‘The Place I Love’ Project Launch – Saturday, 16th October

The new arts and heritage project culminating in an interpretive map of Broadwindsor is being launched on Saturday 16th October at the Comrades Hall, Broadwindsor.

Work by village artists, much of it inspired by the local area, will be on show and for sale between 10am and 4pm. The WI has kindly offered to provide refreshments throughout the day.

Organised by a local art group, the event will feature work by Maggi Ouin, Gill and Peter Coates, Mandy Selhurst, Izzy Masey, Carolyne Kardia, Victoria Saines, Donna Heys, Dave Shaw, Norma Roberts, Liz Ridley, Bev Gillard, John Iveson and Libby Jukes.

Each artist will have their own table and there will a central display on specially created boards, kindly made for the occasion by villager Malcolm Heaver, which will be donated to the hall for future art-related events.

Work by pupils from Broadwindsor Primary School will also be on display.

Entry to the exhibition is free. There are no card payment facilities, so please bring cash, your cheque book or make an arrangement to pay the artists by bank transfer.

During the day, Margery Hookings, a writer who lives in the village and is leading The Place I Love project on behalf of Windrose Rural Media Trust, will be inviting locals to tell her what they love about Broadwindsor. Her Windrose colleague, James Harrison, will be filming the launch to include in a short video.

As the project progresses, singer Amanda Boyd will be collecting local folk songs. Her most recent work with Windrose involved combing archive film and folk songs at memory cafes for people with dementia.

Research into field names and land use now and in the past is another strand of the project. Material gathered will be lodged with Dorset History Centre.

The interpretive map of the village is being designed by artist Megan Edwards, whose family live in the village, and will incorporate points of interest highlighted during the course of the project. It will be unveiled in the village in February 2022.

The Place I Love project is funded by Dorset Council, Dorset AONB and Broadwindsor Group Parish Council and supported by volunteers in the community.

Photo ‘View from the farmer Michael Frampton’s bench
Credit: Margery Hookings

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The Place I Love – A New Project Celebrating Life In Broadwindsor

This is a project celebrating community life and is being launched later this year by village resident Margery Hookings.  The aim is to bring people of all ages together in respecting and loving where we live – and Margery needs your input.

Margery at her window.Margery, who played the daily Sound of Music Through The Square Window requests during the first two lockdowns, is asking for village artists, photographers or craftspeople inspired by the local landscape to get in touch if they would like to take part in an Art Exhibition and Sale at Comrades Hall on Saturday 16th October.

The free event, which is in aid of Comrades Hall, will act as the public launch of the project she is leading as part of Windrose Rural Media Trust, which she first joined as a volunteer reporter for Dorset Farm Radio 15 years ago when she was editor of the Bridport and Lyme Regis News.

The village project is being funded by Dorset Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty’s Stepping Into Nature scheme (funded by the National Community Lottery) and its Sustainable Development Fund, as well as by Broadwindsor Group Parish Council and through in-kind support. Margery is waiting to hear the outcome of an application to Dorset Council’s Community and Culture Fund.

She said: ‘There are several strands to The Place I Love, including collecting local field names and their uses past and present, collecting and performing folk songs from the area and the creation of a large, permanent map of the parish, with field names and points of interest and with a strong nod to the Countryside Code.

‘Between now and the project’s public launch, I’ll be sourcing maps, gathering historical information about the area – which will be passed to Dorset History Centre – and lining up interviews with people who live here about what it is they love about Broadwindsor.

The project will involve my Windrose colleagues, folk singer and collector Amanda Boyd and filmmaker James Harrison, along with local volunteers. A number of local people have already pledged their support and I’d love to hear from anyone else who would like to participate by giving me a hand or coming up with ideas of their own.”

The Place I Love theme presents the village with lots of interesting opportunities and could be replicated in other areas.’

If you’re interested in taking part in the exhibition or helping with the project please contact Margery by e-mail: margery.hookings@gmail.com

Aristotle

 

Windrose Rural Media Trust:

Windrose is a registered charity (no. 1136144). Formerly known as Trilith, it works across Dorset, Somerset and Wiltshire on various heritage projects in rural areas. Its purpose is to use the media to undertake educational, archival and creative work in rural communities. It is best known for its archive of films of rural life in Dorset, Somerset and Wiltshire, with films shows in village halls and other venues. It also undertakes new film and audio projects such as the Forever Archive series (which included Broadwindsor) and a project which combined archive film and folks songs for people with dementia.

Margery Hookings:

Margery has lived in Broadwindsor for 20 years and in Dorset for 39 years. A trained journalist, she now writes a weekly column in The People’s Friend Magazine, along with regular features focusing on local heritage, landscape and community for the Marshwood Vale Magazine. She is assistant editor of the Somerset and Dorset Family History Society’s quarterly magazine, The Greenwood Tree.

If you’re interested in taking part in the exhibition or helping Margery with her project please contact her by e-mail: margery.hookings@gmail.com

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