Romford Winter Garden
From Monday 1st February, Havering Changing launch the Romford Winter Garden, in partnership with artist Carlos Cortes. The Winter Garden will be bringing to the streets and houses of Romford a large kaleidoscope of colours and natural forms. Local people can use their creative flair to make colourful flowers, plants, and display them in the windows of their homes creating a collective “Winter Garden” In these dark months.
The Winter Garden is completely safe to participate in as it will be delivered remotely, in the form of online tutorials and workshops for those with access to the internet but also through creative packs and activity sheets that residents can pick up in certain shops in Romford, Rush Green and Collier Row when doing their essential shopping.
Some of the workshops will be based on using basic craft materials contained in the packs, while others will look into the possibilities of using recycled materials, things that most of us use and discard, like plastic bags, packaging, or things we can find in our own larder, like pasta and dried food. In this way, everyone can participate and take their time to make their own creations.
Artist Carlos told us: “During these difficult weeks and months when isolated people struggle to connect with the reality around them, and with each other, our Winter Garden wants to become a ray of hope. It will be a message from many windows, that speaks to everyone. By transforming our everyday domestic environment, and reaching out to communicate with others, we can see that other people want to share their creativity. In so doing they will be looking after their mental health and taking positive steps to enhance our sense of community.”
Award winning artist Carlos Cortes has worked successfully since the 80’s in the fields of visual and performing arts. His work has been exhibited, published and performed in several European countries and in the USA.
His current practice is focused in the relationship between human groups, the space they inhabit, the objects they use, and the traces left by their activities.
Movement, interactivity and participation are important in his Public Art and performances, which often deal with architectural, site-specific, and heritage issues.
The artist has investigated the potential for community engagement in the transformation of their environment, and how people working and creating together can have an impact in the way Public Space is used, designed, and experienced.
Carlos has created and directed projects and commissions for venues and festivals such as the Hayward Gallery, Kew Gardens (London),Turner Contemporary, Cultural Olympiad, Aspex Gallery, The Bowes Museum, Oryel Mostyn (Llandudno), Royal Accademy of Arts (Edinburgh), Galleri (Carmarthen), Strange creatures Festival (Hertogenbosch- Holland), Time and Space (Paide-Estonia), Festival Periferias (Huesca, Sp), Madrid Dance Marathon (Madrid,Sp), Festival de Valderrobres (Teruel, Sp), Trayectos Zaragoza (Zaragoza, Sp), CDAN -Centro de Arte y Naturaleza- (Huesca Sp).
