A bracing way to get inspired
A Scarborough project is hoping to confound the recent bad weather and get thousands swimming in the sea as part of a unique cultural programme inspired by the Games.
Throughout the summer, Sea Swim, a partnership between imove, artists John Wedgwood Clarke and Lara Goodband and Scarborough Borough Council, are celebrating the creative inspiration that a bracing dip can bring.
The club is open to anyone: just pop along to Scarborough’s South Bay and find the Sea Swim HQ – a pair of beach huts transformed into mini-galleries, bursting with the artworks created by club members.
Club members join in regular swims, share their stories and create works of art. Carol Ann Duffy, The Poet Laureate, and Patron of Sea Swim said: “I am thrilled to be patron of this beautifully simple and simply beautiful idea. Poetry is going down to the sea again”’
tagged ##community benefits #Cultural Olympiad #yorkshire
The art of getting active
Edinburgh’s Arthur’s Seat will be the setting for a remarkable piece of public art, and a reminder of the importance of physical activity, as part of the London 2012 Festival.
Taking place in August, Speed of Light will see thousands running a choreographed route up the mount at night in specially commissioned light suits, creating an extraordinary visual effect.
Angus Farquhar, Creative Director, commented:
“The work at best can communicate profound and often unarticulated ideas of how we live, who we are and how we are affected by our immediate environment.”
With runners ascending the summit of the hill every night of the Edinburgh International Festival, the initiative will bring the iconic landmark alive – and may just encourage a few more people to pick up their running shoes in the future.
Dancing for change
A stunning new dance piece performed in public outdoor spaces has been changing perceptions and showcasing the talents of deaf and disabled people this summer, as part of the Cultural Olympiad.
Known as SPUN Productions, the choreographed routines are performed by the StopGAP Dance Company, the UK’s leading integrated company for dancers with and without disabilities.
It forms part of the Accentuate programme - 15 projects taking place across the South East, each inspired by the Paralympics and designed to change how people think about disability.
Check the tour dates to find a performance of SPUN Productions near you
Canterbury caravan tells its 2012 story
A caravan with a difference arrived at Canterbury College last night - containing stories, photographs and artwork from across the county.
As one of thousands of community projects officially inspired by London 2012, the Kent Cultural Baton is a silver Airstream caravan which has been travelling across Kent for the past two years triggering stories and creative input from local people.
Designed and co-ordinated by artist Nicole Mollet, this travelling pod has been gathering different representations of ‘culture’ and ‘creativity’ from the worlds of art, science, food, horticulture, music and the environment. The aim is to present the various tales as a snapshot of Kent’s fascinating history and part of the nationwide cultural celebrations of London 2012.
The resulting ‘alternative map of Kent’ will chart the many stories, photographs, drawings and creative writing captured by artists from local people to build a permanent record for future generations and give residents a different perspective on the place where they live.
Nicole Mollet said:
“The travelling pod project intends to reveal the idea that within every world there is a world, and within every small village there are a million fascinating stories to be told.”
Find out more:
The Kent Cultural Baton project
Watch the launch of the baton project
