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MEMBER SPOTLIGHT : EXPLORE LABS

Our members are not only individuals, but organisations. 2018 Culture Awards Winners, Explore Labs is an Arts Council England-funded community arts project coordinated by Explore York and runs activities at York Explore Library Learning Centre and its network of libraries throughout our communities.



Challenge your imagination You don't know what exciting ideas are inside your head until you go there. Come to Explore Labs and see what happens when stories, tech, history and creativity collide.

Open your mind at Explore Labs - a space to team up with musicians, digital makers, artists, animators and more. Your dreams start here.


After only 18 months into their Arts Council England 3 year funded project, The Explore Labs team shared some of what’s been happening during an unbelievable creative journey in challenging imaginations in all sorts of shapes, sizes and experiences. Explore Labs have awarded over 50 UNESCO Digital Adventurers certificates to children and young people who have participated in various Explore Labs media arts activities.


Activities such as animation projects, Muse Hack digital making clubs and Hack Camps all delivered under the guidance of professional media artists and with plenty more exciting activities in the pipeline, such as the 9-Bit recycling noise orchestra project, more Hack Camps, circuit bending to name a few to challenge your imagination, there's never been a. better time to jump onboard.



The project has created the very first Explore Labs digital makerspace at York Explore where you can come and get stuck in to loads of interesting kit, from good old craft bits to high-tech whizz-bangs such as 3D printers, arduinos, circuit boards, samplers and wearables. It’s where you can unleash your creativity, stay curious, share ideas, make stuff. The Explore Labs team are really proud of our Muse Hack digital making youth club based at the Explore Labs makerspace. Muse Hack enables children and young people to have the opportunity to unleash their creativity by working alongside artists, digital makers, coders, techies and researchers. It’s going from strength to strength nurturing the next generation of media artists, digital entrepreneurs and cultural leaders of the future. It’s pretty special.


Pop in, say hello and let’s create. Your dreams start here...

Check out:


Top Achievements:

  • 6800 engaged so far in Explore Labs

  • Over 50 artists involved

  • Showcased at New Perspectives on Participatory Arts national conference - Arts & Humanities Research Council 

  • AHRC design exhibition, London

  • Top event to see and do - Bloom city wide festival (Bloom mini festival)

  • Playback/Channel 4 national film exhibition

  • Arts Council England – Arts, inclusion and accessibility research

Over 25 grass roots, national and international arts/cultural organisations (including all NPO’s in the city) and national broadcasters such as BBC and Channel 4.

Engagement with over 40 education/learning, school, community, voluntary orgs and Local and national Universities from York, Leeds & Sheffield and 2 academic arts research projects.


What do you like?

So much has already happened:

  • African hand drumming

  • Animation

  • Cinema

  • Circuit Bending

  • Creative media

  • Cyanotype photography

  • Dance

  • Digital Making

  • Digital media

  • Drama

  • Exhibitions

  • Felt making

  • Film

  • Interactive sound design

  • Media Arts

  • Mixed media

  • Mosaic

  • Music

  • Origami

  • Painting

  • Paper marbling

  • Pencil crayon on MDF

  • Percussion

  • Performance

  • Photography

  • Poetry

  • Print making

  • Spoken word

  • Storytelling

  • Visual arts

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