Creative Climate Fest – Partners 2

A few words for about our other partners for Creative Climate Fest 25. It’s a long list which is happily growing as we progress, and an exciting one.

Menter Iaith Sir Benfro is one of the county’s leading Welsh language and cultural development organisations, running numerous language workshops and coordinating a large number of musical and cultural activities. The event will be fully bilingual, and Menter Iaith will be integral in helping to deliver this aspect of the weekend. I’ll be running art workshops with the group and its large number of Welsh language learners in preceding weeks to the festival, creating artwork specifically for the occasion. 

Silbers CIC is an expanding South West Wales Community Interest Company and social enterprise which aims to change lives through engagement with the natural environment, shared education and play. James Silbers is an experienced wood craftsman and environmentalist, and leads the coppicing team at Scolton Manor. He will also be providing carving and woodworking sessions during the weekend

EdenKind is a nonprofit, ecologically centred West Wales company with a 36 acre forest farm and conservation area. They are committed growers and providers of vegan food, and also provide consultancy for individuals and organisations wishing to lower their carbon footprint and engage sustainably with future challenges. One of its lead practitioners, Shelley, is also a fine artist and musician, and her work will be on display along with information about her company.

ArtCan is an outstanding artist-led group with a growing membership of international artists. It exhibits extensively throughout the UK and elsewhere in the world, and enables its members to fulfill their potential as artists and curators in a wide diversity of shows. Its commitment to environmentalism is represented by its Green Team arts panel and its membership of the Gallery Climate Coalition (the GCC is an international community of arts organisations working to reduce the sector’s environmental impacts). Artcan will be platforming video and digital art by its members for presentation at the Green Barn on its large projector screen.

We’re delighted to be working with Haverhub, the large, central Haverfordwest community arts and performance venue, to promote the issues around the festival. Haverhub’s story has been an extraordinary one of local regeneration, turning the sprawling, semi-derelict old Post Office premises into a thriving local arts centre. As part of Haverhub’s engagement with environmentalism and the show, we’ll be offering a shared presentation on June 27th at the centre, discussing many of the issues connected to the Creative Climate Fest. 

Among the excellent local artists and photographers taking part is Richard Blacklaw-Jones, who works with found materials to create spectacular and socially charged collages. Mike Crutchley is a micro-photographer who uncovers the microverse around us and beneath our feet. His painstaking and stunning images are often the result of hours of patient work with high tech magnifying equipment. Gaia Redgrave is an environmental artist whose work is intimately connected to location and the natural world. She incorporates natural material into all her work, requiring its content to eventually bio-degrade and return to the soil.

We have an exciting roster of musicians and performers lined up for the weekend. Classical and jazz musician Rod Paton, originally from Haverfordwest, will perform with his trio, accompanied by singer Ros Mooret. Chris Swales is a singer songwriter from South Pembrokeshire and will be sharing songs from his latest collection. Aashish Khimasia and band will be performing a set of original and fusion songs, and Aashish will also be sharing information about his environmentally sustainable bio-feed company and consultancy.

Discussion and presentations will also be important in the weekend’s programme. A full schedule will be finalised in the weeks leading up to July.

So a bit more background on the wide menu on offer for what will be a busy few days – hope you might be able to join us then.