Open Door and Lippfest

Dead as a Doorknob

It's in between life

NOT dead!

It's full of life.

Slowly growing.

It looked dead

But isn't dead.

It's only kidding.

Those trees have been

Growing for a while.

This lone one not growing

The same.

I'm gone, but I'm here.

This poem was produced by David, one of our participants on the Open Door Project and scribed by his support worker.  He wrote it in response to a painting of a wintry tree by Milan, which was painted under the project theme of 'the view from the window', after a session exploring metaphors for the self. 

Six weeks in to the project and everyone is immersed in what they are doing.  Yesterday's session began with some voice exercises, after which participants moved on to their own visual art and poetry projects, trying to be quiet so we didn't disturb Barney who was recording participants reading their poems in the downstairs office (these recordings will form part of the installation piece at Lippfest)!  The session culminated in a reading of some of the wonderful poetry that has been produced so far and when Clare read her poem to the group, the hush over the room was palpable - somewhat like listening to a female Dylan Thomas for the 21st Century!  Jill (Studio 3's resident artist and the other lead facilitator on the project) and I are delighted to see people dipping their toes into areas they haven't tried since school and finding new talents and passions.  

The spectrum of creativity we are witnessing each week is vast and it is fantastic to see the individual style of each artist/writer emerging through the work they do and the artistic choices they make.  For me, in addition to the quality of the work being produced, what is so important is that the people involved are finding their own artistic directions, their own 'view through the window'.  Whatever medium they are choosing, be it painting, pastels, felt making, writing and re-writing or simply voice exercises, there is no doubt in my mind that they are taking the right ones and they are approaching both the art and the poetry with a professionalism that is commendable.  

And what a lovely group!  

Becky Cherriman (Writer, Facilitator, Spoken Word Artist)

Moving Forward

This Open Door project is our first partnership with The Together Women Project - who work with women in the criminal justice system in Leeds. I did a taster workshop with them way back in spring, when we did some writing exercises and thought about what inspired us. It was clear that writing was of interest for the women there at that time - they had stories they needed to tell, but also a desire to move on. 

So here we are now, a windy, rainy autumn day with the Moving Forward project well underway. The focus is creative writing and animation, but our artist/writers Milena Dragic and Kath Jones have discovered the group is willing to experiment with all kinds of artforms and approaches to writing. Sketches, water colours, found texts and photographs are just some of the things I have seen on my visits to the group. What I have also seen is a growing confidence among the women, who on that first day in August, assured me they were "no artists", or "not much of a writer", and yet here we are just over the half way point and I see notebooks brimming with text and sheaves of drawings, and I hear bursts of laughter as we manoeuver plasticine spiders in front of the camera for the animations.  

I'm struck also by the email I received from one of the artists, Milena who, when I ask her to send me some thoughts about the project tells me "I'm no great writer..." Nevertheless she writes 

I've got eight two hours sessions to work with all these wonderful, talented, funny, women, brimming with ideas and creativity, to make together something new to us all and to transform our doubts, scars, loss and pain into strength and joy of creation, so that we can be proud of who we are and what we can do, not despite, but because of the lives we've lived.

I'm amazed how much work women do every week at home.

And the willingness to try new things,

and their openness with me, in more ways than one, a stranger, with a strange accent...

Need I say any more....?


Dianne

Artlink at LIPPfest Fringe Festival

We are proud to announce that Artlink will be hosting a workshop at the LIPPfest Fringe Festival at the Carriageworks Theatre on 24th September.  This will mark the culmination of a 10-week project, working with adult mental health service users, exploring creative writing, visual arts and set design all within the theme of 'new beginnings', tieing in well with our move back to our building and our re-launch.  I've included some info below about the festival, if you're free please do come along and say hello!  Hayley

LIPPfest

Tickets are now on sale for the first ever Leeds Independent Presses Poetry Festival (LIPPfest) due to take place in The Carriageworks, Leeds on the 24th September 2011.

 

It's a stellar line-up, featuring readings and workshops from 25 top-class poets from allover the UK and from a broad range of presses, including readers such as Fiona Sampson, Peter Sansom, Amanda Dalton, Kei Miller, Ian Parks, Helen Mort, Clare Shaw, Allison McVety, Pat Borthwick and Mike Barlow. There will also be a special reading by young poets as part of The Cadaverine Presents series and a not-to-be-missed showase to celebrate 25 whole years of Leeds' very own Peepal Tree Press presented by Peepal Tree Editor Jeremy Poynting. Lancaster Litfest will also be making an appearance with their wonderful Poetry Bookcase for an opportunity to browse and buy some of the finest poetry titles known to humankind.

 

For full details (and tickets) for all the readings and workshops on offer please click on this link or email us with any queries at voices@live.co.uk

 

We can't wait to see you there!

 

www.lippfest.co.uk

 

David Tait and David Thom (LIPPfest organisers)