Friday 20th - Sunday 22nd September, 2024
Rockaway's biggest event of 2024 featured a stunning mix of art installations, exhibitions, workshops, open studios, creative activities for children, live music, performances, film, Q&As, vegan food and more!
“It’s like Disneyland meets Scrapheap Challenge.” VICE Magazine
Friday 20th September
We kicked off the whole event on Friday night with an epic live performance by one-man rock 'n' roll sensation, Cam Cole, supported by the savage folk sounds of Arthur Buezo. Paka the Uncredible's amazing fire installation was a huge draw, as well as Giles Walker's superb kinetic robot installation in the Chapel of Unrest, creating a joyous creative community atmosphere!
Saturday 21st September
Saturday was immensely busy with over 1,000 visitors throughout the day enjoying everything on offer. The Vegan Café team didn't stop cooking and serving all day, while the workshops, art stalls and open studios were a hive of activity.
Saturday night was another atmospheric session with gorgeous sounds from DJ Dad, Jane & Gabe and the mighty Ray Mighty, spinning tunes and fusing sounds for our aural pleasure.
Sunday 22nd September
Despite the rain on Sunday, Rockaway was buzzing, with the café serving over 150 roasts, and more artists joining us for the final day.
In the afternoon, the highlight for many was the arrival of award-winning film maker Ken Loach, who was greeted to rousing applause to introduce his final film, The Old Oak. Now 88, Ken stood for over an hour with host Steve Lake, talking eloquently and passionately about his latest masterpiece, which explores the complexities of community, resilience, and hope in a rapidly changing world. If you haven't seen it yet, we thoroughly recommend you find a copy. It's one of his most powerful films about human frailty in an often cruel and unjust world.
Ken happily took questions from the audience about making films, politics, social injustice and the importance of telling ordinary people's stories to affect positive change. It was an incredibly inspiring experience and a perfect way to round off a fantastic weekend!
A massive thank you to the hundreds of people who visited, as well as the artists and exhibitors, the musicians and performers, plus the fantastic Rockaway Crew who pulled another amazing event out of the bag yet again. Thanks also to Fran, whose beautiful handwritten letter helped persuade Ken Loach to join us.
RAW Guest Artists
Below is info about some of the fantastic artists who joined us for the weekend.
Giles Walker
Giles Walker has been building sculpture for the last 27 years. As a full-time member of the guerrilla-art group, The Mutoid Waste Company, he started building sculptures from materials found in scrapyards as the collective travelled around Europe.
In the mid-90s, he introduced basic motors into his sculptures and his work became kinetic. He plays with the relationship between technology and the human being, and the ever-dissolving boundary that separates man from machine. His ‘machines’ often allude to the underbelly of the human obsession with increased technology; the displaced and redundant.
Paka the Uncredible
Simon Collins, also known as Paka, is a unique interdisciplinary artist who creates spectacular and engrossing performance from a mix of large-scale mechanical sculpture, digital media, special effects, dramatic characters, circus skills, puppetry, and audience involvement.
He’s worked extensively in Europe and the UK for 25 years, both collaborating and producing his own solo work. His individual hybrid art-form has been developed and influenced by circus performers, such as Archaos, and the edgy, daring and dangerous traditions of European spectacular street theatre and festivals. Traditions which have also spawned contemporary companies such as Mutoid Waste, La Fura dels Baus, Derevo & the infamous DNTT, of which Paka was a founding member and Artistic Director,1989 -1997.
W.O.T.W
W.O.T.W (Wankers of the World) is a London-based satirical artist creating provocative and often hilarious works. He gained notoriety in 2017 with a range of prostitute advertisement cards portraying right-wing politicians, followed in 2018 by a saucy video installation in a Soho shop window depicting Boris Johnson and Donald Trump dancing provocatively.
He's also undertaken various interventions, including adding subversive Prince Andrew souvenir mugs into the Buckingham Palace shop and leaving abusive Philip Green T-shirts in Topshop. His work, Churchill Fiver Reboot, was recently taken into the permanent collection at the Fitzwilliam Museum and shown as part of Defaced! - an exhibition exploring money and protest.
Liam O'Farrell
Influenced by the painters L. S. Lowry and Stanley Spencer, alongside Walter Sickert and the narratives of William Hogarth, Liam prefers to work in front of the subject if possible: “You can capture so much more in the moment and space – I also get to chat to passers-by who feed into my work with rich stories and fascinating conversation. For me, working purely in the studio would be like painting through a letter box.”
Liam has exhibited at The Royal Academy Summer Exhibition on several occasions, as well as annual open exhibitions at The Mall Galleries for The Lynn Painter-Stainers Prize, The New English Art Club, The Royal Institute of Oil Painters, The Royal Society of British Artist, and The Royal Society of Marine Artists.
Extensively published, his work has featured in The Guardian, The Times, Tatler and many art magazines, including Artists & Illustrators, and Paint & Draw.
Kate Chidley
Kate is a Somerset-based artist, renowned for her vibrant and imaginative depictions of the Glastonbury Festival, which will be the focus of her upcoming art exhibition. Her work is deeply influenced by her personal experiences at the festival, where she’s been a regular attendee. Her paintings are celebrated for their bright colours, intricate details, and the ability to capture the unique atmosphere of Glastonbury. Rather than simply depicting the festival's iconic stages and landscapes, Kate's art evokes the joy, community, and freedom that define the Glastonbury experience, making her work resonate deeply with both festival-goers and art enthusiasts alike.
In addition to her Glastonbury-themed pieces, Kate is also known for her 'Castles in the Sky' series, which showcases fantastical castles floating amidst clouds. Her work continues to inspire and delight, preserving the magic and memories of Glastonbury through her unique artistic lens. Kate's exhibition will offer a chance for audiences to immerse themselves in her enchanting interpretations of the festival, celebrating its spirit in a new and visually captivating way.
Getting up to Stuff
Tim Floyd, a Bristol-based sculptor, is gaining recognition for his inventive and socially conscious works, which are now prominently featured throughout the city. Cleverly blending humour with deeper themes, he reimagines everyday objects and public spaces, encouraging viewers to engage with their surroundings in new and unexpected ways. One of his standout pieces, ‘Bear With Me,’ is part of a series of installations placed around Bristol. Each one challenges the public to reconsider the ordinary and explore the nuances of consumerism, identity, and the human condition.
Floyd’s ability to transform familiar environments with his art has established him as a significant figure in Bristol's contemporary art scene.
PLUS
Rockaway Artists & Open Studios
Our amazing Rockaway Artists opened their studio doors over the weekend for visitors to look around, with some artists offering 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
Ben Ford
Stained Glass Artist
Get Rowdy
Street Artist & Painter
House of Jo
Multi-Disciplinary Artist & Printer
Bev Milward
Porcelain Sculptor & Encaustic Collage Artist
Lydia Swann
Lampworker & Jewellery Maker
Grainne Thompson
Painter & Printer
Merny Wernz
Watercolour & Mural Artist
RAW Workshops
House of jO & Studio B - Letterpress Poster Printing
jO is a multidisciplinary artist working with paper, textiles and ink, plus hand setting and hand printing with vintage and antique printers. She also works with type to create letterpress stationery and ephemera at Rockaway Park.
jO and Carl from Studio B ran several sessions of a letterpress poster printing workshop over the weekend.
Dr Laura Way - Zine Workshop
Punk scholar and author of 'Punk, Gender and Ageing: Just Typical Girls?' Laura hosted this free zine workshop that embraced the punk DIY ethos and explored what zines are and how they're made.
Patterned Frog & Pawla Rattletat - Painting
Painting drop-ins for adults and children all weekend!
PLUS
Rockaway Kids Creative Activities
Rockaway Kids also 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 junk modelling, clay work, puppet making and face painting.
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. On Sunday, Marta and the team served over 150 of their famous home-made vegan Sunday roasts!
Our Head Gardener, Penny Austin, and some of the volunteers also offered tours of the Community Forest Garden to show where their dinner came from, and to spread the message about sustainable vegan food, biodiversity and supporting wildlife.
ROCKAWAY PARK
"Would those who say it can't be done, please stand clear of those doing it"