The Evolution of the Festival
The first festival of ephemeral arts was held in 2000/01 when several local authorities based in South London joined Asian Arts Access, the parent organisation of Mirador Culture, to launch this unique festival in their town halls, public squares, libraries and schools. The festival featured a combination of primarily South Asian cultural influences, with a selection of exciting artistic expressions taken from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Pakistan. The festival’s educational values were further developed in a dedicated programme in Slough where several schools took part and their secondary students used the workshops for preparing their GCSE coursework.
The detailed programme of development as well as the components of the festival are presented in the main festival website. Please see www.ephemeralarts.com
Further artistic landmarks were created over the next few years as several thematic additions were made. The use of natural materials, the fruits of the forest and the sheer excitement of celebrating the arts in open spaces led to the festival’s first open air presentation at Burnham Beeches, an open wood near Slough. From then onwards the festival toured several parts of the country and engaged diverse communities in over 20 locations. The demand has been unrelenting but like all offerings, creative output must be reviewed and challenged.
The festival is eclectic in nature, with one major generic theme – the festival celebrates time-based culture of communities. Variations are added to extend the themes, to celebrate new areas of diversity and to create educational access for children of different backgrounds. The artistic imagery is culture free, allowing teachers, librarians and children to adapt the workshops for various uses.
Following an extensive review, the festival is being repositioned for a major expansion. It will be working with European cultural organisations and also, for the first time, start a cultural collaboration with a country in Africa. Kalwant Ajimal has been developing links with Makerere University, Kampala and it is hoped that a new cultural social enterprise programme will be involved in helping to forge links with Ugandan community of artists, schools, libraries and audiences.
Here are some examples of ephemeral arts.
• Ephemeral arts are temporary and short-lived, based on a specific occasion or event and transitory in nature.
• Ephemeral arts are connected to the cultural calendar - marking New Year, harvests, change of seasons, religious festivals, events in people’s lives, major events in folk traditions.
• Ephemeral arts are simple to express and can use the simplest of means and materials to the most complicated designs.
The artistic expression can involve a few people or thousands. Most Ephemeral arts are based on artistic expression involving drawing, painting, making things, decorating and dedicating peoples’ homes.
Natural materials are normally used in the expression of ephemeral arts - sticks, grasses, shells, sand, leaves and petals, nuts, fruits, beans, lentils, rice and ground materials to make special powders.
Further guidance on the structuring of a festival programme in a school or community setting is provided in the Distance Learning Programme.
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