In 2000, Stan's Cafe curated The Future Art Symposia for Birmingham City Council's Forward Festival. It was funded by the National Lottery via the Arts Council England, bringing together a range of artists, curators, and academics from a variety of backgrounds. This series of four symposia discussing the present and future of art themed around 'Art and The New'; 'Art and Society'; 'Art and Technology'; and 'Art and Time.' The speakers were Jonathan Watkins, Heather Maitland, John Wyver, Ansuman Biswas, James Yarker, Michael Van Graan, Claire Smith, Alun Mountford, Sadie Plant, Heidi Reitmaier, Ann Whitehurst, Brian Duffy, Mike Pearson, Christopher Egret, and Claire Russ. Transcripts of the presentations were later published in book form.
