Rockaway Arts Weekend
2023
What a fantastic weekend we had 15th - 17th September with some amazing live music, film, art demos, workshops, children's activities, vegan food and tons of art! For a look at some of the highlights from the whole weekend, alongside a song from Los Dedos, check out the short video below.
Below are all the details about the incredible guest artists who took part, as well as our Rockaway artists, bands and performers.
Guest Artists
For info about each artist, including links to their website or social media, and when they exhibited over the weekend, just click on the relevant gallery image.
Leo Deville
Ceramic Artist, Painter & Illustrator
Sue Gent
Artist & Illustrator
Lolly Golding
Painter & Illustrator
Dick Lucas
Artist, Singer/Songwriter & Rock Balancer
Myth & Lore
Prints & Literature
Benjamin Irritant
Political Street Artist
Filthy Luker
Inflatable Artist
Dave Panit
Artist & Signwriter
Shannon Rakochy
Mixed Media Artist
Spelling Mistakes Costs Lives
Satirical Artist
Penny Rimbaud
Painter, Poet, Philosopher, Musician & Activist
Callum Stewart
Hand-Carved Mythical Printer
Gee Vaucher
Visual Artist
Foka Wolf
Political Street Artist
W.O.T.W
Satirical Artist
Rockaway Artists & Open Studios
Our amazing Rockaway Artists opened their studio doors over the weekend for vistors to look around, with some artists offering art demos and drop-in workshops. For info about each artist, including links to their website or social media, just click on the relevant gallery image.
Demian Bellaart
Artistic Blacksmith
Liz Buckfield
Mixed Media Artist
Billy Colours
Visual Artist
Carry on Screening
Ethical Screen Printers & Designers
Sam Copsey
Sculptor, Inventor & Maker
Tove Ferguson
Artist, Poet & Photographer
Ben Ford
Stained Glass Artist
Get Rowdy
Street Artist & Painter
Bev Milward
Porcelain Sculptor & Encaustic Collage Artist
House of Jo
Multi-Disciplinary Artist & Printer
Ruth Sharples
Mixed Media Artist & Illustrator
A Slow Death in the South West
Printer & Zider Maker
Lydia Swann
Lampworker & Jewellery Maker
Grainne Thompson
Painter & Printer
Merny Wernz
Watercolour & Mural Artist
Art Demos & Workshops
The following Rockaway artists offered ad-hoc demos and drop-in workshops:
Carry on Screening - Live Printing
Live printing sessions throughout the weekend with art created by
some special guest artists...
Billy Colours & Merny Wernz - Design a T-Shirt or Bag Workshop
People got creative with cut-out pieces of scrap vinyl to form a collage for a t-shirt or bag design that was printed onto ethically sourced materials.
House of Jo - Art Vending Machines & Letterpress Printing Demos
Jo's art vending machines were dotted around the Rockaway Yard, while Jo offered demos in the art of letterpress printing.
Bev Milward - Ceramic Demos
Bev offered a range of exciting ceramic porcelain demos while she created new work.
Ruth Sharples - Weaving Workshops for Children
Ruth offered children's weaving workshops from scrap materials.
Lydia Swann - Glass Blowing & Glass Fusing Demos
Lydia's studio was busy with glass blowing and glass fusing work, where she also fulfilled ad-hoc requests for customised glass items, like a fountain pen casing!
PLUS
The Tidal Tales Collective - Free Endangered Craft Workshop
This free corn dolly making workshop was available on Sunday morning and thrilled adults and children alike learning about this beautiful tradition with songs and stories to spark new interest amongst the younger generation.
Normal Magic Free Family Sensory Workshop
Sarah Lewis and Tracey Calvert from Normal Magic offered free mental health advice, anonymous and off-grid as part of our Sunday Session, which ran alongside RAW.
Following the corn dolly workshop, they also ran a free drop-in workshop for primary age children and their parents/guardians/carers in the Rockaway classroom. Feedback from participants was fantastic about how informal, fun and inspirational it was, with activities that use our sense of sound, sight, touch, taste, smell, body awareness and balance.
Free Children's Creative Activities
Rockaway Kids ran a free children’s area throughout the weekend with the lovely Claire and Rachel. Based in the Rockaway yard, children could stay as long as they liked, being creative and having fun with a range of activities, which were guided by their interests and enthusiasms. Activities included painting, clay modelling, puppet making and face painting.
Live Music & Film
Friday 15th September
The whole weekend kicked off with a gig on Friday night featuring Los Dedos and The Hawkmen on our open-air stage, who both went down a storm. The Hawkmen also found time during the day to shoot their new video, which will be out soon.
Saturday 16th September
On Saturday night, it was a joy to welcome both Nick Harper and the return of the Commoners Choir, who performed rousing sets to create a magical night of powerful voices and beautiful harmonies. Commoners Choir performed their new song about the Chapel of Unrest, which we filmed and shared with our Chapel members and supporters. It was an emotional moment that moved us all - we hope you enjoy it too.
Sunday 17th September
(Photos by Sandra Van Watermeulen)
On Sunday, we were joined by Crass members and artists, Gee Vaucher and Penny Rimbaud, who were exhibiting work in the classroom over the weekend. Plus, film maker Brandon Spivey, who joined us for the world premiere of his new film - Crass: The Sound of Free Speech (The Story of Reality Asylum.)
Raw, powerful, shocking and celebratory, the film was shown on our open-air stage, which we decided would be a great space to hold the screening to meet the demand for extra tickets. The Q&A that followed, hosted by Joe Schnider, was a real treat with the overall message being that everything Crass did was fuelled by love - what better note to end the weekend on?
Vegan Café Food
The Vegan Café was busy all weekend serving a variety of delicious home-made hot food, savoury snacks, cakes, and hot or cold drinks, with a delicious vegan roast on the Sunday!
ROCKAWAY PARK
"Would those who say it can't be done, please stand clear of those doing it"