Liam McGrath“Dublin is bursting with so much talent why leave creatives out of it? Skin&Blister brings so much more to nightlife than just the club experience. We’re interested in including more creative perspectives on the music industry, there is so much potential when the arts and music come together“.
Dublin welcomes the brand new ‘Skin&Blister‘ platform which takes on the important and inspiring role of both nurturing and promoting the role of females, trans and non-binary creatives in the realm of music and the arts.
In a time when the dancefloor has become an unfamiliar concept or distant memory, so has the feeling of inclusivity that begins and thrives in that very space, and resonates outwards in society.
The dancefloor has been a place of worship, love and acceptance since it’s birth, however, some people, unfairly face more difficult paths when pursuing a career in the music and arts industry. Skin&Blister are here to help, guide, nurture and promote those, to create a more accepting and inclusive community.
Skin&Blister launched across social media last week with a universal message entitled ‘This Is Us’ which you can check out below. Already, they have turned their Instagram into the hub we expected, highlighting artists and creating an interactive base to connect further with their audiences.
Over the previous years, Ireland has definitely seen an increase in more inclusive clubnights and collectives. Despite this, we aren’t in a position to stop pushing for more opportunities and acceptance for those who may face discrimination or more difficult paths. Together we are stronger, and the further diversification of Ireland and the industry, can only lead to a more promising future.
To help shine a light on Skin&Blister, as well as to get a better understanding of the drive and goals, we reached out to the group and had a quick chat about the platform and what to expect.
Just as an introduction and to offer some insight into Skin&Blister we’d love to get a brief introduction of the team members and how you all came together to create Skin&Blister?
There are five of us on the team at the moment. We all work within the creative industry from djing to design and textiles. Each of us brings something unique and valuable to the table for Skin&Blister but bottom line, everything we do is collaborative. We came together to create this initiative because we all strongly believed Skin&Blister needed to exist. From our launch last week we see that so many others feel the same way. The team will definitely expand in the coming year.
Obviously with so much uncertainty in Ireland and the World right now with Covid19 it’s hard to plan anything, but workshops and events are something you will be offering, can you give us some insight on what we can expect from these?
To sum it up we will hold workshops and meetups that create an encouraging support network for females, trans and non-binary creatives in the realm of music and the arts in Yamamori Tengu (once restrictions allow)
You can expect workshops such as the basics of Djing, music production as well as graphic design and club visuals, with guest speakers linking in as well. We will also be hosting a discussion/project based meetup where we can collectively tackle topics that we find important to address in order to make the club scene more inclusive.
As well as this, open decks – time slots available at the venue so that you can book, come in and zone in on the decks yourself for an hour, with someone there to give guidance if needed. Having time with the equipment is so detrimental to enhancing your skills and accessibility to club equipment isn’t something that is widely available.
Dublin has definitely witnessed steps towards more inclusive clubbing, however you take it a step back from that and aim for creatives across the industry to get more involved, with the break from events now is this something we can hope to see when events come back?
Dublin is bursting with so much talent why leave creatives out of it? Skin&Blister brings so much more to nightlife than just the club experience. We’re interested in including more creative perspectives on the music industry, there is so much potential when the arts and music come together. Definitely when events return we’re hoping to realise some fresh new ideas.
You’ve mentioned the support from Yannamori Tengu, are there any other collectives, venues or groups we can hope to see you work with in the future?
As for now, our main hub will definitely be Yamamori Tengu. The venue and staff have been consistently supportive of the music community in this city and forever pushing to be progressive with their club space/bookings and so on. There are so many brilliant collectives around Dublin/Ireland that share similar values as we do, it would be a shame not to link up. Gash collective, Strawberries and Club Comfort are just a few who have really shone a light on how inclusivity in music and arts should be and can be.
What is one common goal of the Skin&Blister for this year, 2021?
Without knowing when we can get to see each other in person, for 2021 our main objective is to establish the community between female, trans and non-binary creatives and get conversations moving. We’d like to build a communication channel that people feel comfortable to reach out to, ask questions and find each other through.
How can people get involved, help or support Skin&Blister going forward?
As for now, the best way to stay in touch with us is to follow us on our social media platforms! Follow us on Instagram to stay on top of things. We will be regularly posting and sharing any new announcements, inspos and ways for people to get involved.
If you would like to get in touch with us, you can do that over there as well. We very much look forward to hearing from anyone and everyone!
You can join in the movement and show support by following them on Instagram & Facebook.