Anyone walking through the old town recently might have noticed the addition of two new shops taking early advantage of the creative-quarters plan that is in place for the area.

The first is Harbour Monkey, a well presented little shop selling hand made cards, photographic prints, jewellery and bags - it’s worth a trip if you are in the area. You’ll find it on Market Street, just off Marine Parade, Margate.

Just a few feet up from Harbour Monkey, a florists shop called The Flower Lab is in the final stages of preparation before they open (which by the looks of it won’t be long). I believe the owner, Thomas Reeves, already owns a florists in Canterbury so I’m looking forward to seeing their work and hope that they do well in this new location.

Like with any new venture, the first few months are the most crucial, so when you’re in the area why not take a look and support our independent local businesses.

I’m thoroughly impressed by the diy-style music events that are going on at the Pharmacy Gallery down in Margate old-town.

For those of you after something rather different to Eurovision, then headlining tomorrow’s show (12th May) is Lords, who will be supported by a variety of other bands - Brain Dead, Lakes, The Pluto and local band Cubs. The show starts at 8pm and costs £4… and might I say - great flyer!

Whilst thrash metal isn’t quite my cup of tea (I’m an indie lad myself) this is exactly the kind of independent event that should be happening in Margate, and the organisers are onto a bloody good thing if they can keep events like this going.

I recall a comment on an earlier post which suggested that we needed to see arts events being organised from the bottom-up - I think we might be starting to see it; and with uncertainty still surrounding the future of the Lido, events like these are good news for music in Thanet.

Mike Nelson who has previously exhibited in Margate has been named in this year’s Turner Prize shortlist.

His 2005 installation “Spanning Fort Road and Mansion Street - Between a Formula and a Code”, which was commissioned by Turner Contemporary, saw Nelson occupy a large portion of Fort Road (just off Margate seafront) to create a dark, mysterious maze of hydroponics and primitive dark rooms.

The installation, called Spanning Fort Road and Mansion Street: Between a Formula and a Code, also includes rooms kitted out as primitive darkrooms, hung with hundreds of photographs of the sea, sky and buildings of Margate, as if the result of a covert, obscure and possibly deranged surveillance project.

Nelson said at the time,

“Maybe people will hate it here… But I think people like digging round in old spaces. If they can get past the horrible idea it’s art I think they’ll enjoy it.”

Regardless of your view towards the Turner Prize, it is hugely encouraging to see that Margate continually attracts artists like Nelson, who go on to great acclaim.

Other Turner winners and nominees to work in Margate include Antony Gormley (1994 winner and proponent of The Margate Exodus), Jeremy Deller (2004 winner behind the Steam-Powered Internet Machine) and of course Tracy Emin (1999 nominee) - I’d better give Turner, the man himself, a mention too!

Read about “Spanning Fort Road and Mansion Street - Between a Formula and a Code” on Guardian Unlimited (and more on Mike Nelson) and this years Turner Prize shortlist at BBC News.

Update 24/05: Victoria Pomery, Director of Turner Contemporary said

“We are delighted that Mike Nelson is on this year’s Turner Prize shortlist and are committed to working with artists to create new and innovative works in Margate”.

Polling Stations (and in Cliftonville even an Olling Station) opened across the country this morning, with about 39 million people entitled to vote in the local elections. The number of visitors to local blogs is proof that a growing number of people care about Thanet, so take a little time to vote today, and have your say in how this are done.

And just a quick apology for the lack of updates recently, they will resume shortly!

If you happen to spot a film crew around the isle this week, it’s probably Medb Films, the Ramsgate based production company working on their next short film, Lullaby. Medb are best known for the recent films Gypo and Ruby Blue, both of which were made in Thanet.

The company recently finished work on their new post production facility which will be offered for the use of other independent film makers. I think its great that companies like Medb are investing in Thanet and providing film makers with resources that might otherwise be out of reach.

Check back in the near future for more information and news on this latest production.

Oh, and if you see the film crew, why not leave a comment telling us where and when!

Updates
(16/04/07): The crew were out filming by the towers at Reculver today.
(18/04/07): The crew wrapped yesterday at St Peters having filmed at Joss Bay earlier in the day.

With reference to my last post here’s some further information about the fantastic Coast on Camera walks and exhibitions.

The first walk between the Lido and Margate Harbour takes place on Tuesday 10 April, starting at 11am on the green opposite Fort Crescent in Cliftonville.

The Ramsgate walk meeting at the obelisk by the casino on Sunday 13 May at 2.30pm will take people from the Royal Harbour to Dumpton Gap.

The third walk taking place on Sunday 9 June, starting at midday. The meeting point is the slope to Botany Bay at the end of Botany Bay Road and the walk will take a route around the coast towards Kingsgate Bay.

The final walk is on Saturday 7 July at 11am, meeting at the green opposite Fort Crescent in Cliftonville. This walk, which will take in the stretch of coastline between the Lido and Margate Harbour, is aimed at the under 16’s, who must be accompanied by an adult to take part. Each walk will last two and a half hours.

You can book your place for the Coast on Camera walks at www.thanetcoast.org.uk or call 01843 577672. You should bring your own cameras, but I’m told there will be disposable cameras provided if anyone needs one.

Thanks to last year’s successful SeaART exhibition at IOTA, our coast will be caught on camera this spring as part of a coastal walks scheme organised by the Thanet Coast Project.

The Coast on Camera walks will be led by artist Ruth Cutler and the aim is to use photos taken on these walks as part of this summer’s SeaART 2007.
SeaART 2007 will feature contemporary art works exhibited by local artists inspired by the coast. The exhibition will take place this August and is run in conjunction with Isle of Thanet Arts (IOTA). The Thanet Coast Project is keen for local people to snap images for a complementary photoSeaART section to the exhibition, and the three themes include:

• The nature of our coast
• Human impact on the coast
• Textures and light

To record your interest to submit an image, contact the Thanet Coast Project before 21 July on 01843 577672 or thanet.coast@thanet.gov.uk

“Donovan Slacks”, filmed in Thanet and New York is to get it’s world première later this month at the International Film Festival of Uruguay.

The film’s central character, Donovan Slacks, “a man with a fragile head” is sent to Margate Sea Bathing Hospital. On arriving in Margate he falls in love with a fishergirl, but his life goes into free-fall when he rediscovers the terrible secret of his past. In the eye of the storm he breaks free to win the woman he loves and leads the local fishermen in an uprising against the government.

The film is an astonishing achievement when you learn of the obstacles that the director, Kivmars Bowling, overcame. Over several years on next to no money, his team recreated 1920s Thanet, complete with period cars, trains and a bathing machine, and populated it with a cast of 25 actors and over 50 extras.

Bowling, originally from Thanet, said:

“Thanet has beautiful areas to it, but has always had a rundown air, a sense of faded glory. All the films that had been made there exploited this in a very obvious way. Last Resort, Last Orders, Gypo - the titles say it all really. That’s not to say these are bad films on their own terms, I just wanted to challenge the dominant view of the area. I don’t like the assumption that a film depicting social problems necessarily tackles those problems.

Putting a region on film has a validating effect, regardless of the story, be it sweet love story or violent dystopia. Which is to say, all the filmmaking presence in Thanet is a positive one - but I think there are more interesting and original ways to use that history, those locations, that beauty for differing stories ”

The film is released later this year. Find out more at the official Donovan Slacks website.

Earlier this week I was contacted by an undergraduate writing her dissertation about The Margate Exodus. We talked about how the project had been interpreted by Thanet residents and whether A.A Gill’s view that it “smelt of Victorian cultural imperialism” was justified. It got me thinking.

It should be no surprise that my response to her was mostly positive, but I’m keen to know what you think. What will the legacy of Exodus be? Before you add your comment, let’s remind ourselves of the project’s aims.

Here’s how Michael Morris, Co-Director of Artangel, describes it:

“The legacy is not in bricks and mortar - the legacy is to do with relationships and people. People working together who would never normally be on the same side of the street - there will be all kinds of things coming out of that which we cannot predict.”

I can’t agree with this more, and I worry that some have been to quick to dismiss it. I can personally vouch for the fact that Exodus provided the excuse for people in our community to get together and learn new skills and create fantastic art and music - lots of us are working to continue this work and keep the wheels rolling. 2007 will be the year that the legacy kicks in, I’ll keep you posted on events as the news reaches me.

Every project has it’s critics, and Gill’s cultural imperialism argument persists, but in cases like this its all the more satisfying when they can be proved wrong.

Earlier this year, in a bold attempt to forget Snøhetta + Spence’s waveform vision for Margate, KCC made the decision to entrust David Chipperfield Architects with the design for the Turner Contemporary.

Upon their appointment, the firm, known for their understated brand of modernism, announced they could have the gallery open by 2010 on a budget of £17.4m. With this in mind, we decided to comment on some of their previous projects and make a suggestion or two as to what we might expect for Margate.

America’s Cup Building
Valencia, 2006

One of Chipperfield’s most recent buildings, the America’s Cup Building was designed, built and opened in staggeringly short 11 months. The building’s setting is much alike the Turner Contemporary’s - so we can see what might crossover to Margate.

The America’s Cup Building is constructed from steel, concrete and glass; the seafront location of the Turner Contemporary means it will likely use similarly robust materials. Also notice that the main building is raised up from it’s exposed position on the water’s edge. I rather expect we will end up with something more solid and less open air since the respective uses and climates are so different in these cases.

Estepona Theatre
Estepona, Spain, 2009

Chipperfield’s sweeping design for the Estepona Theatre wouldn’t look out of place along side the modernist houses at Palm Bay.
Chipperfield despises insular buildings that have no “dialogue with anything around them, or with history” - so there is the strong possibility of a restrained building that spreads out and makes use of other elements of the site.

It is a happy accident that KCC, determined to commission an iconic building for Margate, have appointed an architect who sensibly opposes building architectural “icons” for the sake of it.

“I’m not purposely avoiding making an icon. An icon just happens… Clients now say that they are looking for an icon, and I know that means it has got to look blobby… Design objects of the 20th century became icons because of how beautiful they were or how successful they were. Now we have to have an instant icon. It has to say it’s an icon at the very point of delivery.”

Chipperfield’s buildings are the antithesis of the waveform architecture trend - they create buildings of restraint, purpose and elegance.

In a twist of fate Margate has found a man level-headed enough to understand the importance of doing it right.

“I think that the point of being an architect is to help raise the experience of everyday living, even a little… None of this means designing funny shapes or getting politicians to go ‘wow’ or making the media think you’re the new thing. It takes a lot of patience, a lot of experience, and a lot of unfashionable thought”.

Through David Chipperfield, Margate will get a beautiful, impressive (and dare we say it, iconic) building to be proud of.

Read more of our sources at:
The Guardian : “In Britain, money and marketing are what matters most”
Icon: David Chipperfield
David Chipperfield Architects
City Of Sound: Chipperfield on Building for Regeneration

The group of artists known as Limbo, who have hosted shows at their Substation Project Space since 2003, are inviting artists to be involved in their next humour-themed show, “Stink Bomb”.

“Stink Bomb” launches on April 1st and promises to “engage with the audiences’ sense of humour while acknowledging and exploring the way that jokes and art create the fear of being the butt of the joke or not getting it”.

The show is open to all artists living and working in the UK. Check out their website for further information and details of how to submit work.

The theme of this show bares a strong similarity to the position that Margate finds itself. Beneath the criticism of cultural regeneration, there is a worry that Margate is the “butt of the joke” - somehow art is a sick joke thrust upon it. It’s not true. Art is a force for good and for prosperity. An active local art community can dispel the fear and strengthen the message that art isn’t always elitist or confusing - its something that normal people from Thanet do.

I read a comment that “artistic & cultural movement starts at the bottom up” - it’s true! Consider this your call - lets prove that this artistic groundswell exists, that we can change our town. If you live in Margate, or are looking at Margate as somewhere to start a project… a group… an event… a band… a magazine…a film… a gallery… a business: lets get to work.

Dreamland Workshed, Margate, 2006

Hidden within the body of the Scenic Railway, this musty workshed continues to house these spectacular railway trains. They seem to have worn well over time, the carved heads even looked as if they had been recently painted.

In an article written for The Guardian, Iain Aitch explains his connection with the railway (and gives some interesting background to days gone by in these sheds).

“My grandfather worked at Dreamland for 30 years, starting in catering and finishing up in charge of ride maintenance. When I was about nine years old, it dawned on me that he had what must be the most exciting job in the world. Of course, he spent most of his day up to his elbows in grease and had to carry out dangerous tasks atop tall ladders (once taking a nasty fall and nearly killing himself), but every morning, before the crowds arrived, he got to do a test run on the Scenic Railway. I had long been impressed by his abilities as a storyteller and knew that he worked as an engineer at Dreamland, but this piece of knowledge took him to new heights in my eyes. Who needed a Neil Armstrong or a James Hunt to admire when you had a Bill Sedgwick?”

Read the rest of Iain’s article on The Guardian website.

At six yesterday evening, the switch was flicked and the last instalment of Turner Contemporary’s Arrivals series burst to life.
TURN. to colour, the latest work of Maltese artist, Norbert Francis Attard consists of painted doors and windows along the pier, and a one off light installation that appeared to paste the vivid colours onto the black night sky, making visible that which is seen by day. I was impressed.

By now it is too late to enjoy the light installation, but the spectrum of colours (themselves inspired by Margate and Turner’s paintings) will remain - as the official write-up suggests, “the economy of this gesture is captivating - redefining the pier as a focal point for the town”.

It will be interesting to see how this work is received by the town. The commission was well worth the effort; the pier looks far nicer (dare I say, very attractive), but it’s sad that we had to wait until now to see the pier kept to a respectable standard.

Might I suggest that we retain some element of the light installation as a permenant feature? Given the right treatment, the pier could become an impressive icon for the town.

Find out more about Norbert Attard at his website.
Read more about the work at Turner Contemporary

Welcome to “Turneround Margate“! I work in the ‘creative industries’ and live in Margate and I’m passionate about the redevelopment of Margate and Thanet through the encouragement of art and culture. “Turneround Margate” (pun intended) will chart the progress of Margate’s redevelopment and act as a centre for discussion and debate for Thanet’s art community.

Last year I worked full time in the Margate Exodus art-department, and witnessed at first hand the difference that an active art community could make to our surroundings. This will not be a passive blog - I envision it taking an active role in promoting and organising art throughout the area.

So with this said, lets get the ball rolling and turn around Margate. The town deserves it.

Got something to say? Comment on posts, or drop us a line. If you have an idea for a post, or share our passion and would like to write for us, get in touch.