June Boom Week Two: 9-15 June 2025

How was your first week of bustling cultural action? We fitted in PLENTY! You can head here for a review of Pride and Prejudice* (*sort of), here for a piece from a Silent Book Club regular (the next one is on 20th June at The Hourglass) and here for a view into the ‘Elsewhere(s)’ exhibitions.

We hope you’re ready for Week 2, because it is absolutely rammed with quality content!

This is the week where the visual arts really bring the noise, as the biannual festival Art Week Exeter gets under way (Monday 9th - Sunday 15th). Happening across various venues and sites (don’t forget to grab a handy brochure from one of your favourite cultural venues, or head to the website for full details and times), the programme includes stacks of visual art exhibitions, installations, performances, talks and a pub quiz, to name a few! Check out the AWEsome Collection at 5 Paris Street, which includes work by multiple brilliant artists plus exhibits from the Teignmouth Folk Preservation Society, and the ‘Sometimes Project’ at the Underground Passages - making the most of this unique subterranean location. Exhibitions are free, some events and activities are ticketed or request a donation. There’s so much going on, but here’s some of the things that plucked at our attention: 

Bricks & Booze, Wednesday 11th, 7-9.30pm at Exeter Library: Art Week and Libraries Unlimited team up to invite you to create a piece of LEGO art. Live music from Daisy Mae, plus get those creative juices flowing by bringing your own drinks.

TerraForma film screening and conversation, Thursday 12th, 7-9pm at Custom House: what happened when Victorian naturalists ‘terraformed’ the remote volcanic Ascension island - a tropical paradise or an ecological disaster? Fascinating!

Patter Scatter, Friday 13th, 5.30-7.30pm at Exeter Phoenix: a series of bite-sized presentations by a throng of Devon-based artists, creatives and culturally curious people. During the day, a group of people will develop personalised 6 minute 40 second visual talks based on their interests, passions and projects - all steered by Patter Scatter hosts Gary Winters and Sophia Clist (sign up to take part here). We spoke to Gary and Sophia ahead of the event to find out more about the Patter Scatter vibe - head here for a 5x5 mini interview!

Museum of Roadside Magic, Saturday 14th, 10.30am-4.30pm on Piazza Terracina, the Quay: Libby Bove’s enticing exhibition is a travelling archive documenting the use of magical practice, folk custom and plant knowledge – all in a road-worthy panel van and accompanying gift shop gazebo!

Pile Up! Button Making with Precious Plastic, Saturday 14th, 11am-5pm in the Transit Shed, the Quay: bring along your CLEAN plastic milk bottle tops (or any HDPE – it’s marked with a triangle with the number 2 inside) and the pedal-powered bike shredder will help you to make the plastic into smaller pieces. This goes into an injection moulder, where the plastic gets heated up to around 200 degrees celsius, the molten plastic gets injected into a button mould. It cools very quickly and you can take away your new buttons in about 20 minutes! A chance to become Exeter’s very own pearly kings and queens, wouldn’t you say…  

Art Car Boot, Sunday 15th, 10am-2pm, Piazza Terracina, the Quay: a plethora of stalls comprising established artists selling paintings and prints, ceramicists and potters, sculptures and multiples, zines and publications…  

If immersing yourself in the making of artworks is more your jam, then Double Elephant are running multiple courses (including Linocut, Letterpress and Screenprinting) in their space at Exeter Phoenix across the month.

Exeter Northcott’s wonderful RECLAIM Festival (9th-14th) is back for a second year, bringing a week of programming to the Barnfield Theatre that shines the spotlight on women artists, theatre-makers, writers and performers. There’ll be discussions, workshops, music, comedy, drop-ins, socials and exhibited work (some ticketed, some free). Here’s some of the programme that we’re intrigued by: 

Manic, Tuesday 10th, 7.30pm: When Raina arrives at her spoken word gig to see her exes in the audience, all the questions she’s had about her past sexual experiences begin to surface. A show about bad sex and the murky parts of consent, expect impromptu burlesque, PowerPoint presentations, Michael Cera cameos, cringe, and desperation. Written and performed by Raina Greifer, Manic was Winner of Best Solo Show at FUSE International 2022. Age 16+

Manic © Aleppard Photography

Life Drawing For The Terrified, Tuesday 10th, 2pm: If you have always wanted to try life drawing but felt intimidated, shy or even, well terrified then this is your chance to give it a go. Be gently guided through the basic skills of drawing a form with charcoal on paper and maybe even see what it feels like to be the subject. Age 18+

Drag King Workshop, Wednesday 11th, 11am: Exploring all things drag and DIY, together we will come up with characters from the beloved objects hidden in the back of your closet. Take out that cracked eyeshadow pallet and dust off that old t-shirt. We will be looking at the basics of character creation, no experience necessary.  This workshop will focus on creating Drag Kings and Things. Age 16+

Befriending Impostor Syndrome Workshop, Thursday 12th, 6pm: ever get that familiar and persistent voice of self-doubt, despite years of experience, achievements, or recognition? It’s a common feeling, which can quietly hold us back from stepping into opportunities or owning our creative space. This workshop offers a space to pause, reflect, and challenge those internal narratives.

M/Others on the Mic, Friday 13th, 11am: A relaxed and revolutionary daytime performance space in Exeter designed to amplify m/other artists and voices. Join host Lizzy Humber and local m/others, for a sharing of original songs, poetry and stand up. With an exciting headline set from poet and mother Clare Ferguson-Walker.

Talented wordsmiths are also in the spotlight on Tuesday 10th when Word Kitchen bring their Summer Stories Prose Night to Exeter Phoenix. Writers perform flash fiction, short stories, novel extracts or pieces of memoir writing, offering a chance to hear work from accomplished authors and fresh voices in a range of genres and styles. 

For theatre fans, there’s a spooktacular bit of quirkiness at Cygnet called The Witching Hour (14th), which promises to bring the magic to a new kind of gameshow scenario. Expect black cats, broomsticks and pentagrams… all very tongue in cheek, natch.

There are some tribute acts to get excited by (and nostalgic about) across various venues, including Clearwater Credence Revival on Saturday 14th at the Phoenix, and Fleetwood Mac tribute Go Your Own Way on the same night over at the Corn Exchange. For something a little different, join Professor Lauren Stewart at Exeter Phoenix on Wednesday 11th for The Neuroscience of Music, a talk about how we make sense of musical sound. For the lowdown on the indie music scene, head to our Culture Collaborators Involving Music for the full story…

Wow - what a week! And this is only scratching the surface. Head to the Visit Exeter website to see everything that’s happening. We’re off for a quick nap to recharge… then see you down the front!