Community Information Day / Plant & Table-top Sale

We had a very successful Community Information Day combined with a Plant and Table-top Sale today at St John's Seven Kings which, as can be seen from the above photos, was a way of bringing our diverse local community together over Pentecost weekend as part of the Pentecost Festival's Biggest Birthday Party Ever initiative. Despite dire weather forecasts earlier in the week we had a dry morning in our Community Garden, with occasional glimpses of sunshine for good measure.

The Community Information Day was organised by the Seven Kings & Newbury Park Resident's Association (SKNPRA) and featured information stalls for: 5th Seven Kings Brownies, ASNET, Downshall Pre-School Playgroup, local churches, Goodmayes Quranic Study group, Kumon, National Blood Service, Newbury Park & Seven Kings Ward Councillors, Redbridge Labour Party, Redbridge Swimmers Association/Barkingside 21/Ilford Historical Society, Redbridge Voluntary Care, Scouts & Rangers, Seven Kings Conservatives, Seven Kings Park User's Group, Seven Kings Safer Neighbourhood Team, Shine Dance Class, SKNPRA, Sophia Hubs and St Johns Road Neighbourhood Watch.

The Plant and Table-top Sale, ably organised by the Social and Fundraising Committee at St John's, had a wide range of stalls, excellent refreshments and was packed throughout the morning.

The event enabled the local community to support the ongoing work of St John's whilst enjoying the event as a whole. The Community Information Day brought our community together strengthening existing relationships and, for many of the groups present, introducing them to new users or volunteers.

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Noah And The Whale - Give A Little Love.

Community Information Event

The Community Information Event at St John's Seven Kings on Saturday 18th May from 11.00am - 1.00pm provides an opportunity for community groups and those organisations providing services in the local community to promote their organisation and meet local people. The event has been organised by the Seven Kings & Newbury Park Resident's Association (SKNPRA).

The event is being supported by: ASNET, Brownies, Downshall Pre-School Playgroup, local churches, Goodmayes Quranic Study group, Kumon, National Blood Service, Newbury Park & Seven Kings Ward Councillors, Redbridge Swimmers Association, Redbridge Voluntary Care, Scouts & Rangers, Seven Kings Park User's Group, Seven Kings Safer Neighbourhood Team, Shine Dance Class, SKNPRA, Sophia Hubs and St Johns Road Neighbourhood Watch.

If the weather allows the event will be in the community garden but, if we have inclement weather, we will be in the worship area at St John's. There will also be a Plant & Table-top sale (including refreshments) in the St John's Centre.

The hosting of this event and the input of local churches is a Biggest Birthday Party Ever event, part of the Pentecost Festival.

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U2 (featuring Green Day) - The Saints Are Coming.

The Biggest Birthday Party Ever

With just over a week until Pentecost Festival starts, the Biggest Birthday Party Ever! website has just been launched. 

The brand new site is your guide to all things Pentecost Festival. The website has over 50 confirmed events listed, with more being added. The Party Hosts events are taking place across London and the UK so there is bound to be an event not too far from you. The Biggest Birthday Party site offers the option of typing in your postcode or town to see what events are happening in your locality. 

Check out the site by clicking here and join the party! To find the entry for the Community Information Event at St John's Seven Kings click here.

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Mali Music - Deep Blood Red.

Community Information Event / Plant and Table-top Sale

A Community Information Day which the Seven Kings & Newbury Park Resident's Association (SKNPRA) is organising will be held on Saturday 18th May between 11.00am and 1.00pm in the community garden at St John's Seven Kings.

This event provides an opportunity for community groups and those organisations providing services in the local community to promote their organisation and meet local people. The event is currently being supported by: Downshall Pre-School Playgroup, local churches, Goodmayes Quranic Study group, Kumon, National Blood Service, Newbury Park & Seven Kings Ward Councillors, Redbridge Voluntary Care, Scouts & Rangers, Seven Kings Park User's Group, Seven Kings Safer Neighbourhood Team, Shine Dance Class, SKNPRA, Sophia Hubs and St Johns Road Neighbourhood Watch.

St John's Church will also be holding a Plant & Table-top Sale in the St Johns Centre at the same time. The combination of these two events on a previous occasion - see http://joninbetween.blogspot.co.uk/2011/05/creating-community-event-2.html - proved very successful.

The hosting of the event by St John's Seven Kings and the input of local churches is our input to The Biggest Birthday Party Ever, part of the Pentecost Festival.

We hope you will be able to join us for what will be an enjoyable and informative community event.
 

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Victoria Williams - Century Plant.

Miriam Kendrick: Some Things I Thought Of

The Private View for Miriam Kendrick's Some Things I Thought Of - a selection of her varied work including comics and paintings - was held tonight at The Living Room Soho.

Miriam is an artist living and working in Kent. She studied Theology in London and has always worked on a variety of projects. Most recently she has been writing a popular daily comic called ‘Miriam’s Daily Adventures’ which documents her daily life and imaginings. She is also a painter, contributed sessions on comic art at Greenbelt 2012 and was one of the organisers of the 'Run with the Fire' exhibition for the Pentecost Festival.

In addition to viewing Miriam's exquisite bird paintings and witty comic strips, the Private View also featured live music from Luke Bacon. The Living Room Soho is a cafe, performance venue and meeting room in the heart of the West End. Miriam's show is their autumn exhibition.

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Luke Bacon - Hope. 

Sculptures: Brad Lucas

Brad Lucas' photogenic sculptures are at the Run with the Fire exhibition (Strand Gallery, 32 John Adam Street, London WC2N 6BP) until 27th May (11.00am - 6.00pm, Sunday 11.00am - 2.00pm), as part of the Pentecost Festival.

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Julie Miller - River Where Mercy Flows.

Run with the Fire performances and art talks

We had a great launch night for the 'Run with the Fire' exhibition. It was a packed event with some memorable performances in the context of a stimulating and eclectic show. I read The Mark, a Mark of the Cross meditation and my Run with the Fire poem:

Stripped down - free of weights and encumbrance -

muscles taut and trained, eyes on the prize -

on track, no turning back - forgetting what is behind,

straining toward what is ahead, winged feet

bearing tongues of flame - inextinguishable flickers

of hope, the torch passed on through generations,

message of victory - peace, goodwill to all.

How lovely are the feet - run red-raw, blistered

and calloused, dust-encrusted yet lithe as leopards

and fleet as foxes - which pound the mountains,

hills, valleys and plains, echoing through history

from Marathon to London via Jerusalem.

It was great to read poetry to an audience which included Steve Turner, whose poetry and music journalism - including Up To Date and Hungry for Heaven among others - I've appreciated greatly over the years.  

The Launch Night provided the first opportunity to see the exhibition which includes ceramics, paintings and sculptures, together with a digital exhibition on Olympic/Pentecost themes. Performances by singer-songwriter and poet Malcolm Guite, artist-musician Colin Burns, musician-poet Steve Scott and performance poet Tamsin Kendrick added to the exploration of the exhibition's theme - running life's race with passion and spirit.

Tamsin Kendrick performed vibrant, earthy poems based on the parable of the Prodigal Son and Psalm 139, Steve Scott shared work in progress based on incidents from John's Gospel, Colin Burns played three pieces from his debut CD Emerald&Gold, while Malcolm Guite made a great job of linking themes from the artworks and other performances with poems from his sonnet sequence for the Church Year and from his CD Dancing through the fire.
I'll be giving a talk at the exhibition as part of a programme of art talks and painting demonstrations on Saturday 26th May:

• Painting demonstration – Harvey Bradley, ongoing throughout the day. See Harvey work on a painting and discuss his approach with him.
• The Spiritual Image in Modern Art - Mark Lewis, 11.30am. A broad overview of the spiritual impulse in the art forms of the modern world and their potential to turn our minds to higher things.
• Run with the Fire – Steve Scott, 12.30pm. A talk about the ‘Run with the Fire’ project and DVD.
• Stanley Spencer – A Visionary of our Time – Mark Lewis, 2.00pm. A talk which examines the life and work of one of Britain’s most renowned and eccentric 20th Century painters. The main themes include Spencer’s time as a war artist, and his extraordinary paintings which envision the Christian Gospels played out by the people in his beloved home town of Cookham.
• Praying with our eyes open – Glenn Lowcock, 3.00pm. A talk on using images as an aid to prayer.
• Emotional Tourist – Steve Scott, 4.00pm. What I am learning about art, life, spirituality, Trinity, and relational aesthetics from my travels in Bali and elsewhere.
• Christian influences on modern & contemporary art – Jonathan Evens, 5.00pm. A broad overview of modern and contemporary art and artists which engage with Christianity.

The Run with the Fire exhibition is at the Strand Gallery (32 John Adam Street, London WC2N 6BP) and can be seen from 22nd - 27th May (11.00am - 6.00pm, Sunday 11.00am - 2.00pm), as part of the Pentecost Festival. The event listing for the exhibition and launch night can be found at: http://www.pentecostfestival.co.uk/ai1ec_event/run-with-the-fire-exhibition/?instance_id=873. Directions to the gallery are at: https://www.proudonline.co.uk/contact.aspx.

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Tamsin Kendrick - This City Needs A Hero.

Painting, poetry and presentations at 'Run with the Fire' exhibition

Next week I'll be exhibiting together with other commission4mission and invited artists showing in the Run with the Fire exhibition at the Strand Gallery (32 John Adam Street, London WC2N 6BP) from 22nd - 27th May (11.00am - 6.00pm, Sunday 11.00am - 2.00pm), as part of the Pentecost Festival. I'll also be performing poetry at the Launch Night for the exhibition on Monday 21st May, 6.00 - 8.00pm as well as speaking on Christian influences on modern & contemporary art at 5.00pm on Saturday 26th May.

The Run with the Fire exhibition includes Ken James Ashby, Harvey Bradley, Colin Burns, Christopher Clack, Christine Garwood, Jim Insole, Miriam Kendrick, Glenn Lowcock, Bradley Lucas, Henry Shelton, Sergiy Shkanov, Joy Rousell Stone, Esther Tidy, Mike Thomas, Rachel Watson and Peter Webb.

Original work by the above artists will complement the Run with the Fire digital exhibition (featuring the work of 25 international artists) to create a stimulating and exciting show with an eclectic mix of styles and media and exploring the broad theme of running life's race with passion and spirit.

Run with the Fire is an arts project for churches in the 2012 Olympics year organized by CANA, commission4mission and Veritasse based on the image of fire which links the Church’s Pentecost celebration with that of the Olympic runner. Run with the Fire aims to celebrate creativity, cultural exchange and hope for the future by providing a virtual exhibition of international artwork for use in Olympics-themed events organised by churches in 2012.
Run with the Fire provides a virtual exhibition of international artwork available on DVD, for display on large scale HD TV or monitor, or for projection using a digital projector. This digital exhibition can be presented as part of Olympics-themed events organised by churches in 2012 plus arts events or exhibitions organized by local churches. Copies of the Run with the Fire DVD can be purchased via http://www.veritasse.co.uk/cards-prints/most-popular/run-with-the-fire-dvd-pack/ or at the exhibition. A preview of the Run with the Fire digital exhibition can be seen at http://youtu.be/nFBGZDgFaw4, while for up-to-date news of the project see http://runwiththefire.blogspot.com/.
A Launch Night on Monday 21st May, 6.00 - 8.00pm, will provide the first opportunity to see the exhibition and will also include music and poetry exploring the exhibition theme. Those performing include singer-songwriter and poet Malcolm Guite, artist-musician Colin Burns, musician-poet Steve Scott and performance poet Tamsin Kendrick. Refreshments will be available. Cost - £2.00, pay on the door.

On Saturday 26th May there will be an additional programme of art talks and painting demonstrations:

• Painting demonstration – Harvey Bradley, ongoing throughout the day. See Harvey work on a painting and discuss his approach with him.
• The Spiritual Image in Modern Art - Mark Lewis, 11.30am. A broad overview of the spiritual impulse in the art forms of the modern world and their potential to turn our minds to higher things.
• Run with the Fire – Steve Scott, 12.30pm. A talk about the ‘Run with the Fire’ project and DVD.
• Stanley Spencer – A Visionary of our Time – Mark Lewis, 2.00pm. A talk which examines the life and work of one of Britain’s most renowned and eccentric 20th Century painters. The main themes include Spencer’s time as a war artist, and his extraordinary paintings which envision the Christian Gospels played out by the people in his beloved home town of Cookham.

• Praying with our eyes open – Glenn Lowcock, 3.00pm. A talk on using images as an aid to prayer.
• Emotional Tourist – Steve Scott, 4.00pm. What I am learning about art, life, spirituality, Trinity, and relational aesthetics from my travels in Bali and elsewhere.
• Christian influences on modern & contemporary art – Jonathan Evens, 5.00pm. A broad overview of modern and contemporary art and artists which engage with Christianity.

The event listing for the exhibition and launch night can be found at: http://www.pentecostfestival.co.uk/ai1ec_event/run-with-the-fire-exhibition/?instance_id=873. Directions to the gallery are at: https://www.proudonline.co.uk/contact.aspx. The programme for art talks and demonstrations on Saturday 26th May is at: http://commissionformission.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/pentecost-festival-exhibition-saturday.html.

Hard copies of programmes for the Pentecost Festival can be ordered from: http://www.pentecostfestival.co.uk/contact/order-programmes/. The promo for the Festival can be viewed at: http://www.pentecostfestival.co.uk/promo/.

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Ty Tabor - Room For Me.

Upcoming talks, exhibitions and poetry readings

I will be speaking on commission4mission and understandings of Christian Art at the February Learning Supper for West Mersea Parish Church (6.30pm, Sunday 26th February). Learning Suppers on Mersea Island include a time of worship, teaching, prayer and a convivial supper of soup, cheese and wine on the 4th Sunday in the month.


Together with Sue Newham and Steve Scott I have written an event planning support pack for the Run with the Fire DVD pack, which also includes a high quality video of the Run with the Fire exhibition and an introduction giving a background to the Run with the Fire project and statements from the artists involved. The 24 sections of the event planning support pack cover every aspect of planning and executing your chosen arts event. Planning, publicity, risk assessment and other templates are provided as appendices.


The Run with the Fire digital exhibition, as well as including 25 original artworks on Olympic/Pentecost themes by artists from eight different nations, includes my latest poem also entitled Run with the Fire. The Run with the Fire DVD pack is available for purchase, to provide creative content at Olympic-themed events in 2012 and beyond, from http://www.veritasse.co.uk/cards-prints/most-popular/run-with-the-fire-dvd-pack/ or by contacting Sue Newham on 01686 626228. A preview of the Run with the Fire digital exhibition can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFBGZDgFaw4&feature=youtu.be.


I will be exhibiting next at the Pentecost Festival in a show organised by commission4mission as part of which the Run with the Fire digital exhibition will be shown alongside original artworks from commission4mission artists and invited guest artists. The Run with the Fire exhibition will take place at the Strand Gallery (32 John Adam Street, London WC2N 6BP) from 22nd - 27th May, 11.00am - 6.00pm.



Including an eclectic mix of styles and media, this will be a stimulating and exciting show exploring the broad theme of running life's race with passion and spirit. Featured artists include Harvey Bradley, Colin Burns, Christopher Clack, Valerie Dean, Elizabeth Duncan Meyer, Robert Enoch, Jonathan Evens, Christine Garwood, Jim Insole, Ken James, Miriam Kendrick, Mark Lewis, Glenn Lowcock, Tracy Mcculloch, Henry Shelton, Sergiy Shkanov, Esther Tidy, Mike Thomas, Andrew Vessey, Rachel Watson and Peter Webb. On Saturday 26^th May there will be an additional programme of art talks and painting demonstrations.


A Launch Night on Monday 21st May, 6.00 - 8.00pm, will provide the first opportunity to see the exhibition and will also include music and poetry exploring the exhibition theme. I will be reading some of my poems, including Run with the Fire. This is guaranteed to be a special evening because the other performers include singer-songwriter and poet Malcolm Guite, artist-musician Colin Burns, artist-poet Andrew Vessey and performance poet Tamsin Kendrick. Refreshments will be available. Cost - £2.00, pay on the door.


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Malcolm Guite - Love In The Red.

C4M webpage update (9)

This week on the commission4mission webpage we shared the news that David Hawkins, the Bishop of Barking , was to exhibit at yesterday's Pentecost Festival exhibition together with Harvey Bradley, Rosalind Hore, Henry Shelton, Peter Shorer and myself. We then posted photos from the successful exhibition itself, the first that we have organised.

In addition we posted a link to the article about commission4mission in the current edition of the Church Times and congratulated commission4mission member, Martin Webster, on the announcement of his appointment as the next Archdeacon of Harlow.

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Sam Phillips - A Piece of My Bright Side.

C4M webpage update

This week's commission4mission webpage posts were both about forthcoming exhibitions.

There was a reminder about commission4mission's very first exhibition which will be in the Pentecost Festival on Saturday 30th May at Westminster Central Hall from 12 noon - 6.00pm. David Hawkins, Harvey Bradley, Rosalind Hore, Henry Shelton and myself will be exhibiting.

Also, there were photographs of St Andrew's Leytonstone where our summer exhibition will be held. St Andrews contains windows by noted stained glass artist Margaret Chilton, banners and a window by Hilary Davies and Stations of the Cross by Lewis Davies. Our exhibition will therefore complement a space in which art already plays a significant role.

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Mahalia Jackson - Come Sunday.

Pentecost Festival

The Pentecost Festival begins on Tuesday and this is the most recent mailing about it from its organisers, SJI:

"Next week will see London become alive with over 100 events demonstrating the life, diversity, and relevance of the Christian faith today! And we want you to come along! So book your tickets (they're selling out fast!) plan your trip, and be part of this incredible festival in the heart of our Capital!

Book Now For Pentecost Festival Ticketed Events!

All tickets for Pentecost Festival are on sale now - and they are selling fast! Book now to avoid disappointment! Please note that tickets will be more expensive on the door! Our Reel Life film festival, featuring Veggietales, Walking on Water, Son of Man, and Invisible Children: Rough Cut, are also on sale at the Odeon website. Tickets are limited, so book your seat today!

You can also book tickets for Hope for Planet Earth, and the Film Stream on the Odeon website.

We Need Photographers!

During the festival we'll be needing budding photographers to be snapping about the place,capturing the colour, vibrancy and excitement of the day. Want to be part of our team? Contact us with your details and a couple of examples of your stuff. If you're successful, you'll get a press pass for the festival, as well as a free ticket to the event of your choice!

Festival Editing

We here at Pentecost Festival know that life right now is tricky and complicated, with a saturation of information coming from 24 hour news, Twitter, iPhone applications and now Pentecost Festival! And with 240 hours of entertainment at this years festival, you might not know where to start. Well never fear, as Pentecost Festival has created Festival Editing - your customised guide to this year's festival, steering you through the weekend and showing you the events to suit your needs!

Street Teams

Still want to be part of the festival? Then join the street teams! It only costs £8 to be a part of this year's Street Teams. We are looking for people to move out onto the streets, directing, talking to and praying with the people of London during Saturday 30th May, telling them, explaining to them and showing them what Pentecost Festival is all about! Join here!

Pray for the Festival

There are still ways you can be part of the festival, and this one is the most important: Pray for the Festival! We want to see people from all over London witness the Celebrations of Pentecost 2009, and know that the Christian faith is alive and relevant in their lives today! If you would like to receive prayer updates for the festival, click here.

Get Connected!

Follow us on Twitter here to get up to the minute changes in programme details, as well as festival updates on the week leading up to, and on the day of the festival! Find us on Facebook to connect with other festival goers and upload your festival photos!"

Don't forget that commission4mission will be exhibiting at the Festival on Saturday 30th May at Westminster Central Hall from 12 noon - 6.00pm. David Hawkins, Bishop of Barking, is to join Harvey Bradley, Rosalind Hore, Henry Shelton and myself as an exhibitor.

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Phatfish - There Is A Day.

New images

I've recently started a new series of images which combine drawings with poetry. I plan to exhibit some of these at commission4mission's Pentecost Festival exhibition and, to give you a flavour of what they are like, have posted an image called Man.

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Paul Weller - 22 Dreams.

C4M webpage update (5)

Lots of information has gone onto the commission4mission webpage this week:

• the April newsletter has information on commission4mission exhibitions at the Pentecost Festival & West Ham Festival, an Art Installation workshop at 'Fun in the Park', funding for a commission4mission catalogue, and a Showcase exhibition and Study Day at Chelmsford Cathedral in November. Also included is a report of the commission4mission launch and a members profile of Harvey Bradley;
• information about Henry Shelton's Stations of the Cross being exhibited during the E17 Art Trail and a commission4mission summer exhibition at Café Refresh being planned for the Leytonstone Festival and Art Trail;
• a profile of artist member Celia Ward;
• a listing of online articles about commission4mission;
• details of Colin Burns' participation in the Open Studios exhibition at Wimbledon Art Studios and his performance at The Lighthouse Café Club; and
• a link to my series of posts titled 'Airbrushed from Art History'.

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Sleepy Sun - Sleepy Son.

C4M webpage update (4)

This week's new items on the commission4mission webpage are:

• a new link to information about commission4mission's Pentecost Festival exhibition;
• profiles of commission4mission members Peter Shorer and Joy Rousell Stone;
• information about an art installation workshop at 'Fun in the Park' and an exhibition during the West Ham Festival.

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Evanescence- Field Of Innocence.

This week on the C4M webpage

This week on the commission4mission webpage we have featured:

• profiles of Anne Creasey, Michael J. Creasey and Jonathan Evens;
• the story of Café Refresh and C4M's initial links with them; and
• C4M's forthcoming exhibition at the Pentecost Festival.

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Rickie Lee Jones - Nobody Knows My Name.