Burning the Clocks lantern-making workshop for staff at the University of Brighton Laura Crow

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2 Burning the Clocks lantern-making workshop for staff at the University of Brighton Laura Crow

3 Contents Same Sky 2 Same Sky thinking 4 Burning the Clocks 6 Children s Parade 8 Young People s Art Exhibition 10 Celebration time 12 Parades of light 14 Performance 16 Workshops 17 Public art & commissions 18 Making a lasting difference 20 Young Same Sky 22 Projects for additional needs 24 What we can do for you 26 Our work with Schools 28 Who we are 32 1

4 Same Sky Lighting up your community Same Sky is an award-winning community arts charity based in the lively seaside city of Brighton and Hove in Sussex. We create magical, out-of-this-world events: luminous night-time parades, fantastical puppets and floats, large-sky fire shows, staggeringly imaginative costumes and concepts. Every step of our creative process is about bringing people together, encouraging equality and belonging through a shared experience of art, and creating moments of magic that will feed the imagination for a long time after. Chichester Harmonic Convergence

5 Same Sky is the largest community arts organisation in the South. Our portfolio includes everything from street parades to water-based theatre, carnivals to choreography; sculpture trails to fire and light spectaculars. We create extraordinary artwork, carnival props and puppets to commission. We provide the artistic spark, expert guidance and practical techniques for you to develop your own projects. Through creative workshops we empower teachers, children and community groups to stage their own artistic events and parades, and to make eye-catchingly imaginative costumes. We work with local authorities, arts festivals, businesses, schools, community groups and individuals. We work with you to make your event stand out. 3

6 Same Sky thinking Everything we do is about experience. When our team sits down at the start of a project the focus is on creating an experience that will touch, enchant and delight. And as our plans develop we want everyone involved to enjoy the process with us to foster feelings of inclusion and achievement through a shared experience of creativity. Alongside our commissioned work, we build connections with people who ve never been involved with art before, and those in hard-to-reach groups in the community. People of any age who lack financial or family security, people who have problems with learning, who are physically or emotionally unwell and people who for whatever reason feel outside of things. We work with them to develop creative skills and talents, and show them how art can change their everyday life. Our story Same Sky has been bringing creative energy, public art and entertainment into the community for over 25 years. It began after a shocking crime in a local park and the cry for positive action to bring people together. Out of the wish to renew a sense of pride and safety in the neighbourhood and to lift people s spirits, Same Sky s first parade was born. Since then, Same Sky has been creating colourful, playful, lifeenhancing events and workshops in Brighton and the South East, and as far afield as Ireland and Ghana. When you start having fun with art: You feel better about yourself, your life, and other people It gives you the chance to create something you are pleased with or proud of and would like to share You find the confidence to make other changes, for yourself, and for friends and family 4

7 Jenny Bootle Sharon Mee Nikki Gunson Philip Carr Millenium Seedbank, Wakehurst Place 5

8 Burning the Clocks A magical event bursting with creativity and light For almost two decades, Burning The Clocks has become a special date in Brighton s calendar. Taking place on the winter solstice, this fantastical procession brings magic to the Regency streets, with a stream of luminous lanterns and a spectacular 2,000-strong parade. When the winter carnival has wound its way to the beach, people pass their handmade lanterns filled symbolically with their hopes and dreams into a blazing bonfire and look skyward for the stunning waterside pyrotechnics. Held on the shortest day (longest night) of the year, this growing tradition marks the passing of time by burning the clocks and welcoming in the new sun. With over 20,000 spectators, this popular event that captures the essence of the season, turns the spotlight away from the more commercial side of Christmas and lights up the darkest of winter nights. Now an annual fixture in Brighton s calendar, it draws extra visitors to the seaside city. Free lantern-making workshops are held in the community and the paper and willow lights are decorated by adults and children alike. They are asked to think about the dreams they want to send into the fire, adding an extra layer of meaning to this memorable night. What a great advert Burning The Clocks is for this wonderful city of ours Bill Randall, Mayor of Brighton and Hove 6

9 Burning the Clocks parade 2010 Dominic Alves Our family loved making the lanterns this is our third year, and once again Burning The Clocks was celebratory, powerful and huge fun From a thank-you letter 7 Laura Crow Bec Britain Bec britain

10 Children s Parade The largest annual children s event in the UK Children love to lead a parade and each May in Brighton they do exactly that in joyful and colourful style. For over 25 years the Children s Parade has opened the Brighton Festival, with 5,000 local schoolchildren stepping into showstopping costumes they have designed and made themselves. With imaginative themes to inspire them 100 Years of Cinema, The Planet, Brighton Street Names, World Food the children are involved from the first moments of the parade planning. It is, quite simply, their celebration. Along with local community groups, almost 80 local schools, infant to secondary, take part and enjoy a real sense of pride as their hard work turns into a vibrant procession of dance, drama and fun for the whole city to watch. Around 10,000 people come along to see the parade and are captivated by the children and their many creations: colourful, entertaining and brimming-with-energy. Masterclasses for teachers After initial brainstorming with teaching staff, our team run special masterclasses, passing on their skills and providing the confidence to make huge centrepieces and costumes. We help with design ideas and encourage the children s imagination to flow. We help to develop choreography, and instruct teaching staff in how to teach dance and parade chants. The Children s Parade is one of Brighton s most-loved and most inclusive events. For more than 25 years it has celebrated the talent, commitment and creativity of our young people and opens Brighton Festival in an irresistible blaze of energy and excitement. Same Sky s expert work over the six months prior to the parade, with children, parents and teachers right across the city brings our community together, enriches our Festival and ensures a magnificent celebration year after year. Andrew Comben Chief Executive, Brighton Festival Same Sky provides fantastic support to schools throughout the year to inspire us and help us come up with imaginative ideas, create fun things to carry, wear and wave, and choreograph lively dance and chant routines. Alison Bartlett, Brighton parent and teacher 8 Bec Britain

11 Children s Parade 2006: World Food Bec Britain Jenny Bootle Bec Britain Jenny Bootle 9 Bec Britain

12 Young People s Art Exhibition Part of a bigger picture Creating and exhibiting a piece of art is an inspiring and empowering experience. Our Young People s Art Exhibition is a groundbreaking project that gives young people the chance to study, work and exhibit together like professional artists. Working in a group with an artist and a curator, this is an exciting, challenging and unique experience. At the end of the project the students work is displayed in a large city-centre gallery space for the public to enjoy. Young People s Art Exhibition 2005: The Tinderbox 10

13 Inspirational theme: Liar, Liar Fabulous fibs and fishes For this exhibition based on the story of Pinocchio the school children created: Clay figures for an installation based on Anthony Gormley s The Field. Each figure was the same but with a different nose. The pupils were asked to think of a lie and imagine the nose that told that lie Beautiful embossed silver fish made from string and silver foil based on the part of the story when Pinnochio is swallowed by the whale. Two-dimensional puppets with moving limbs, made from split pins. Previous funders include Paul Hamlyn Foundation and the Ernest Cook Trust A big thanks for all the hard work you put in with my 32 students. The exhibition looked fab and the children had a real sense of worth and importance. Jo Black, teacher For the past 10 years we have worked with primary and secondary children in Brighton to give them the unique experience of seeing their artwork develop from their own small piece into an extensive and professional installation. An experienced artist encourages the children to think about how artists work. Using contemporary artists as reference points for techniques, methods and styles, the children learn the importance of research and creative planning. Their work is then displayed as part of an installation at a month-long curated exhibition, in prestigious local venues such as the Gardener Arts Centre Gallery or Phoenix Brighton. The standard is exceptionally high and creative. Each year we come up with a creative theme for the children to work round. So far we ve taken them on A Journey thru U, exploring all the bodily systems, Under The Greenwood Tree, the lives of Robin Hood and his merry hoseclad men, Liar Liar, based on Pinnochio s nose-growing stories, O The Shape I m in, fun ways with geometry and R we there yet? trips, travels and adventures. We make it real and use work by popular artists to excite and inspire them. Whether it s Jeff Koons or Georgia O Keefe, Francis Bacon or Banksy, the work of other artists helps the children develop their own ideas and styles. Lastly we arrange a special viewing of the children s work and invite teachers and students along so that the children get the buzz and confidence-boost of exhibiting like professional artists. 11

14 The impact on the group is immeasurable, but seeing them so proud of who they are and what they are taking part in, speaks volumes. They know they have a voice and it is listened to. Youth Carnival Club Leader Celebration Time Dancing in the streets Same Sky knows how to throw a party the bigger, bolder, brighter, the better. We design fabulous floats, incredible inflatables and parade-stopping puppets. We create one-off parades or individual sections for your celebrations. However big or small your event, we will work with you to get the style and tempo just right. Experts in the field of event production and coordination we re also expert at building atmosphere, ramping up energy, pacing the parade and keeping the flow going. Whatever you want to put on, we will make sure you are more than dressed for the occasion. 12 Chichester News 2010 Clive@RosieMorganPortraits.com

15 Social Cohesion in Kent This nine-year collaboration with Cohesion Plus, the cultural diversity delivery arm of the Kent Equality Cohesion Council, shares art as a way of addressing British identity, racial equality and community cohesion. Together, Same Sky and Cohesion Plus produce a range of outreach events in schools. These special events help them fulfil their programmes with culturally diverse school populations and use art as dialogue to discuss a sense of place and belonging. The events cover Gravesend, Dartford, Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells, and have included luminous Festivals of Light, vibrant Melas, and St George s Day celebrations for all faiths and ethnicities. In partnership with Thames Festival Celebrating the liveliness of London and the unifying theme of the Thames threading through it, this is the capital s largest outdoor arts festival. A thumping, jumping mix of live music, dance, river races, street art and pure pulsating carnival. Since 1997 the Thames Festival has been doing what all good festivals do: transforming the everyday into something full of marvel. Same Sky first created something special for the Festival in its second year with Night Carnival: a captivating procession of light with illuminated dancers and drummers, lantern-carriers and masqueraders. The Night Carnival has continued and we ve been involved with the Festival ever since, providing key sections for the parade with our Dark Carnival and lit inflatables. We also share our skills and work with other carnival groups such as Mandinga Arts, Kinetika, HAFAD (Hammersmith & Fulham Action on Disability), and Lumina. We work with London schoolchildren creating parade centrepieces that make this an evening of full-on fantasy and fun. 13

16 Parades of Light Making it magical Same Sky is all about lighting up people s lives, and our lantern parades are brilliant at doing just that. Over the 25 years of running these luminous processions we ve discovered that the simple pleasure of making and carrying a lantern, or watching the flickering lights go by, unites everyone involved. Our workshops are a great way for people of all ages to work together, and get together, as they make their own lanterns from willow sticks and tissue paper. Whether it s simple pyramid lanterns or giant sculptures and effigies. As well as lighting up seasonal celebrations such as Diwali or Christmas, we make locally-focused, imaginatively themed lanterns for smaller parades or large-scale lantern processions ablaze with illuminated inflatables and puppets. From small In the tiny Sussex village of Alfriston we worked with primary schools and local historical societies to create a parade that would reflect the village s rural history. Together we came up with sheep lanterns to celebrate their years of local sheep rearing. The parade was greatly enjoyed, crossing fields and stiles, knitting the community and landscape together symbolically. To big and bold Oxford Inspires develops arts and culture for the city and asked us to work on a Christmas-time lights festival, attended by over 15,000 people. Working with local artists, we used our hands-on skills to make visually arresting large-scale lanterns of famous Oxford buildings, such as The Ashmolean and The Bodleian. The light show was a classical success and as a legacy Oxford has continued to celebrate Light Night every year since. The lanterns made at your masterclass workshops were really impressive and we were delighted you interpreted the theme so beautifully, reflecting the architecture of our well-known buildings. This year will be an inspiration in the years to come. Sarah Maxfield, Oxford Inspires 14 Graeme Monk

17 Chichester Harmonic Convergence 2006 Swale Winter Lights This arts event was commissioned by Swale Borough Council to reduce vandalism and arson in a new park. Our idea was to create an event that would be edgy enough to engage with the young people who d been damaging the park. Drawing on local mythology, our lantern procession set out to re-awaken the wyvern: a local legendary winged creature. With a breath-taking bit of magic, a huge moving dragon sculpture leapt out of the shadows to lead the procession. We drove our van into the park and set up a metal workshop in a tent to make fire drawings within minutes of arrival the local youth were hooked in and word went out on the bush telegraph. The workshops engaged a group who were considered hard to reach with purposeful, controlled activities to get them into positive contact with the Park Ranger. The after-dark celebration event brought more people than ever before to the park as enthusiastic participants braved the elements for a wonderful lantern procession and fiery finale. Dan Lake, Project Manager for Same Sky 15

18 Jenny Bootle Performance Daring, dynamic, distinctly dramatic Same Sky has a passion for creating thought-provoking, spirit-lifting art that lends itself to performance and participation. Sky Dome Brains and beauty A brilliant arena for performing arts, Sky Dome has an extraordinary outer translucent skin and inner living-and-breathing giant multimedia brain. Young people from Spiritus and Young Same Sky put on a mesmerising show from within the Dome, giving a glimpse of what an imagined future world looks like. Dance and shadow-play were woven with multimedia techniques, pulsating light sequences and dynamic sound. The young people, who come from Brighton and the local towns of Rye and Uckfield, channelled their creative energy into futuristic dance and movement, and developed new talents through filmmaking, shadow-shape design and technical operation. Divers Going under the waves Creating a spellbinding piece of public art for the Brighton Marina, this dramatic shipwreck in reverse conjured up what lies beneath with hauntingly atmospheric underwater lighting and rigging. In collaboration with Mike Roberts, Graham Gilmore, Charlie Morrissey, Paul Harrington and Thor Macintyre-Burnie Same Sky worked in collaboration with Rosaria Gracia, Rolemop Arts, Guy Carter, Spiritus and Brighton Arts 16

19 Bec Britain Workshops Hands-on creativity From simple imaginative workshops for children to expert guidance on complex carnival construction, we will teach you and your group how to design, style and create something unique and wonderful. Whether it s headdresses, lanterns and costumes or floats, puppets and big-make figures. Our artists are experienced, creative, helpful and people-friendly. They know how to work with groups of all ages and skill levels. We work with you to ensure the workshops are pitch-perfect for your project. Masterclasses Do you want to teach creative projects yourselves? Same Sky will pass on our artistic expertise through tailored masterclasses. If you are involved in an event or exhibition where you need to make props, scenery or costumes, we give you the skills to bring out the best in your class or group. Each year as part of the Brighton Festival Children s Parade, we hold carnival construction masterclasses for teachers, giving them the skills and the confidence to be creative in new and dynamic ways. They learn how to source materials, work up ideas and create their own fantastic parade piece. They then go back to the classroom fired up to teach the children how to style and make their own creations. Let us know what your group would enjoy. The best things were the great ideas, helpful staff and friendly atmosphere. Really excellent thank you so much for a great day. Kerstin, participant at Brighton Marina s Creatures of the Deep workshop Same Sky is very good at giving you the confidence to get out there and give it a go. Arts in Education Co-ordinator 17 Jenny Bootle

20 Public art & commissions Out of this world Same Sky creates show-stopping, celebratory artwork for exhibitions, touring shows, launch events, installations and commissions. Whatever your vision we can help make it happen with our team of skilled and innovative artists and designers. Our work is all about making people feel happier, brighter and more in tune with the people and landscape around them. 1 Babs Brighton Pride float Commissioned by Brighton Marina, the Babs: Carry On float entertained the crowds at Brighton s Pride parade. 2fiLight Installations for Whispering Woods This memorable event began at twilight. Visitors wandered through a beautifully lit woodland landscape as 200 voices from 10 West Sussex choirs sang out. Performances took place at Tilgate Park, West Dean Arboretum and finally at Bignor Park. Part of West Sussex Ahead of the Game. 3fiBig Tim at Wimbledon The Serve, a stunning 17ft sculpture of British tennis champion Tim Henman, was made from steel rods and shrink-wrap and filled with 3,500 balls. The queuing crowds could show off their forearm skills by whacking a serve into the sculpture. Produced for Robinsons at Wimbledon fi Mind the Bump figurehead Joy, a happy 12ft pregnant woman was the figurehead for local legal firm Martin Searle Solicitors Mind the Bump campaign. The campaign highlighted employee rights for pregnant women and won the Gatwick Diamond Digital Media Campaign. 5fiPink Pavilion We turned the iconic Brighton Pavilion pink for one week as part of Brighton and Hove Art Commission s City Lit and to celebrate Brighton Pride. 6fiWhitehawk Chalk Bird This stunningly simple image, set on the hills above Whitehawk in Sussex, has become a symbol of hope and peace for local residents over the past ten years. They are now so committed to keeping the spirit of Whitehawk flying high that every year they hold a soaring day to refresh and renew the chalk, bringing people of all ages to work together. 7fiSculpture trail in Owlbeech and Leechpool Woods Using willow, wood and stone, we commissioned and curated a trail of natural artwork through stunning woodland in West Sussex. We worked closely with the Weald Forest Ridge Landscape Partnership Scheme, to meet their aim of bringing a renewed love of the great outdoors and to encourage people to visit this Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. 18

21 Bec Britain Martin Searle Solicitors Nikki Gunson Courtesy of WSCC and Colin Barker

22 Making a lasting difference How we work with people Same Sky believes in bringing out the best in everyone. Art can help to open up new ways of thinking, feeling and appreciating the world. Through our work we set out to reach people who are facing problems whether at school, at home, or in their daily life. Our aim is always to make lasting change: when we work on a project, we want to pass on what we love about being creative and leave the people we ve worked with fired up with the same passion and the practical skills to take it forward in their own way. 20 Dolly the cyclist at Cambridge s Field for Dreams 2012 Alba Garcia

23 Jenny Bootle Jenny Bootle Making a building a happy place Cambridge Community Olympic Commission A Field for Dreams Jenny Bootle All about getting the people of Cambridge involved in and celebrating their city, this project centred around the 2012 Games and the Torch Relay. The 4-month outreach program ended with a celebration of local dance and music and a fabulous parade by local people. Same Sky shared their creative teaching skills with a team of local artists so they could deliver an extensive workshop programme to over 25 local primary, special and secondary schools, and over 40 local community groups and ethnic minority groups. The groups ranged from homeless people, women s and child-and-toddler groups to older people, people with mental health problems and a project for bullied children. Hundreds of people made beautiful flags and items to wear and wave for events that celebrated the city of Cambridge and the Olympics. On the day that the Olympic Torch Relay came to Cambridge, groups paraded onto the stage in a colourful and exuberant display. Same Sky identified the local groups, finding ways to work with and enthuse them. At the end of the project, the baton was passed to the artists, who continue to use their new Same Sky skills in their city. Jenny Bootle The Nesting In, Branching Out project for Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust We were asked by Chalkhill, a centre in West Sussex which provides mental health services for children and young people, to work with them on the launch of its new building. They wanted us to make the centre somewhere the young people would feel confident and comfortable, to feel it was their space. Our team of artists set up workshops and encouraged the young people to make sculptures, take photographs, print fabrics and learn how to spraycan so they could decorate parts of the building with their own work and in their own style, before a grand opening. A significant part of Chalkhill s success has been to involve the young people who use our services in every stage of its development. The official opening was pitched really well and we have had a lot of positive feedback. However the biggest success in many people s eyes was the young people s event Chalkhill seemed to come alive that night and this could not have been achieved without your vision, support, passion and talent. Claire Singers, Implementation Manager, Chalkhill 21

24 Young Same Sky Growing skills Young Same Sky opens doors for young people through arts and media projects. Through initiatives that get them involved in their community, we give them hands-on creative experience, expert guidance and real reasons to get excited about their futures. Young Same Sky was set up to make young people feel good about what they can achieve. We open up opportunities for locally disadvantaged young people, aged 13-25, get them involved in projects that excite and challenge them, and give them real, useable skills for their futures. The young people in Young Same Sky work on every aspect of working in the arts: they learn event design, project management, production, costume design, set building, choreography and community and school workshop delivery. They also learn workplace skills such as managing time schedules and budgets and understanding the importance of teamworking, communication and getting on with people. The experience often has a positive impact on young people s desire to reengage with education and employment. Over 200 Young Same Sky members have gained Bronze or Silver Arts Award accreditation and all members have either progressed onto college or university, set up as freelancers, gained employment or continue to volunteer as peer mentors. 22

25 Clare Ellison Clare Ellison I love Young Same Sky and being in it has given me some great experiences. It s helped me with successful funding applications for my own projects and given me access to equipment that wouldn t normally have been available to me. And I ve had the opportunity to learn and then teach others about things that interest me. It feels great to help out with an organisation I believe in. There are many brilliant projects with lots of fun surprises to take part in! Emily (aged 21) Atom and Young Same Sky created for the ION project 2010 Clare Ellison Young Same Sky is a group of young people that come from all different backgrounds and we help each other. The projects and events are all about helping our community so you feel good about that. I ve been a member for 4 years and done lots of different things with the group, including stewarding the Children s Parade, directing the documentary about Pride, operating the camera for the Sky Dome and leading Chichester Festival parade with flares. Being part of Young Same Sky has meant that I m more confident at working with people of all ages and the whole experience has helped me get into college. Jacob (aged 17) Sharon Mee Young Same Sky TV This documentary-film project put the spotlight on the annual Pride festival in Brighton. Over 30 disadvantaged local young people worked together to document what Pride brings to the town: what people like about it, feel about it and say about it. Using vox pops live-linked from the parade, the young people collected community views and then played them on a large screen to the Pride audience in Brighton s Preston Park showing their work off to over 80,000 people. The documentary was also exhibited at a local arts venue as an interactive installation with pressure sensors to link objects and images to the opinions and ideas that the young people collated and then documented. It was a huge success and gave the town a refreshing insight into the festival, through the group s innovative and technically clever film. A collaboration with Rolemop Arts and Brighton Arts Funded by Media Box 23

26 Projects for Additional Needs Exploring new worlds and new sensations Same Sky loves the idea of playing with the senses. The experience-based projects we run for people who have learning or physical disabilities put the focus firmly on having fun with touch, colour and sound. We want everyone involved to find pleasure in new experiences. Same Sky organises fun and friendly activities that the whole family can take part in. Using sound, bright colours and things you can touch and feel, these are stimulating and interactive experiences. Otherworld & Planet X Out of this world Otherworld and Planet X are multisensory playspaces specifically for children with profound or multiple learning problems. They feature wonderful soft sculpture environments for people to explore and mess about in. The ceiling is hung with simple shapes lit up with pictures, and the space contains inflatable toys, tactile foam playthings and multi-media projections. It all adds up to a relaxing safe place where young people can create their own fantasy alongside their family or carers. We use art, theatre, new media and play that is open and accessible to everyone. We chose outer space as the theme because there are no boundaries, just endless possibilities. A collaboration with Paddington Arts and Different Planet Arts with funding from Awards for All and Unity Theatre Arts. 24 Corinthe Rizvi

27 I ve never taken the lads swimming before as I can t afford it. Thank you so much. PARTICIPANT ON FEEDBACK FORM Courtesy of Southern Water The Swimmer 2012 Courtesy of Southern Water The Swimmer The big splash. Courtesy of Southern Water The Swimmer was a wet and wonderful water-based theatre show open to children, families and groups who don t usually get the chance to go swimming. All those who came along were invited to make the big splash and become part of the show. There were floating sets, spectacular costumes, interactive games and a giant Grandmother Turtle puppet. Held at The Prince Regent Swimming Complex in Brighton, it was an event that left everyone with a smile on their faces. Part of the Brighton & Hove Children s Festival with funding from Children in Need, Brighton & Hove Arts Partnership and Southern Water 25