I have known about Metal Culture, the one that is based in Southend, and their events for some time. I have often thought of joining one of their events but didn't get around to it. Last night I plucked up the courage to join their Zoom meeting called 'BASILDON, what next for the Creative Industries in South Essex?' It was really good actually, I imagined that I would sit observing, feeling too awkward to join in, but in fact I did get involved and added something to the various debates that were going on.
To start with we watched six speakers; Aden Hynes from Sculpture Studios who showed a film. Moira Brock from La Danse Fantastique who showed a film. Joseph Brennan, an architect. Clare Mortimer from The Craft Shed. TIME - Therapy in Musical Expression, who showed a film and then Laura Mauro a writer. It was really interesting, although I already knew about Sculpture Studios and TIME.
There were about forty participants and what struck me was that I knew a few faces from old, namely; Aden, Peter Patterson, Elizabeth Grant and Ken Porter and also Sue Willis who I knew from university. There was an array of mainly younger and some older faces, several from Metal Culture and Bas-Arts-Index and a lot of practitioners, artists, musicians, film-makers and organisers among others.
I started my public writing career (you could say) on a blog called SPREAD THE ART WORD which I started in 2006, this is also when I got immersed into the local art scene. I was an observer who would write about all I was discovering. I started this blog when I was a member of Mike Harrington's START art group, I had a bit of a brainwave to start a magazine that the group could read. The intention was that it was going to be in paper form but I discovered this amazing thing called 'the blog' and haven't looked back.
I mentioned in the message section of the Zoom call that I had interviewed Aden, who has built up an amazing family business in Basildon, and the interview can be read here.
There was also Peter Patterson who said that he was inspired to start his own art gallery at Barleylands Farm Park and Village after his experience of running the B.A.T. Gallery at the Eastgate in Basildon. I did a post about him at that time here.
From last nights meeting I can honestly say that the local art scene is still very vibrant and once we get out of this pandemic more can be done to keep it alive.
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