TheySwarm's Riff Raff Open Day

TextaQueen invites you to TheySwarm’s Riff Raff Open Day!

Come and support the upcoming event series ‘Riff Raff Reading Room’ at TheySwarm’s Open Day on Thursday 23 October - in-person, online or via our ACF Fundraiser.

TheySwarm is a studio, artist residency and covid-cautious event space for diverse and disabled artists in a shopfront on Johnston Street, Collingwood, Narrm.

Riff Raff Reading Room shares TheySwarm’s library of titles by First Nations, Black, and people of colour authors and artists with a focus on disability justice, radical resistance, speculative and queer fiction, self publishing, picture books and poetry. Riff Raff Open Day invites community to experience the library and support future Riff Raff Reading Rooms.

What is Riff Raff Reading Room?

Riff Raff Reading Room is a series of covid-cautious reading, writing and riffing sessions at TheySwarm, making space for reflection, learning and community building centring marginalised creatives.

TextaQueen and invited diverse facilitators co-create the information and access for each reading room e.g. Quiet-ish, low sensory, independent reading; Read-A-Loud with shared material, more social; [Special Interest] research and writing group.

Why we need your support

Your support will enable fellow disreputable and undesirable peers to creatively collude outside of and in dissent from institutional contexts. It will pay underemployed marginalised and disabled creatives to share space and knowledge in a supported environment, and develop ongoing community resources including the TheySwarm library.

All donations will go towards:

• facilitation fees
• support worker fees
• access costs
• project management
• cataloguing and website
• more books for the TheySwarm library (donations and title suggestions welcome)

What to expect at Riff Raff Open Day

Riff Raff Open Day, happens on Giving Day to the Arts - Thursday 23rd October. Visit us anytime between 12-3pm. We will start with a quiet-ish reading session. Next, you can listen in-person or online for a read-aloud session. The last part of the afternoon is a discussion session for writers, researchers and readers interested in facilitating or attending a future Riff Raff Reading Room. For more information, please see agenda. [Shout-out to Quiet-ish Reading Club started by ze at Garden - 24/7 virtual community center for BIPOC folks practicing pandemic safety]

You can attend Riff Raff Open Day online between 1pm - 3pm for the read-aloud and discussion session. All online attendees must RSVP to this Eventbrite page.

We encourage in-person attendees to RSVP so we know how best to accomodate you.

TheySwarm Access Information

The studio/gallery space and bathroom is step free with permanent ramps (no hand rails) at a safe incline.

This studio/gallery space is accessible for wheelchairs but the bathroom is not *yet* accessible for power chairs and very limited access for manual chairs. Please contact for plans and photos of current set-up.

Thanks to City of Yarra, MatchLab and everyone who donated to the previous Australian Cultural Fund campaign towards the access renovations we've been able to do. We are working towards a wheelchair accessible bathroom as soon as we can.

We are COVID cautious - masks required - bring your own N95 or duckbill N95s and hand sanitiser provided. Three air purifiers operate in the main space, one in bathroom. Please do not attend in-person if unwell.

Low scent, medium stimulation environment. Please be fragrance-free. Lounge chairs, ergonomic office chairs with no arm rests and other seating in a distanced circle. Kid friendly space (please bring own masks) during quiet and discussion time - the read-a-loud section will contain some adult content. The only outdoor space is the footpath on Johnston Street without official seating but with a bustop 5m away. Two cats and a chihuahua live here but will not be in public areas. Capacity limited to 10 at one time for covid safety.

How to get here

152 Johnston Street Collingwood VIC 3066 - put 'Collingwood' in your Maps app else you may be directed to 152 in Fitzroy.

Ring buzzer on panel for entry.

Public transport: Buses 200 and 207, alight at Palmer St/Johnston St, Stop ID 852.

For additional buses along Hoddle St, alight at Johnston St/Hoddle St, Stop ID 934.

Tram no. 86, alight at Johnston St/Smith St #19, Stop ID 6052.

Train Mernda or Hurstbridge, alight Victoria Park Station (wheelchair accessible), Stop ID 14332.

Parking: 2 hour free parking is available along Johnston St. All-day paid parking is available on Wellington St