During the trip children and their parents will explore this island, which is cut off from Guernsey at high tide, and create a concertina book of drawings, mapping their adventure.  There is also a chance for participants to have a guided tour of Uncharted Island: Contemporary Artists’ maps of Guernsey, which opens at the greenhouse in the Guernsey Information Centre on Thursday 16th September.  The exhibition will provide the young participants with plenty of inspiring ideas to take with them to Houmet Paradis.   

Leading the expedition is Lauren Barnes, a local girl who has recently graduated from the prestigious Courtauld Institute of Art in London with a degree in Art History: “Drawing is a great way of exploring the world around us and I’m really excited about this workshop. The ‘maps’ we will produce during the trip will go beyond the limitations of traditional maps, using experimental techniques to record participants’ personal impressions of Houmet Paradis.”  

The workshop is for children aged between 7 and 11 and all children must be accompanied by an adult.  Due to the locations visited we advises that the workshop is not suitable for those with limited mobility.

The workshop is provided free of charge as part of the Guernsey Arts Commission’s ongoing commitment to providing exciting arts opportunities to people of all ages and backgrounds.  Places are limited and it is therefore necessary to register.  This can be done by emailing laura@arts.gg or calling 739747 for a registration form.   The deadline for registration is Wednesday 22^nd September.

You can also download your form here:

Mapping Houmet Paradis Workshop reg Form

And for more information…

Info sheet for parents and carers

Dance Week

We knew Dance week was going to be exhausting – five different dance styles to try, a whole street dance routine to learn and a chance to have a go at choreography too – but by the middle of Monday morning we were all buzzing having just learned the first part of our street routine with the Junior group.  New words entered our vocabulary as we learned to ‘lock and pop’, ‘jack’ and even ‘pas de bouree’ (spelling?!?).

As the week progressed we had a go at Indian dancing, contemporary, musical theatre, and jive (now that was exhausting) as well as continuing to work on our amazing street piece.  Both groups got to have a go at their own choreography and showed some really creative ideas (as well as making us laugh a lot!).

At the end of the week both groups invited parents and friends along to share some of the dances they had learned.  The Juniors performed an Indian Dance and their Street Dance, which included some of their own choreography, whilst the Seniors delighted their audience with a trip down memory lane courtesy of the Evolution of Dance (the Twist to Eminen and everything in between!) and ‘I Believe’ – a very sharp street routine.

Many thanks must go to Ali Coubrough-Barnett and Mike Sullivan who guided us through the week.

Drama Week

A new week and a new group of children – just as enthusiastic as our dancers and full of great ideas.  Each day we looked at different styles of acting, including improvisation, character development, Brecht and Stanislavski, and experimented with costume design, special effects make up, sound and script writing.

A real highlight was the session on special effects make up where we transformed the Artsmobile into a mini make up studio for the junior group and created some gruesome scars and wounds using special effects wax, make up and fake blood.  All the children were very proud of their ‘war wounds’ and even fooled a few parents!  The Senior group were just as creative in this session and looked equally injured by the end of the afternoon.  Unfortunately as many of the Senior group were getting the bus or cycling home we had to take all the make up off berfore we left.

Drama week ended on a real high with a massive workshop led by the children for their parents and friends.  About 60 people, young and old, packed into St Martin’s Community Centre to have a go at some drama games, costume, make up and mask work.  The children were able to demonstrate all that they had learned during the week and everyone went home full of energy!

Puppetry Week

We did wonder if we would be able to fill a whole week with just puppetry – as it turned out there was so much to do we could have managed a whole month!  Over the course of the week Darren and Jordan taught us everything from Indian shadow puppetry to Muppet style hand puppetry.  We also made our own Punch and Judy puppets, animated junk and created design models for Carnival puppets, two of which were made full size (more than 10 feet tall).

It was amazing how hard we had to use our brains in puppetry – we learned that you need to use both sides of your brain at once to be a puppeteer no matter what the style and there were lots of games and exercises to get us thinking in this way.  A large part of the week was dedicated to making our own puppets.  The Junior groups made and performed with Shadow Puppets and also worked in teams to create giant carnival puppets designed by some of our participants, Seb and Megan.  The Seniors also made Shadow Puppets, and made and devised their own Punch and Judy shows (we have never laughed so much – they were hysterical!!).

Perhaps the highlight of the week was working with professional hand puppets – a bit like the Muppets.  Despite all suffering from severe “aching arm syndrome” from holding our puppets level with our eyes and trying to concentrate on lip synch and making our puppets look in the right place, we had a marvellous time creating characters and voices for our new puppet friends.

A huge thank you to Darren Alderton and Jordan Veloso for sharing their expertise with us in both Drama and Puppetry weeks.

You can see a large selection of photos from the Free Arts Summer Programme on our Facebook page by following this link:

www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/Guernsey-Arts-Commission/370087922626

Not only is it a great tool to keep up to date with events around the island, but it is also a free resource for anyone wanting to advertise their events/projects/workshops etc.

Uploading events is simple, just follow the instructions below and if you get stuck please email jo@arts.gg or call 749268.

Upload Your Events:

Web link to Login Page

Log in page:

User: add-event
Password: add-event

Important Information: You can link your event to your website and Facebook page or even your ticket provider.

Please Note: You will only be able to enter events. If the details of your event change or you need to cancel/delete your event please email jo@arts.gg or call 749268 with the relevant information.

The Artsmobile has one purpose and that’s getting the arts out into the community as much as possible. It is fully equipped to house workshops and deliver projects and will be coming to a place near you very soon.

The use of the Artsmobile will be co-ordinated by the GAC’s Community Arts Development Officer, Laura Simpson, who is delighted with the new addition. As she explains, ‘The Artsmobile is going to be a great way of taking the arts out of their traditional venues and into the community all over the island – if there’s a road (that isn’t too small!) We’ll be able to get there!’

The Artsmobile has been made possible through the very generous sponsorship of Norman Piette; Clive Fenner the Managing Director of Norman Piette thinks this will be a great addition to the flourishing Commission. ‘Norman Piette is delighted to have had the opportunity to support the Guernsey Arts Commission in its purchase of an ‘Artsmobile’. It is so important to get people involved in the arts out in the community and the Artsmobile is a great way of doing that. Not only that but the vehicle looks great in its colour scheme and will promote the arts where ever it goes on the island. I congratulate the Commission on this initiative.’

It will be hard to miss the Artsmobile which has been branded by the creative team at Specsavers, who continue to work alongside the Guernsey Arts Commission in delivering creative projects which help promote the Arts Commission. Craig Le Lerre, Head of Artwork and Design at Specsavers and his team came up with the design to ensure ‘maximum presence and connection to the Guernsey Arts Commission brand. The best way to do this was to use the strong pink colour from the GAC logo to strengthen brand recognition. Russell, one of our designers, found that taking the shape of the ‘a’ and multiplying it to create a large version out of itself, meant it could appear very large on the van. And as the Commission is all about the development of art we felt this was a more creative way to use the logo.’

The Artsmobile is another demonstration of how the Guernsey Arts Commission is committed to developing arts in the community and ensuring they make their programs accessible to as many people as possible.

In a time when the world is still fragile from the global economy crisis, many corporate companies need to find new creative ways to increase business and maintain stability, however one of the few industries to remain relatively unscathed indeed some theatres and music venues reported an increase in profit and attendance was the arts.

This need for entertainment and culture and the impact major events can have on the local economy made up just element of Tony’s keynote speech, he also explored companies in Guernsey which have a had a great impact on the island, including Specsavers, who are one of the only companies to have an internal advertising agency based in its headquarters.

He concluded his paper encouraging local businesses to embrace creative industries into the island so that the uniqueness of the island can play an important role in business development and growth both on and off island.

To download the full key note speech please click on the below link.

Tony Gallienne: The Arts and the Impact of Creativity on Wealth Creation

We would love to hear your comments and feedback on what Tony had to say, please feel free to leave a comment or email us directly at info@arts.gg.

Non amplified busking will be permitted in the High Street outside Boots and the Guernsey Information Centre and new for this season in the area of Liberation Monument and outside the Piquet House. Amplified busking will be permitted in Market Square. However, in a change from last year this location will be the only one requiring advanced booking through the Guernsey Information Centre.

Russ Fossey, Chairman Guernsey Arts Commission Music Sub Committee said, ‘Allowing buskers to perform in the heart of St Peter Port enhances the visitor and local experience by adding colour and vitality to the centre of the Town. After last year’s successful trial period, which saw 13 permits being issued, we are keen to encourage potential buskers to show off their performance skills whether they be musical or artistic.’

To apply for a permit please download the application guidelines and application form. If you were granted a permit last year please contact Paul Belban on 723552 to have your permit renewed.

Busking in Guernsey Permit Application Guide 2010

Busking in Guernsey Permit Application

Busking in Guernsey Parental Consent

If you are interested in finding out more information please contact Paul Belben at the Guernsey Information Centre on telephone 723552.

Entry for Poems on the Buses 4 is now open and this time we are inviting poets, wherever they are in the world, to submit their works to the competition.  The rules of the competition are:

• Closing date for receipt of entries: Sep 15^th 2010
• Maximum length fourteen lines.
• The prize is open to anyone except those involved in organising the competition. Entries must be entirely the work of the entrant and must never have been published, self-published, published on any public website or broadcast, nor winning or placed in any other competition as at Oct 15th 2010
• You may send as many entries as you like. Payments must be made in sterling by cheque or postal order. Cheques should be from a UK bank and should be made payable to The Guernsey Arts Commission with the sender’s name and address on the back.
• Entries should be in English, typed on A4 paper.
• Please do not write your name on the same sheet as your poems as they will be judged anonymously.
• Enclose a separate sheet with your name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, plus the title/s of your poems.
• Winners will be contacted by post or e-mail by Oct 15th 2010 and winning poems will be placed on one of the 33 island buses for a period of 6 months which will coincide with the Guernsey Literary Festival.

Please click on the link below to download your entry form.  We look forward to enjoying your poems.

Poems on the Buses Entry Form

All entries should be sent to the following address:

Poems on the Buses
Guernsey Arts Commission
Guernsey Information Centre
North Esplanade
St Peter Port
Guernsey
GY1 2LQ

So, what are you waiting for… go find a pen and get writing!

The latest exhibition to open in the greenhouse is the 2009 RIBA Downland Prize Exhibition which demonstrates some of the best architectural designs in the South of the UK. This includes three Guernsey based projects which were shortlisted for the final prize. These projects were by local architects Paul Langlois and Andrew Dyke, who will as part of this exhibition; give a talk at the greenhouse on Thursday 15th July. They will be joined by 2008 winner Tim Holmes.

The Downland Prize has been awarded every year since 1998 to an architect based in RIBA South East or RIBA South regions (including the Channel Islands)., whose project with a total cost of £1million, best demonstrates the benefits of using an architect’s services.

This Exhibition makes up one element of a wide range of events happening over the coming weeks as part of the Guernsey Arts Commission strand of work in design which is aimed at encouraging people to discuss design and design issues.

The Eyesore Debate

The Eyesore Debate is taking place on Thursday 22 July at 6.0pm at the Beau Sejour theatre. This event will be an opportunity for Architects, the Planning Department, and local petitioners to present their arguments for and against certain building designs in Guernsey. This debate will be chaired by Jim Delbridge and the three sides will be made up of Jamie Falla and Andrew Ozanne representing the Architects, the Planning Department will be represented by Jim Rowles and Faith Rose and local petitioners Al Brouard and Robin Penna will make up the final side.

This debate will be an opportunity for all sides to be heard as well as allowing participation from the audience. This event is free but places must be reserved through phoning 739747 or emailing justiene@arts.gg.

The Guernsey Arts Commission would like to thank the RIBA South East, the GSA (Guernsey Society of Architects), in particular Mitchell Sneddon for their help with the exhibition and the Culture & Leisure Department for their support of The Eyesore Debate event.

Welcome to The Guernsey Literary Festival 12-15th May 2011

Banjour!

You’ve arrived at the blog  for Guernsey’s first Literary Festival and it’s your first step to an enchanting stay on a welcoming island, rich with its own legends, folklore and an intriguing literary tradition.

You’ll discover why the Bailiwick of Guernsey has inspired writers as diverse as Victor Hugo, GB Edwards, Tim Binding , Mervyn Peake, Elizabeth George and James Herbert and, of course, the international bestseller “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society” by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows.

Discover the island’s best kept secret: a rich literary tradition.

In the festival you will see first hand the very best that the island has to offer through literary events, performances, themed walks, a murder mystery, workshops and talks for people of all ages and there will be a chance to meet writers such as Annie Barrows and Tim Binding and to find out why Guernsey is so special to them.

English speaking, Guernsey has its own Norman -French dialect and its easygoing charm belies a darker history of strange monoliths, witch burning and Nazi occupation. French place names and a unique culture make it feel very different to the UK but the truth is, it’s just a short hop away by plane or ferry.

The story begins …

We’re beginning to gear up for the big event, so be sure to keep an eye out for more information. In the coming months we’ll be updating with new attendees and events, advice on where to stay, and what to see shortly…

If you have any questions, please contact us on: festival @arts.gg 

Until then goodbye, or as we say here à la perchoine!

The Guernsey Arts Commission is joining forces with Samba Burros to bring you all the sights and sounds of the carnival.  On Sunday 11th July you’ll have the chance to join in with free workshops in Samba Drumming, Samba Dance and carnival crafts.  The day will culminate in a parade along the sea front in town!  And with the sea front being closed all day its the perfect location for a great family day out.

Mary Cordall of Samba Burros, one of the organisers of Samba Sunday, is looking forward to the event: “We’ve done many successful performances already this year and have UK tutors booked for workshops in September and the New Year.  With our splendid new costumes Samba in Guernsey is on a high! For Samba Sunday we have a brand new piece -it’s a Samba Reggae, Brazilian with African influence – and we love it! We’re so looking forward to working with Helen Le Tocq (dance specialist) again and to welcoming Sara Wilson to make her spectacular colourful hats. Basically we’re samba mad and want to share it with everyone!”

So… what do you need to know?

• Sunday 11^th July, 11am – 4.45pm
• Town Seafront, meeting at the Information Centre.
• Wear RED for the parade!
• Free Event, but contact laura@arts.gg to register.
• All children must be accompanied by an adult.  Some activities may not be suitable for very young children or those who experience back problems.

See you there!