Kidderminster Arts Festival 2011

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	This annual two week festival took place from August 13th to August 27th and was packed with a wide variety of arts workshops, performances, exhibitions, street entertainment and arts demonstrations. KAF creates an opportunity for people, who not only reside in the Wyre Forest but also those who visit the area, to take part in arts activities.

Click on the front page of the brochure to view online.

Subway Deluxe Exhibition
Kidderminster Library Gallery

Subway Deluxe has attracted talented urban artists from around Britain over the past 2 years. This exhibition was an opportunity for these artists to display more of their work.

Guerilla's in your Midst
Kidderminster Library Gallery

KAF Creatives have been working on a range of guerilla arts projects which were exhibited in the library gallery

Ode to a Beer Mat
Kidderminster Library Gallery

Beer mats were distributed to local Kidderminster pubs with the chance to win 12 bottles of Worcestershire Way donated from Bewdley Brewery for the best 6 line ode.

KAF Creatives Ode to a beer mat project attracted over 80 entries which have been displayed as part of the Urban Art exhibition in the gallery space at Kidderminster Library Gallery.  The winner, Roxy Riot was awarded 12 bottles of Worcestershire Way, kindly donated by Bewdley Brewery for Ode.  The winner was announced at the Launch for KAF11 on the 12th of August, by local poetess Heather Wastie who performed along side Worcestershire Young Poet Laureate Laura Dedicoat.  The Boars Head have agreed to display the winners after the exhibition closes on the 3rd of September.

WINNER

Clean, work, finish, drink
A day in the life of,
A barmaid I think.
Keep on smiling +
counselling folk,
Keep drinkin me wages ah .. broke!
By Roxy Riot

HIGHLY COMMENDED
 
Pubs (i.m. pub names)

The Castle’s keep is falling down.
Queen Victoria has lost her crown.
The New Inn’s now a pile of bricks
The Clock in the Tower no longer ticks
The Old Wagon has been turned over
And there’s no more return for the Rover.
By Eileen Ward-Birch
 
Myself and my father see beer as a friend
The latter drank too much, who am I to break the trend?
One day I myself may become a dad,
When I can introduce Worcestershire Way to my lad,
Educating my boy of past family members who are missed,
Continuing the family tradition of always being pissed.
By Dale Evans
 
At 12 she wakes to that familiar aching
And finds herself making
The long trip for the pub
Looking for the first
Pint of cool refreshing temptation
anon

KAF Creatives have been successful in fundraising from Worcestershire County Councils Inroads fund and will be working on Subway Deluxe 3 during the festival this year.

They have also embarked on a guerilla arts project with support from the Arts Council.

The first of these projects is ‘Hobo Bear’. He has his own facebook page, he’s out and about in the Wyre Forest with his diary visiting people and places with whoever he comes across. http://on.fb.me/hobobear

Whoever looked after Hobo was asked to document his journey and post it to Facebook or put pictures and stories in the diary that he carried with him. Fingers were crossed for him to make his way back by July to appear in an urban arts exhibition during the festival.

It was a very tongue-in-cheek project but the message behind it was about good will and participation. 

The second project in the series, ‘Ode to a Beer Mat’ encouraged people in pubs to get poetic. The prize on offer came from Bewdley Brewery, who donated a case of 12 bottles of Worcestershire Way. KAF Creatives resident poets, Brewers Troupe decided the winning Ode.