Inspiring us to be the best of ourselves
I am lucky as on top of all of the amazing scenes that a big spectacular event has I also get to host artists and performers in my home, either filling the bedrooms as guests, or over meals in the gaps between things.
So it was this year, with a week long residency with the awesome singer, musician, choir leader and cow caller (itâs called Kulning) Ă sa Larsson from Sweden, Sarah Fortais as the Solway Spaceman (Canada), Jo and Jake from Other Half Productions based in London and Spain, Con and Kim of Fanzini in Ireland/Barcelona, Aoife and Rea from Siolta Circus in Ireland. And thatâs just the ones I can squeeze in to my home.
At the event there are so many more, it really is too many to mention, though I WILL mention that the support of Culture Ireland meant that we featured Irish artists, we loved having the Commoners Choir with us, the event was opened by some 15 year old local lads with their band and closed by a Cumbrian band, Tryckster, after the spectacle of the parade. And the drumming bands, and the local produce in the market..... I have to stop listing things.
What it means is that we are sharing ideas and enthusiasm, we are bringing the community and artists together to inspire and enrich, we are sharing experiences and observations, it is in itself a tonic and an ideas forum that is frankly rare and difficult to engineer in Cumbria.
So, through the many conversations had during and following another bumper, bouncing and beautiful Cumbrian Winter Droving we are asked how we do it and what the secret to filling a town is, and these are the thoughts:
1. Create things that people WANT TO join in with, be creative and positive, keep it simple, eg animals-fire-masks, spectacle and scale, intimate things and big things. Let the people own it. Let go. It is very likely that you narrow your audience by over directed or narrowly focussed things; donât over direct or control; create spaces; create generosity.
2. Keep it busy and everywhere rather than precious and âspecialâ in special buildings with special language
3. Donât call it art or culture because in the same way that people donât like âfootballâ and turn off, then equally many people think they donât like âartâ and donât engage. Funnily enough football and art are both essential parts of culture. Keep that secret. The vast numbers of people who go to football donât go because their team is âgoodâ, they go because they enjoy the experience and own it; art is not better than football â they are equal in the cultural landscape â we aim to attract the same people.
4. Work hard, be consistent, be clear, be relevant (donât do/programme stuff just because YOU like it or because some review says it is âgoodâ â programme inside and outside of your bubble â so we have fancy dress for dogs and âitsâs a knockoutâ style rural games programmed alongside international artists and strangeness, it works)
5. Keep it challenging and interesting, keep surprising, take risks, tell people who want you to be safe and cheesy to get lost.
6. Stop âlooking intoâ and âexploring waysâ and âseeking to co-produce policiesâ etc in your work. #JFDI or find people who can. The theory and policy stuff should be supporting the action, not replacing it.
7. Fund it â if it isnât funded as an important part of local and regional vitality and as essential to thriving communities then it canât happen. Pay people who know what they are doing to get it done.
8. Above all make it enjoyable. Enjoyable is the secret to everything.
Do all of the above and fill the town, give people civic pride, put smiles on faces, and sneak in a bit of thoughtful artfulness in amongst it all.
Find people who are do-ers and who believe in community and engagement, and then put your house on them. Or invite then round to stay in it.
Next up The Bigger Picture in Carlisle, a faerie project, a secret project and an amazing opportunity to go to COP29 in Baku.
Adrian Lochhead, Eden Arts Director, November 2024
