Clean break

Creativity knows no bounds and can flourish even when people lack freedom. If there are people willing to explore themselves, dive into and dissect their insecurities, there will be art.

Too often creativity is stomped on, spat on and ridiculed. For too long, it has been seen as the academy's failed sibling.

Creativity is intelligence with elegance and vibrancy.

This is exemplified by the Clean Break theatre company. Clean Break changes lives. 

Angie Yorke is an example of their amazing work with women who have been affected by the criminal justice system. Angie says before she got involved with Clean Break she was drinking heavily, wasting her life and had no idea what she wanted. After attending the theatre company, she obtained access to HE, went to university, got her degree in Drama, and later her Masters. 

She proclaims, “I am now a master of the art”.

It's an incredible transformation, and what was needed? Just some people to give her time and support.

Clean Break is only for women in London and the surrounding areas. They help 200 women, providing expenses for travel, food, childcare, etc. If similar funds and facilities were available across the country, just how many more women could achieve their potential?

Clean Break works to provide qualifications and employability skills, and to improve mental health and confidence. They attempt to change these women's sense of their own identity, so that they see themselves not as offenders but students - students studying to better themselves and chase their dreams.  


Jack Robbie

Second chances

The Art in Prisons: Clean Break talk has lingered in my thoughts throughout the day. I went in expecting to hear about how the program has affected the lives of woman in danger of committing criminal offences, and yes, that was discussed. But what struck me more was the work of the actual women. We were shown trailers of theatre productions written by woman who took part in the program. To see just how the program helped the women to create such visual pieces was truly inspiring, and really showed how it helped woman at risk of committing a criminal offence.

 One of the speakers was a woman who had been a part of the program. She spoke about how it had enabled her to pick up her life and start university and then move on to obtain a Master’s degree. To see the positive effect the Clean Break program had on a woman who was actually there and able to talk about how it had helped change her life was a honest and heartening experience.

If you would like to learn more about the Clean Break program, you can click here. 


Aimee Carter

A eulogy for Lee Harwood

Kelvin Corcoran's new collection demonstrates an intimate oneness with Greek geology and scenery. It also ranges through many familiar tales from Greek myth and literature. Some poems relate to Greece's current problems but there are also more tender poems of memory and love.

  One poem that particularly stood out was written as an elegy and tribute to the poet Lee Harwood, a friend of Kelvin's. The writing drew once more on vivid imagery of ocean landscapes and scenery from Kelvin's own journeys - the poem hummed with life. It was a eulogy of sorts, and we were all lucky to hear the poet read it. 


Atlas

Greek myths and local tales

Last Wednesday, I had the pleasure of entering my usual Friday morning lecture hall, to listen to Kelvin Corcoran read from his new book of poems Facing West. 

His fascination with Greek mythology infused his poems, which moved between past and present in a way which  captivated his audience.

Through visiting Greece regularly, Kelvin Corcoran has created an intimate bond with the country. This was reflected in the way he spoke about his conversations with locals, stating that Greek mythology is simply "a series of local tales with no final version - a rare experience for a western man." 


Kaitlan Baker-Smith

Savvy, strong, insightful

I can't deny the magnetism of Dorothy Byrne and Greg Palast when they talk openly about their fascinating careers as investigative journalists, both here and across the pond -- where, let me tell you, the press sounds far whackier. 

 

This talk was exuberant and enjoyed by both students and members of the public, offering much to pique their interest. It also struck a political nerve in many. Certainly politics always bleeds into journalism but these two reporters spoke so beautifully and impartially that I couldn’t help being inspired. If only I could be the next undercover sensation to unearth some scheme of grand corruption scheme in the Houses of Parliament, the White House or even DMU. 

 

The careers of these people speak for themselves. But watching their despatches in person was a pure joy.

Oh, and remember. You can’t go listening to any “fake news” now - because Dorothy assures there’s no such thing.

 

 

J D Gardner

Festivals - a passing phase?

''Expect the unexpected.’’

''Be true to your roots.’’

''Never patronise your audience.’’

These are just some of the useful tips given at the Festival Peak talk by Jenny Howard-Coombes and Cathryn Peach. Both festival organisers talked about the trials and tribulations of their work but also the rewards of putting art into action.

Jenny is a part of the team that organises Hull's Freedom festival which attracts up to 140,000 people a year, it’s safe to say that she and her team definitely know the recipe for success. She talked to the audience about how the event was ‘‘born out of a need for something creative and cultural’’ to commemorate the anti-slavery work of Hull native William Wilberforce and others – and thus the Freedom festival was born.

Cathryn works as part of a different kind of festival named Just So. This specialises in camping and outdoor activities, inviting up to 6,000 people to join in. Unlike the city-based Freedom festival, this is located in the countryside. It was great to see the comparison between these two different festivals.

An event at the 2016 Freedom Festival in Hull.

At both the beginning and end of the talk the audience was asked whether they thought festivals as a whole were a dying concept. 

The answer was a unanimous no. 

 

Natalie Worledge

Is everybody reading?

During an informative talk on Leicester Art Festivals, I've learnt how such events do so much to share information and showcase local artists.

There were several speaker but I was particularly interested in what Juliet Martin had to say about the Everybody's Reading Festival.

She explained that when reports in 2009 suggested that primary schoolchildren weren't interested in books, Leicester schools got in touch with her company. They talked through ideas and Everybody's Reading was borm.

One of the many events held is 'Author's week' when children get to meet the authors of books they're encouraged to read. In 2016, 5000 children attended. Everybody's Reading has opened to a wider audience and now aims at anyone without access to a library. It's probably the greatest reading festival in the region.
 
In a light-hearted, the audience was asled how to market festivals to a wider public, and particularly to university students. A student in the audience brought up the issue that while many festivals have an educational purpose, as a student she'd choose a festival where she coold relax and neglect education for a while.
 

Megan Louise