to 4 March, People’s History Museum, Left Bank, Spinningfields M3 3ER. Free. Comic workshop suitable for ages 10 and over. Free, but booking essential as places are limited. Book on 0161 838 9190 or info@phm.org.uk.

Images courtesy People’s History Museum.

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Hello 2012! So you maybe assumed that there’s not much happening, this being January and all? Well, you assumed wrong. There are plenty of interesting things to do in Manchester this month. If you’re looking for something to entice you out of our house for a bracing jolt of culture, put down that DVD box set and listen up as Kate Feld hits the highlights.

Casual Friday? If, like us, you’ve always wondered why we don’t have one of those roaming themed movie nights enjoyed by discerning culturehounds in other cities, you’ll be happy to hear about Film Night. It’s a new event that builds an evening’s entertainment around a movie screening in an unusual location, with theme-appropriate refreshments, music and costumes. The inaugural Film Night is an homage to the workplace, with a screening of 2002 film Secretary at The Hive, with a Mad Men-style retro office party afterwards at Kraak Gallery. The Hive, 49 Lever Street, 27 January. screening 8pm, party 10pm, £7.50, booking required.

Watch this. If you don’t fancy critically adored silent film The Artist at Cornerhouse, head to Manchester Metropolitan University where The Modernist magazine and the Loiterer’s Resistance Movement team up to present a free screening of Bata-ville: we are not afraid of the future. The film follows an unusual coach trip of English factory workers to Zlin, Moravia, home of the Bata progressive shoe manufacturing empire that once employed them. Manchester Metropolian University, 26 January , 6pm, booking required here.

Ey up Lass. Fans of the fringe should make a beeline for the mighty Lass o’ Gowrie, where Lassfest is underway. It’s a one-pub midwinter fringe festival with more than 70 performances ranging from theatre to comedy to… erm, Corrie. We’ve been hearing very good things about The Ballad of Halo Jones, an adaptation of Alan Moore and Ian Gibson’s tale of a 50^th Century girl next door originally published in comic 2000AD. But you’ve got to be quick: its run ends 7 January. Through 2 February, Lass o’ Gowrie, 36 Charles Street, M1 7DB.

Self-improvement, part one. Photography collective RedEye are hosting a talk by photographer Percy Dean at the Manchester Jewish Museum, about Clouds of Glory, his project focusing on the orthodox community of Prestwich (17 January, 7pm, £3.50 non-members.) Or brush up on your digital photography and composition at MOSI, where Andrew Brooks is running a hands-on evening workshop ( 10 January, 6:30pm, £35.)

Self-improvement, part two. If you’re up for a longer educational commitment, we love the sound of Cornerhouse’s six-week evening course Introduction to Contemporary Visual Art: Beyond the Counterculture. Hosted by the publishers of leftfield arts magazine Nude, it’s a fantastic opportunity to get stuck into psychedelia, punk art, zine culture and the Tiki revival, and discuss work from artists like Pervasive Art pioneer Gary Baseman (above. ) Starts 16 January, £60/£45, booking and more info here.

By the book. Literary types might enjoy Dead Ink: The Future is Words at The International Anthony Burgess Centre, featuring the launch of Manchester author Richard Evans’ Kosmonaut Zero and a host of supporting readings (26 January, 7pm, £5/4). And there’s more wordy shenanigans at Afflecks’ Three Minute Theatre as live lit night The New Libertines comes north, with 2010 Not the Booker winner Michael Stewart topping a night of wide-ranging readings from local and not so local writing talent (23 January, 8pm, free).

Eve of destruction. Finally, if January just makes you feel like burning stuff, do it in the name of high art at the Manchester Artists Bonfire. Part spectacle, part experiment and part act of creative insurrection, artists consign their work to the flames at Islington Mill, along with a piece of paper explaining why they are burning their work. At Islington Mill, James Street, Salford M3 5HP, 26 January, 6-9 pm, free, with a late-night party afterwards (admission TBC).

Image: from “Happy Idiot”, Gary Baseman, courtesy of Cornerhouse.

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We have a policy here at CT Towers of not mentioning the c-word until at least 1 December. But despite our editorial best of intentions there really is no escaping it: you can’t head into town without tripping over trees, tinsel and Gluhwein-glugging tourists. So as we can’t beat ‘em we’ve decided to join ‘em: here’s our festive round-up of what’s on in Manchester this month, while over here Kate Feld rounds up the best alternative Christmas shopping the city has to offer.

White Christmas? This time last year it was snowing; this year the weather is distinctly damp – but don’t let grey clouds dampen your sense of festive fun. Head down instead to Cornerhouse, which this month is screening a series of Christmas classics, including the wonderful It’s a Wonderful Life, Meet Me in St. Louis and, of course, White Christmas. Cornerhouse, Whitworth Street West, 3-23 December, times and prices vary.

What the funk? Less festive but still kind of, um, festive (bear with us), George Clinton is back in town on Thursday and he’s bringing his funky family, Parliament Funkadelic, with him. This time around he touches down at the Ritz, a great venue for his spaced out, zero-gravity grooves, with DJ support from one of Manchester’s longstanding funk nights, Funkademia. Expect to hear all those classic songs you didn’t know you knew: One Nation under a Groove, Flashlight, Atomic Dog. Yup, we’ll be watching the skies this week: the funk mothership is on its way. George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic, The Ritz, Whitworth Steer West, 1 December (7pm), £22.50.

Candle in the wind. News comes to us of an intriguing exhibition at the John Rylands Library: Kindle, a display that is not (as you might imagine) made up of the ubiquitous e-reader but instead features 3,500 paper candles spread across the library’s old map room. Kindle has been created by Nicola Dale, an artist inspired by the idea that the knowledge contained within books is turned into data and, eventually, a kind of digital light – bringing the word ‘kindle’ closer to its original, fiery meaning. Nice, and kind of festive too, no? John Rylands Library, Deansgate (until 29 April 2012). Free.

Literary Luminary. Booker prize winner Alan Hollinghurst is in town this month and if you’re any sort of lover of words don’t pass up the chance to hear him read (his Line of Beauty is one of our all-time fave novels). Hollinghurst will be at the International Anthony Burgess Foundation on 8 December. It’s a free event so no excuses please – get down there. IABF, Chorlton Mill, Cambridge Street, 8 December (6.30pm). Free.

Get digital. If you can’t get to see Hollinghurst, try the next best thing: read the new edition of The Manchester Review. Online, free and rather marvellous, it features Pulitzer Prize winner Steven Millhauser and Booker Prize long-listed Jon McGregor, as well as a clutch of other poets, writers and up-and-comers.

Clock this. Hate shopping? Fancy a bird’s eye view of the city instead? Ditch the consumer crowds with a tour of the Town Hall’s 134 year-old, 85 metre-high clock tower – one of Manchester’s most iconic sights but not one often open to the public. This rare tour gives the chance to visit Great Abel (that’s a massive bell, not Manchester’s equivalent to Quasimodo) and, best of all, walk the catwalk that surrounds the tower for what must be one of the most panoramic views across Manchester. You’ll need a head for heights, a willingness to climb a lot of stairs and be aged 12 or over. 22 December (1pm, 2.30pm, 4pm, 5.30pm, 7pm). £7.50. Book on 0161 234 4433.

One for the kids #1. With the ice rink now at Spinningfields, Piccadilly Gardens has filled the hole left in its wake with a family fun fair. It’s rather retro (helter skelter, swing boats) and it’s also rather nice to see something in the city centre aimed squarely at small people. Still, there’s entertainment on tap for the grown-ups too in the form of a Big Top Bar, food stalls and live music courtesy of Band on the Wall – and you’re never so old that you can’t enjoy a go on the carousel. Piccadilly Gardens, until 3 January (daily, 11am-late, closed on 25 December).

One for the kids #2. If the Grotto in the Arndale doesn’t float your boat then try MOSI’s festive affair instead. Here, Santa ditches the sleigh in favour of a steam power, and kids can grab a gift from Saint Nick before jumping on a real, live steam train and taking part in some Christmassy activities. MOSI, Liverpool Road, 3 & 4 Dec, 10 & 11 Dec, 17 & 18 Dec and 19-23 Dec (10.30am-4.30pm), £5. Tickets can be bought in advance or on the day.

And finally, a tuneful rumour. We’ve heard it whispered that the Northern Quarter Boys Choir is planning on doing some carolling around the ‘hood. The hipster choirboys did something similar last year and it was huge fun – follow us @creativetourist and as soon as we get confirmation we’ll Tweet the details. UPDATE: We’ve now received word that the choirboys will be singing this evening (16 December) around the neighbourhood, and on Sunday 18 December at the Christmas Markets (day), The Royal Exchange and The Castle (evening), on 21 December at the Oddbar quiz and Common quiz in the evening, and finally in the evening of 22 December at Common. They’re raising money for the men’s cancer charity Everyman (here’s a link to their fundraising page.) Yes, they will be performing Christmas classics, but we understand they will also be singing Total Eclipse of the Heart. All together now: ‘Turn around, bright eyes…’

Words: Susie Stubbs (except George Clinton, by David Turner). Images (top to bottom): Cornerhouse; Kindle by Nicola Dale; Piccadilly Partnership; Courtesy Northern Quarter Boys Choir; Susie Stubbs .

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Image: Jason Rhoades, Tate Touche from My Madinah: in pursuit of my ermitage, courtesy Tate Liverpool

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Fasten your hat flaps, Manchester: we are now entering the scarf and glove section of the calendar (and if the weather folks are to be believed you’ll really need them this winter). But no bleak Novembers here, the city is already starting to buzz with pre-holiday high jinks and there’s plenty of culture about to keep us all warm these chilly evenings. Kate Feld takes a look at what’s afoot.

Konichiwa. This Sunday 13 November brings DokiDoki, a one-day multi-venue festival celebrating manga, anime and Japanese culture. There’s plenty going on: talks, workshops, performances, a fashion show and film screenings throughout the day, culminating in a big Cosplay party in the evening. In other festival news, The Chorlton Book Festival is bringing a load of workshops, readings and literary events to Chorlton Library from now through 18 November.

Too early for Jingle Bells? Ha! The twinkly lights are on, and on 17 November the Christmas Markets return to eight sites in the city centre to tempt us all with sparkly things, shiny things, currywurst and that delicious, dangerous gluhwein. Then on 18 November another lynchpin of Manchester’s festive season comes on line as the Spinningfields ice rink opens, with a pop-up Canadian Lodge, The Moose Bar, providing sustenance to hungry and thirsty skaters. (Spinningfields must be a very alarming place to work, what with so many things popping up all the time, don’t you think?)  

And there are more places to get your wintry jollies in Manchester: The North Pole Bar has now  taken up residence in Cathedral Gardens until Christmas eve, and there’s a family fair planned for Piccadilly Gardens next month. Also for families: Children in Need Rocks MediaCityUK takes over The Quays Friday 18 November, with a live show featuring entertainers of all ages (12-4pm Open Centre mezzanine), a Singing in the Rain flashmob dance (1pm on the Piazza), and fun and games all day like Shaun the Sheep’s Flock and Roll and Beat the Goalie.

Sevensites is a monthly series of arty installations, performances and events in unexpected locations around the city.  Their next installment comes Wednesday 23 November as part of The Comedy Balloon night at The Ape and Apple on John Dalton Street (8:30pm until late.) Love their motto: “facilitating pockets of encounter and dislocation from the everyday.”

Looking for something to perk up your Thursday evening? Head to Cornerhouse for Art Night on November 24, billed as “a social shindig for anyone who loves art, likes art, hates art, or makes art.” We like the sound of the Sketch-o-Matic, their new full-size portrait booth, where you can put a contribution in the slot, wait five minutes and receive your own artist-made portrait. There’s also the launch of Is Britain Great? 3 by Jan Williams and Chris Teasdale of the fantastic Caravan Gallery, celebrating the overlooked and underground best of British society (such as Mr. Bankrupt’s colourful premises above). The gallery will be on site all day Thursday before the event for browing. There’s also the launch of a new exhibition from Suite Studios artists and a screening of Tony Hancock art world satire The Rebel at 8:30pm (film tickets are £7.50, the rest is free and you can drop in from 6:30pm)

Over at the Working Class Movement Library in Salford, the free talks series Invisible Histories returns this month. We like the sound of this one: George McKay, Professor of Cultural Studies at the University of Salford will deliver a talk based on his new book, Radical Gardening: politics, idealism and rebellion in the garden on 30 November at 2pm. Far from the sedate pastime it is sometimes thought to be, gardening can actually be downright subversive. The revolution will not be fertilised!

Images (from top) Mr. Bankrupt from The Caravan Gallery, The North Pole bar.

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We’ve heard it said that buying a work of art is a little like falling in love. You see it, you just have to have it – and then you spend the rest of your life living with it. On the eve of this year’s Buy Art Fair, now in its fourth year and one of the largest such markets outside London, we chat to Managing Director Thom Hetherington about art, the recession and what it’s like to fall in love every year.

The Buy Art Fair, Quay House, Quay Street, Spinningfields. 28-30 Oct, £5/£4 concessions. Image: courtesy Buy Art Fair.

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