Art event will turn Everton Park into a ‘canvas for creativity’ tomorrow

Everton Park’s being turned into a canvas for creativity with a range of artistic activities and opportunities from willow sculpting to poetry workshops.

Art in the Park is taking place tomorrow as part of Friends of Everton Park’s programme of summer events.

And Anthony Scott from Kitty’s Launderette – the community launderette and dry cleaners in Grasmere Street in Anfield/Everton that provides social space and a support hub in the area – is encouraging everyone to get along.

Anthony, community lead at Kitty’s, says:

“The event came about because me and an artist friend, Tom at Tuebrook Community Arts, are Friends of Everton Park and we are trying to create opportunities for people to engage with art in their local community and come together.

“Everton is a bit of a funny area because historically a lot of people would associate where we are with Anfield, but we fall under the Everton ward.

“But there needs to be ways of connecting the community across the hill.

“It’s a shame that the park isn’t more of a connector for people and so this is just one of the events that might help that.

“It’s part of Friends of Everton Park’s annual programme of events because they organise health walks and open days in the community garden, and donkey rides for kids. Every year there’s a lot of different stuff.

“The reason for Kitty’s to get involved, and Tom at TUA, is to bring more people up from where we are in the community to the park.”

Anthony says the activities on offer are diverse.

Tuebrook Community Arts will be helping people to make beautiful artworks that will then contribute to a living exhibition, and there’ll be an open mic poetry session at 5pm.

Liverpool Windows Project, which has been providing support and advice for poetry writing since 1976, will be there with their ‘Amazing Push Poem Machine’, a game they devised 50 years ago.

“The game’s simple,” says project co-founder Dave Ward. “You throw a ball and get a letter, and whatever letter you get you add a word beginning with that to create an ongoing poem.

“Obviously, we talk to people about the words already on the board and that it needs to make sense … we do get some lovely pieces of surrealism.

“But it gets people thinking and interested in the idea that writing is something that they can do and, while some do one word, others stay around and do a whole line.

“People who think they’re not poetic get involved and enjoy it.”

As well as poetry and willow sculpting using willow collected from the park, other activities will include printmaking with natural materials and a photography walk.

Anthony goes on:

“There’s a lack of opportunities for people to engage with arts in a local space, so this is an attempt to show what’s possible, and get different communities to come together.

“And I just hope people having a great time being creative.”

Art in the Park is happening around the Everton Park play area which is near the Heyworth Street entrance on Saturday, May 30, from 12 noon and 6pm.