Community Futures and Utopia
Heritage + Utopia is supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council’s Connected Communities programme as part of the Connected Communities Festival 2016. Taking inspiration from the 500th anniversary of Thomas More’s Utopia (first published in Latin in 1516), 2016's Festival theme was Community Futures and Utopia, in partnership with The Somerset House Trust’s 'Utopia 2016: a year of Imagination and Possibility'.
Simultaneously the good place (eutopia) and no place (outopia), the island of More’s novel was influenced by the expanding geographical knowledge of sixteenth century Europe. However, during the eighteenth century utopian narratives became aligned with the idea of a better/alternative future. Since then, utopia has continued to be associated with future scenarios that are transformative in character.
For the Festival, some of the project team headed down to the Utopia Fair at Somerset House (24-26 June). Their stall - Possibility Thinking for Living Together - explored the potential of utopia for heritage in relation to local democracy and decision-making. They engaged with people through the idea of the Utopian Council of 2066, inviting them to write letters to the Council sharing their hopes for the future. This future Council would be founded on utopian principles, taking account of people’s collective desires or fears and thinking beyond only what is 'possible' in the language of development and planning. Providing they gave an address, every person that wrote a letter to the Utopian Council received a reply by post.
The stall was inspired by a sign which hangs in the Council Chamber in York, directed at the public gallery. The sign reads: 'No manifestation of feeling from the public will be allowed during the council meetings'. The Utopian Council sign that hung above the stall at the Utopia Fair read instead: 'Manifestations of feelings from all people will be encouraged at all times' (see picture).
You can read more about the letters and the Utopian Council here.
