Based at The Loughborough Hotel in Brixton, The Plunge Club is a monthly event organised by Rene Eyre and Bo Chapman. It is based around specific themes which act as a catalyst and gauntlet to artists and the public to come together in a creative club environment, using performance, projections, sculpture and installations.
Themes have included ‘Talking in Tongues’ which generated a textual evening of both projected and spoken words, as well as a wooden sculpture of the tower of Babel built during the night. ‘Jealousy’ resulted in an evening of physical theatre and dance. ‘Games People Play’ was a performance created by the writer Nick Rogers, and for ‘The Lost Supper’ a final performance ritual was built out of Miss Haversham's wedding feast.
One of The Plunge Club's objectives is to create live satellite events that take the Plunge aesthetic out of a club environment. In September 1994, The Plunge Club descended on Nunhead cemetery, where performers, musicians and installation artists gathered to present work that responded to the beauty and mystery of the Victorian site. A theme used in Spring 1995 was ‘Ovalation’ – a celebration of Spring, resulting in 107 artists presenting a programme comprising of Pagan art, cult art, video installation, rave culture, toxic visuals and magic. Following Ovalation, an experimental CD ROM was produced, documenting four of the artists’ work, acting as an interactive catalogue.
Since November 1995, The Plunge has returned to the Loughborough Hotel where its three floors offer unique opportunities for local artists and those from further afield to engage with the themes of the club.