Thursday 16th November at the Millennium Library
Voices Nationwide- Workshop and Performance
Above image- Matt Abbott's nationwide spoken word advert
He is a poet I had already reviewed earlier in the year during his edinburgh fringe preview tour. It was amazing to meet him and work alongside him during the day. His work is very politically driven, this is one reason I engage with is work so well and enjoy the possibilities spoken word art can bring.
https://lpottsart.blogspot.co.uk/2017/07/spoken-word-everyday-tool-26th-july.html
- Partnership between the Roundhouse and Nationwide building society
-The roundhouse is a hub of inspiration where artists and emerging talent create extraordinary work and where young people can grow creatively as individuals. 'We believe in the power of creativity to change lives'
- Sets out to discover the stories of people across the UK and share them through spoken word
Today I took part in a workshop with BBC roundhouse and nationwide building society. I was approached to take part in this through the norwich Radical publication. They were aware I already write poetry and also that I am up for any opportunity to mix with people who have begun the transition into creative change/change initiatives.
The roundhouse in partnership with nationwide building society is a troublesome relationship to me however I can find comfort in the fact it isn't a bank it is a building society. The issues I have are rooted in the fact that it is ever more the place of private investors such as banks and building societies to fuel creative initiatives. This can often be to cover other, less ethical practices and in some way play off the public's attention. Therefore, I have my reservations regarding the initiative however roundhouse was what drove me to take part. Their less vested interest and a more creative based focus was appealing. Further to this, the organisation have a great focus on the opportunities that creativity can bring.
I was working mainly with Laurie Bolger and Martin Figura who are both writers and poets themselves. The workshop consisted of a number of exercises that generated material to write with or from. First came the free association writing which threw up a lot of material for myself, latter came writing from an image. This initiative, lead by Martin was rooted in his photographic history. The poem chosen 'Photograph of my father in his 22 year' By Raymond Carver. We discussed the meaning of the image and that writing from an image can further this notion. The concepts we discussed included many that you may hear within a fine art seminar. The fact the image holds a moment that exists singularly. Writing then produces as a result is mourning something that no longer exists. The written word analysing that image is then fictional for some part. This was not the most fertile exercise for myself as it was less free than the others. The last exercise, lead by Laurie was a scent exercise in which we had packets that we then wrote from. Within my packet was hot chocolate powder. This threw up masses of connotation for myself. Mainly very personal connotation that I rarely let seep into my art. Therefore, the writing was emotive and personal. It was difficult to discuss the work without delving deeper into my life. The safe environment allowed this to happen however. This is not something I am likely to revisit with my art or poetry as personal experience and trauma is to draining to investigate.
Later in the day saw the arrival of the poetry takeaway. This is an initiative that brings poetry to people for free. Four poets talk with members of the public to produce them a personalised poem. This initiative to me is an example of what is needed throughout the country. Not only does it encourage more creativity but also open conversation with different sorts of people.
We worked throughout the morning and afternoon on our poems and then later that day/evening we had a slot of 2 hours to prepare and perform at the Norwich Arts centre. This was a public event and the entire bottom floor was filled with people. There was 7 of us who took place in the workshop and we all performed two poems. The nice thing about this was that by the time we go two our second poem, confidence had built and the words flowed more easily out to the crowd.
What I have taken away from this experience is not only more contacts within the poetic and creative world but also the ability to produce material readily. While I write poetry for my creative practice I sometime struggle to let the words flow naturally. This is usually de to the fact the subject matter is very intense. I have now learnt how to allow the words to decide their own meaning and trust that messages of change will come through.
Voices Nationwide- Workshop and Performance
Above image- Matt Abbott's nationwide spoken word advert
He is a poet I had already reviewed earlier in the year during his edinburgh fringe preview tour. It was amazing to meet him and work alongside him during the day. His work is very politically driven, this is one reason I engage with is work so well and enjoy the possibilities spoken word art can bring.
https://lpottsart.blogspot.co.uk/2017/07/spoken-word-everyday-tool-26th-july.html
- Partnership between the Roundhouse and Nationwide building society
-The roundhouse is a hub of inspiration where artists and emerging talent create extraordinary work and where young people can grow creatively as individuals. 'We believe in the power of creativity to change lives'
- Sets out to discover the stories of people across the UK and share them through spoken word
Today I took part in a workshop with BBC roundhouse and nationwide building society. I was approached to take part in this through the norwich Radical publication. They were aware I already write poetry and also that I am up for any opportunity to mix with people who have begun the transition into creative change/change initiatives.
The roundhouse in partnership with nationwide building society is a troublesome relationship to me however I can find comfort in the fact it isn't a bank it is a building society. The issues I have are rooted in the fact that it is ever more the place of private investors such as banks and building societies to fuel creative initiatives. This can often be to cover other, less ethical practices and in some way play off the public's attention. Therefore, I have my reservations regarding the initiative however roundhouse was what drove me to take part. Their less vested interest and a more creative based focus was appealing. Further to this, the organisation have a great focus on the opportunities that creativity can bring.
I was working mainly with Laurie Bolger and Martin Figura who are both writers and poets themselves. The workshop consisted of a number of exercises that generated material to write with or from. First came the free association writing which threw up a lot of material for myself, latter came writing from an image. This initiative, lead by Martin was rooted in his photographic history. The poem chosen 'Photograph of my father in his 22 year' By Raymond Carver. We discussed the meaning of the image and that writing from an image can further this notion. The concepts we discussed included many that you may hear within a fine art seminar. The fact the image holds a moment that exists singularly. Writing then produces as a result is mourning something that no longer exists. The written word analysing that image is then fictional for some part. This was not the most fertile exercise for myself as it was less free than the others. The last exercise, lead by Laurie was a scent exercise in which we had packets that we then wrote from. Within my packet was hot chocolate powder. This threw up masses of connotation for myself. Mainly very personal connotation that I rarely let seep into my art. Therefore, the writing was emotive and personal. It was difficult to discuss the work without delving deeper into my life. The safe environment allowed this to happen however. This is not something I am likely to revisit with my art or poetry as personal experience and trauma is to draining to investigate.
Later in the day saw the arrival of the poetry takeaway. This is an initiative that brings poetry to people for free. Four poets talk with members of the public to produce them a personalised poem. This initiative to me is an example of what is needed throughout the country. Not only does it encourage more creativity but also open conversation with different sorts of people.
We worked throughout the morning and afternoon on our poems and then later that day/evening we had a slot of 2 hours to prepare and perform at the Norwich Arts centre. This was a public event and the entire bottom floor was filled with people. There was 7 of us who took place in the workshop and we all performed two poems. The nice thing about this was that by the time we go two our second poem, confidence had built and the words flowed more easily out to the crowd.
What I have taken away from this experience is not only more contacts within the poetic and creative world but also the ability to produce material readily. While I write poetry for my creative practice I sometime struggle to let the words flow naturally. This is usually de to the fact the subject matter is very intense. I have now learnt how to allow the words to decide their own meaning and trust that messages of change will come through.
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