Folly

From 2000 to 2011 Taylor Nuttall was Director and CEO of folly.

http://www.folly.co.uk – web site now taken down

Headline information

folly was a leading digital arts organisation working across England’s North West.
 
folly presented an active artistic programme that provided creative interaction and collaboration between artists and the wider public using technology.
 
folly commissioned, exhibited, promoted and supported creative work and innovation with a strong emphasis on the use of online media, networked systems and integrated technologies.
 
folly delivered a year round diverse and innovative programme of online projects, events, festival activities, artist commissions, exhibitions, artist residencies, workshops and conferences.
 
Through projects like Abandon Normal Devices Festival, Portable Pixel Playground, Digital Artists’ Handbook and Love Culture, folly was committed to enabling and working with new audiences, seeking to explore how society makes sense of the world through art and technology.
  
folly also provided consultancy services specialising in digital and arts delivery using free and open-source software.

History
folly was a media arts organisation with a 15+ year history of exhibition programming, projects, events and online activity.

Folly’s roots lay in lens-based media and community arts. Previously known as Folly Pictures was founded in 1996, and expanded into a thriving community arts centre firmly establishing itself as a lead organisation in community media arts for the North West of England.

Between 1996 and 2005, folly operated from its gallery premises in the centre of Lancaster with publicly accessible darkroom provision and digital media resources. From 2000, folly developed and delivered an artistic programme that celebrated Media Arts in the widest sense whilst also developing expertise in the field of new and emergent technology.

In late 2005, folly relocated to office premises in White Cross, Lancaster and operated as a non- venue based agency running a distributed programme across England’s North West. Over that 5 year period folly began to truly operate as a partnership based agency reaching greater and greater audience numbers.

In 2009 AND Festival was launched in Liverpool, a partnership between FACT, folly and Home Mcr (Cornerhouse).

In 2011 folly ceased operating.

Archived content

Folly Website – wayback machine circa 2008