Ed checks in this morning and reflects on the rich summer of events, community art and workshops Kandu has been running through the summer. Thank you to everyone that supported us and works with us, looking forward to our upcoming adventures.
Kandu-Arts
S.H.O.P. - Social Hub of Positivity Podcast Episode #201
(upbeat music) - Good day. Welcome to the SHAMP social helper positivity. I'm not in the shop. The wonderful social hub in the wonderful Emily Gays in Shipland Center. If you ever get a chance, if you're ever in Shipland, please pay the visit because there's amazing stuff going on there. Thanks to all the volunteers that helped make that run and the wonderful Lauren Rogers, of course. At the moment, we've got Caroline Tomlin's new eye exhibition in the right-hand window as you look on the left-hand window. We have this fantastic piece, which is another part of the project that we have been supported by Wessex Water to deliver. And with the fantastic Jess Way, who's a textile artist of some extraordinary talent. She does mix mediums, but I'd say her main one was textiles. However, if you look on the left-hand side in SHAB in Emery Gate, you will see the water cycle. And now I'm not saying there's a bicycle made of water 'cause that would be absurd. But quite environmentally friendly, I think you'll find. However, there's a piece because Jess has been doing to get more workshops with our wonderful visitors, like guests at the shop at the social hub. And they have come up with an amazing piece, again, mixed medium, and it explains water cycle. So it's another part of the say of this ongoing project that we have been supported by great people at Wessex Water. They're part of their community division and getting the public involved in the process is really important. And we've taken groups down to the water works. I remember the days and it used to be called the sewer works, but now it's called the water works, apparently, or something like that. Anyway, really informative, really accessible, and you get to ask all the questions that you might want to ask, particularly about sewage being put into the waters, et cetera, et cetera. So really, really good, both windows, fantastic. If you do get an opportunity, please do go down to the woods, to kidnap the woods, and go to the woods if you want, 'cause it'd be nice while they still exist, while they haven't been built over, go to the woods, wherever you live, quick, get there, see a tree, hug it, kiss it, then miss it. Anyway, the bit, yeah, so there's some amazing, as usual, some fantastic pieces in the shop, Cygrophys has still got an exhibition in there, great local artist. The thing about when you say local, I think sometimes people might think that somehow they aren't as credible as, you know, artists that you don't describe as local, but Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr, to name but four artists of some extraordinary claim, were local, so when people who lived next to them would say those local boys. You see, you can be the Beatles and be local at the same time. Now, get down to our shop, have a look at the wonderful art exhibitions, and take part in the amazing art workshops. Daisy Amazonas and all sorts of volunteers help to run some brilliant workshops, so if you see them advertised, please sign up, because I was talking about one recently, about the fluid art or flow art that Daisy did, the results of which we see after they're finished are incredible, so it's really accessible. Obviously there's also musical instruments in the shop, so if you fancy going down, which people do, going down, having a jam, and some toast, no, not jam and toast, jam, the music, they do that in there, it's fantastic. So, yeah, really very, very proud to be associated with our social hub of positivity, and I'm very grateful to everyone that helps run it and keep it going, and of course, wonderful to see some guests that come from all different backgrounds, all different ages, it's truly a social hub, because it caters for all sorts, of needs and abilities and all generations. We have toddlers, parents with babes in arms coming in, doing our art, 'cause you can go in there on the odd day and just do art and sit there and do it doodle, as you would, without there being a workshop on. It's also the fantastic music project that happens weekly, run by the very talented Sarah Payne, and assisted ably by Phil Rice. Thanks for coming today, Phil. Really great, so wonderful to be with it when I'm there, and I care, and particularly, barrel and people and other like are there, and people choose their songs and sing their songs, and it really is a very beautiful thing. So please feel free to go down there and check it out. Also, whilst we're on the check it out, and great people, we're gonna say a massive thank you to the directors of the Mighty, Mighty Festival. They support the work that we do, and enable us to do workshops and to give access to people that might not be able to afford to access the arts, different types of workshops, life skills, et cetera, et cetera, that are life enhancing, and that is brought about by support from these wonderful directors at the Mighty, Mighty Festival. Check out the Mighty Festival. Check out the Mighty, Mighty Festival. I think you'll find that the tickets are already available for next years, and the dates will be printed here. You can have a see the dates, get all your tickets. It's a fantastic event. It really is, and it's really one of the truly community festivals. We have been, have the honour of having a candle arts for the standard development tent. For the last two years, excuse me, there are any exploded, exploded while I was talking. And this last year, we've also been running the Teen Tent, and we've had the licence to be able to put a clearer space on the Candoo stage for the young participants in the Teen Tent to have the Teen Tent Talent Show, which happens on the Sunday, and it was massively supported and massively successful. So I want to say thank you to all our Candoo facilitators and volunteers that outrun that, but also to the young people that took part were brave enough to do, in some cases, their first ever sort of public gigs. And again, it lends the idea that the Mighty, Mighty Festival is a truly community, but also a very inspirational, supportive environment to grow the talent for future years. So I am pretty sure that if the Mighty Festival, Mighty Festival were able to go on for many years, you will see young people that started and the Teen Tent performing on the main stage in their older, older, older, older years. We're gonna thank all the artists that appear for free at the Candoo art stage, because that, again, helps A, make it happen, and B, makes it truly fantastic to see such brilliant local talent. Again, think of the Beatles, then think of all these bones. Then I'd like to say a thank you to Wendy and Pete Clowidge and their family, and Brian at the Monkton Park, Pitch and Park. Again, another truly community festival. They do a variety of events throughout the year. Next year, they're going to have their 60th anniversary. I'm sorry, I don't know what I'm talking about. They're going to have, maybe it's something, it's some festival anniversary of, oh yeah, might be the 60th year that the golf course has been there. Check it out, I might be wrong about that. Either way, they're having an anniversary. I think they've run it for 20 years, and it's been going for 60, something like that. Anyway, we're very proud and gracious and grateful to be a part of their plans, 'cause they too support the work that we do in the community for those who are less able to access such workshops, they're the support of Mindy Festival, and the Unlock Reset Festival, and the Good People at the Pitch and Park in Chippenham. Go to the Pitch and Park, they do foot golf, as well as pitch and adventure golf. It's a beautiful environment to just be there. On a nice, brisk, sunny day, you'll see how beautiful it really is. It's got fantastic trees, it's a great layout, et cetera, et cetera. Anyway, I'm ever grateful. And also to the support we get from the great people at the Rotary and Rotor Act, who have helped support our events. We do a lot of events at the Rotary Hall, as you'll know from those of you that keep in contact with what we do. We do our showcases, our various sort of seasonal events Teen Takeover, which is very successful, and the Folk Festival, the Fringe, at the Rotary Hall on Station Hill. But we also have the great support of the Rotarians, and to help fund, again, for people that can't access such activities, and also volunteer to support and steward and help us out at our events. So massive thank you to the Rotary Club and the Rotor Act. Get involved, they're a great bunch of people. If you are inclined to volunteer, and I strongly suggest that we need more and more of that, because society is in a very strange place at the moment. So people that give of their time, like the Rotarians, I think it's 1,200 their sector, and the Rotor Act volunteers are an incredible bunch of people. They give of their time freely to make our society all the better, and it would be all the worse without them. So a big thank you to them. So I'm not going to burble on much longer. Just want to be, I'm very grateful, feeling grateful, there's a bit of sunshine outside, the rain in our time. So thank you to everyone that supports the work of Candle Arts for STEM Development. We really appreciate it, and I want to say thank you to all the people that work. Alongside at Candle Arts for STEM Development, in our Alternative Education Program and in our community areas, it's an absolute pleasure and an honour to be part of that, and I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart, the middle of my heart, and the top of the heart, and top of the morning. And also another big thank you to all the staff at Chippenham, Birthing Centre, the wonderful people, and Bathroll United. I've had more to do with Bathroll United in the last 18 months than I have in the last 59 years, which is bizarre because I'm only 28. Anyway, people that work in the health service, the National Health Service, are absolute true heroes. We need to honour them by paying them adequately, not charging them to park. Let me do it, Bathroll United. Chippenham has a staff to park, and here's the other thing. They make them work an extra hour, an extra 12 hours, sorry, to cover their breaks. Think about this. So people that work within that beautiful needed system have to work an extra shift of 12 hours to cover the breaks for the previous hours that they've worked, when they definitely need a break, because they don't get paid for their breaks. That's appalling, to want to end on a bum note, though, or a sour note, I want to end by saying, like the volunteers I've talked about from Ontarians and everything else, the people that choose to give of their time and their lives, to be midwives, to be people that work within all the areas of medicine for the National Health Service, and dentistry in the National Health Service while it still exists, are absolute heroes. They're the true heroes of our society. There aren't many more. We can all name them. In fact, that's what we wanted to do originally with our On Not Reset Festival, was to honor people that got everyone through the lockdown. But I shall go into that a bit more closer to the next election, so you can see just how bad things are run. Anyway, big up, big thank you, and well done to everyone. That does the voodoo, that they do so well. Good luck, that's about it. ♪ Spinning at a thousand miles an hour ♪ ♪ Just another speck in the cosmic shot ♪ ♪ All the universe held within the flowers here ♪ ♪ Messing with your head just to feel somehow ♪ ♪ Getting more than just for a body hour ♪ ♪ Looking through the stars for a sign of hope ♪ ♪ Turn your head away from the earth ♪ ♪ Look for the answer I've lost ♪ ♪ With all refugees on a raft ♪ ♪ We're lost at it around them stars ♪ ♪ Peeking at a thousand miles an hour ♪ ♪ Trying to communicate the power ♪ ♪ All the answer's starting and with love ♪ ♪ Standing on the ledge, having every time ♪ ♪ Getting longer can 'cause your dreams turn south ♪ ♪ Looking through the stars you hope they'll be a sign ♪ ♪ Turn your head away from the earth ♪ ♪ Look for the answer's in my eyes ♪ ♪ With all ♪