Or more correctly akin to a hurricane. The weather this year for Christmas markets was absolutely crap, to be fair, and it is an issue those of us whose businesses rely on these markets to see us through the following months.
Luckily in January and February I was kept really busy with my fantastic multi-talented friend and collaborator Wade, working on his many projects, starting with Discreetest 2000 which has given me my first IMDB credit as cinematographer and production manager, filmed on video8 and now released as a zine with the full story and DVD.
What a treat it was but WOW was it tiring- it involved fireworks, a mercy mission to Middlesbrough and back, learning how to use 1980s and 1990s film and photography tech and A LOT of coffee.
Discreetest 2000 Teaser Trailer
We went straight from our weekend jaunt across North Yorkshire Dales and Coast, into the Premiere of The Busby and Me. This is Wade’s 17 year telling of the Legend of the Busby Stoop took Wade’s original teenage ghost hunting footage and blended it with new footage he’d taken at the back end of last year.
The premiere was a full house at the stunning vintage Ritz Cinema in Thirsk, where the Museum holding the fated chair resides, and the film was fantastically received, with a queue of people clamouring to get in, a queue for our merch stall which included my Illustration for the film, signed by Wade and me. Sadie introduced the film and it was an unreal night!
Straight from the Busby, Wade released a third project, Poetry on 8 tape – a really special one for me.
Taking his favoured video8 film again and blending it with his eclectic poetry and music from Sadie Joan this beautiful meditation of films starts with a poem about my own Nana, who died when I was a child and Wade recreated through his creativity, and gave me another mention as a cast member.
This one’s on Youtube now and absolutely needs a view.
A quick Zine Fest Update ..
Tees Zine Fest in now a CIC and we’re working hard to put in place everything to get the funding for our upcoming workshops for 13-17 and 18-25 year olds in East Cleveland. Zine Fest dates are out and tables are booking quickly !
This time we’re running a Zine Fest on 24th May and a Makers Market on 31st May at Unit 7, Navigator North, which they run as a gallery and arts space opposite Primark in Middlesbrough, and are kind enough to support us with. If you want a stall, see our FB and INSTA pages for links!
Coming Up!
Never moan about being quiet! I’ve got loads coming up. After my graphic recording this year so far for a couple of great organisations, it’s definitely here to stay and I have bookings into April!
Rumana and I will be back to Saltburn in a couple of weeks with the Saltburn Valley of Light, fabulously run by Stellar Creates. This time we’re taking Muslim symbolism to our light piece, to celebrate Ramadan.
We’ll be working together again in April with more willow and cultural storytelling at Ormesby Hall for a beautiful commission the based on Japanese Cherry Blossom festivals.
Anyone who knows me well knows that I’m really interested in genealogy, partly because I wanted to know how and why my Maternal Grandmother was born in Middlesbrough, and how I came to also be born there. It’ll be no surprise to people who live around Middlesbrough when I say my relatives came to the town from Ireland, in my case via Liverpool.
My great grandad Henry Healy worked all over the UK wherever there was unskilled work, from Middlesbrough and Sunderland to Kent, but the last place he lived with his children was Lower East Street in what is known as St Hilda’s, but I always knew as ’Over The Border’ in the area between Middlesbrough Station and the river Tees. This was where the original Middlesbrough grew in the early 1800s from a simple fam to the ’Ironopolis’ – the centre of UK iron production needed to build the world’s bridges and railways as the Industrial Revolution changed industry forever.
I was more surprised to find my Great great grandad on my Dad’s side had lived in Lower Gosford Street, across the road from my previous employer, and recently that my Husband’s 4 times Great Grandad lived in Middlesbrough after running a Jet Ornament business in Whitby, with 8 employees and a shop on Church Street ( this shop still exists although as a different business).Bearing in mind he was rural Kent born and bred, this was quite a surprise.
So I think if you know anything about Teesside, you know it’s an area built on Immigration. After the Industrial Revolution the next big influx of immigration came after WW2 when we were desperate for workers so sent out the call far and wide to all the ex ’Empire” (by this time, rebranded as Commonwealth) countries to extend the hand of welcome. It wasn’t really like that when people arrived unfortunately, and for some, whatever welcome there was didn’t last very long.
More recently, Middlesbrough and Teesside have become a dispersal area for Asylum seekers, this time because there is an abundance of cheap housing which the companies given the contracts from the government make much use of. Needless to say this is a story on repeat.
I’ve always found it strange, then that anyone in Middlesbrough would be anti immigration. The town simply wouldn’t exist without Immigrants, and to tie in with what was happening in London between 1950 and 1970 which we know more about, including the Windrush arrival, and subsequent more recent scandal of people being sent back to places they’ve hardly, or never lived, I really wanted to get my teeth into what happened here., and be the artist again. Taking inspiration from what I discover to create works for Middlesbrough Art weekender in 2023 and an installation in Kirkleatham Museum in June next year, as well as activity at this year’s Middlesbrough Mela and Festival of Thrift.
SO here’s some info about the project… if you know anyone who might like to be involved, do message me.
I’m looking to speak to and record the discussion with people about either their experiences of leaving their mother country and landing in England / Teesside. This project concentrates on people who came / whose parents came here 1950 and 1970 Also I’d like to chat to people whose heritage is more local about how they would feel if they had to leave for another place. Our discussion will be mostly about what people brought to remind them of home, what they would bring if they had to leave for a place with a different culture that they could fit in one suitcase – but also including less tangible items such as sounds and smells. We’ll be looking at expectations and realities of migration, and what people feel the welcome would be in in new place . The discussions will be saved and documented, and I will use excerpts as a piece of art I am making for Middlesbrough Art weekender, and an exhibition in Kirkleatham museum, both next year. All discussions can be as private / anonymous as required and interviewees will have the option of having their photograph taken. I am also looking for people interested in being further involved in influencing the project.
FURTHER INFORMATION: Miki Rogers is an artist and community worker who was born in Middlesbrough working in community led arts for the last 15 years She brought up her family on Teesside, though her heritage is from Irish immigration into Middlesbrough in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The towns of Stockton and Middlesbrough have a long story of immigration due to access from the River Tees which originally welcomed ships to both towns, and the industries around Teesside expanding at a rate which local workers could not fill. Teesside more recently has become a dispersal area for people seeking asylum. The project investigates what happened here on Teesside at the same time the Windrush and further transport was bringing in Jamaican workers to London, between the 1950s and 1970s and we’re interested in people who came to Teesside from abroad during this time or whose parents did, especially where the culture here differed noticeably from their homeland. We know people came to fill our need for workers for the Shipbuilding, Steel and Chemical industries, with the promise that their inclusion as part of the Commonwealth would allow a welcome here. More recently we have seen the mass exodus of people from Ukraine, and this has brought Immigration, asylum and migration into sharp focus for many people. Interviews will form part of a work which will be exhibited as part of Middlesbrough Art weekender, and at Kirkleatham Museum through the Festival of Thrift, and there will be an element of creative response to the interviews by local young creatives, as well as a piece of sound art using the Oral History recordings which will play during the Kirkleatham and old suitcases, exploring what people did, and would put in that suitcase…
What did you do over the Jubilee weekend? I have to admit to not being particularly royalist, especially as I’ve been married to an old punk musician for the last 27 yrs…but I knew that the Platinum Jubilee weekend or ’Platty Jubes’ as I heard some people jokingly call it was, in fact going to create a great opportunity for communities to get together and work on their ’community-ness’, and there was some money being made available for this very thing!
With this in mind, I was so happy to be asked to be part of the team working on the East Cleveland Big Jubilee festival, particularly as it’s based in my corner of the world.
I worked with the wonderful Jo and a group of committed community champions who had set out a vision of village togetherness across East Cleveland, plus a dance spectacular on the Jetty at Skinningrove. We got the funding 7 weeks before the event so we had A LOT to do, but we made it! 8 village halls decorated and providing exhibitions and activity, an oral history element, a bus tour and the promised dance on the jetty!
What a joy!
Here’s a little snapshot of some of the activity …
Thanks to all the villages, Arts Council England, Big Local, County Durham community
Pimms and Needles
In between all this flurry of activity, I’ve been doing workshops for the fabulous women’s befriending and creative group Pimms and Needles.
Founders Donna and Charlotte set up the first group in and around Darlington, when they realised there was a space for women to find friendship and fun and new experiences which had traditionally been taken by the WI and other organisations, but where they could share tea, cake and the odd glass of wine!
Pimms and needles now run 20+ groups across the Tees Valley, Co Durham and N Yorkshire, as well as free ’Silvers’ groups for women experiencing isolation and those over retirement age.
I got involved at the beginning of 2022, doing tea workshops with just about every group, and now i’m hist of the Redcar group !
See their website below to join and see some of the amazing activity which includes Life Drawing, mosaic and watercolours, and even Burlesque!
One of the issues facing people throughout the pandemic has been the sense of isolation many of us have had to cope with.
I’ll talk about getting back to work later, but for me it’s been a really tough nut to crack, even though I had my husband at home when he wasn’t working as a key worker, and my son living with us, as just as lockdown was announced he was between homes and then without work as a chef.
Personally, I lost my purpose for a time – furloughed from the job I love, unable to work with communities, missing my daughter who had moved in with her then boyfriend’s family to keep me safe, and unable to do markets. This time last year, I was about to do a March market then had very little until a rare market in December. I filled my time making scrubs for friends working on the Covid ward of a local hospital, setting up a community group locally, and later running a Christmas Window project in homes around the town. In-between I worked on the Middlesbrough Mela mandala project and shared my love of crochet, teaching people online whenever the opportunity arose.
For people who have had to shield like my parents, this period will I’m sure, go down as one with never-ending days and realising the simple things are those we miss the most. Hugs, holding a hand, watching a band, having endless cuppas and chats in real time, laughing together.
Saltburn Community Response, a group set up in our neighbouring town of Saltburn-by-the-sea wanted to tackle these issues while making some much needed funds for the group.
The group have been outstanding in the way they have worked to help people during this time, working alongside Saltburn Solidarity Foodbank, setting up community cupboards and running trails in the town that people can safely follow while out on their walks during lockdown.
The group commissioned me to design three postcards, each one a positive message of hope, which could be sold with some of the profits going to their cause, and I was happy to oblige. I’d been teaching myself to use the Procreate app do develop my digital drawing and designs over this time on my Ipad and withe help of Lisa Bardot and her amazing online workshops – one of the benefits of endless days without work
I used this do design the three postcards which I had printed locally by Teesprint in Middlesbrough. the timing for this was perfect, with sunnier days on the way and the opening of my friend Tracy’s Eco Hub and Zero Waste shop The CutBack gave me a bricks and mortar outlet in Saltburn ( they also sell my teas and all manner of eco wonderfulness)
Each card benefits the Community Response group, and it feels great to add something positive and help out at the same time.
I’m selling online too, through my ETSY shop and you can find that here. I hope you like them!
We’ve been slowly working away from home working towards being back in our space at The Palace Hub in Redcar and preparing for the opening of our Honest Shop and Gallery.
Ongoing lockdowns and changes to rules for both retail and cultural venues mean plans we had in place for an opening earlier in the year with a new show and the fab Honest Shop have been a movable feast, but we’re looking forward to a safe Mid-May opening.
In the meantime, I’ve been working with the hugely talented composer, producer and lyricist, Liverpool’s Patrick Dineen on an Oral History project – talking to the communities around the Steelworks and people who live in and visit Redcar, about their experiences of the town and what it has and had to offer.
We’ve had to tackle the thorny issue of interviewing people in lockdown., which we’ve managed with the use of Zoom (which we all should have taken out shares in during early 2020!) and using field recorders (also made by a company called Zoom, but unconnected as far as I know) – so I’ve spent much of the last couple of moths at people’s doorsteps.
The Honest shop is our latest big project – taking its lead from the Honest Shop project set up by Grizedale Arts who have been supporting us, our shop echoes other similar projects being run across the world from Japan to Australia.
Our shop will sell items made and grown by local hobby and community makers, and the stock will change on an ongoing basis depending on what people can provide. So far we have links to a whole range of local community groups including the Barefoot Kitchen who will bring orchard produce, and all manner of food based packs and items to purchase.
We still have space for community groups interested in selling craft items handmade from natural materials – email me for details projects@teesvalleyarts.org.uk
Sea Swimming
In September I was lucky to be able to go Sea Swimming with the Saltburn Sea Tribe – in the North Sea just off our coast here, buoyed (see what I did there) by the idea that it might be good for my worsening Fibromyalgia and Arthritis.
My first foray into the surf was admittedly a freezing one and we had headed down long after dawn, the temperature in the car reading at 6 degrees centigrade.. cold by anyone’s terms. Initially the bitterly cold water on my warmest body parts was a real shock, but after getting my shoulders in and swimming along it was a huge thrill to be in the water. It was a gorgeous day, the sun still low in the sky with just us, the birds and what lived beneath the waves as company.
The serenity of the calm sea in the distance, alongside the awareness of its obvious power in the breakers and the feeling of insignificance and grounding in such a huge body of water was really overwhelming and quite surprising.. I’d been swimming as a kid, but as someone who has mobility problems, the utter freedom of moving in the huge sea, the former rusting Steel Works in the distance was not lost on me. It was magical.
Never one to do things by halves I was wearing a 1950s style swimsuit, retro bathing cap and swim shoes. As we emerged from the water to wrap up tight in woolen hats, huge towelling robes, drinking hot tea and coffee, I knew the experience had been a positive one. I felt elated and my pain at least for a time after the swim was reduced.
Back in the car park, I met a photographer friend, Ian Crockett who showed me some photos he’d taken of us, saying he wouldn’t be publishing them unless he got us to agree. He was particularly please with a closeup he had got of a swimmer in a red costume – the closeup made through use of a really long lens making the image appear to show a lone swimmer in front of the Steel Works ( which are in fact a few miles up the coast) … In a red costume .. me!
I’m hoping to be back in the briny this spring.. maybe I’ll have a new swimming cap but I’ll still be wearing my red costume.
And here it is. ( thank you Ian for allowing me have this image) So proud of myself.
A couple of years ago I was asked by Middlesbrough Council to work with another artist and with loads of groups, making 100 (I kid you not) hula hoop sized textile Mandalas to be displayed around the park at Middlesbrough Mela. No mean feat.
This year the amazing Middlesbrough Mela – this celebration of Asian culture, of music, taste, colour and sound could not happen in its normal home of Albert Park- at the centre of the town – because of Covid restrictions… so what is a group of creatives to do? Take the Mela online!
Making films isn’t entirely new to me, but making films in my workroom at the back of the house in between the dog barking, people delivering and an assortment of DIY going on outside certainly was a new experience.
We began our journey with a meeting of the fellow artists on the project .. Leader Lisa and JR from the council had assembled a fantastic group of creatives both local and from further afield.
The project sits around an online and physical children’s book, which in the tradition of the Mela would bring in a story that picks up on Asian tales, written by Umar Butt, who also translated it into a range of languages, and beautifully illustrated by Becki Harper. It tells the saga of Sara the Tortoise who loses her home and all her friends, picking up on themes of migration and asylum but in a totally child-friendly way.
After some great Zoom meetings (who knew Zoom would be such a thing) and loads of watsapp discussions between all the artists and project leaders we came up with a range of activities; Dance , mask making, printmaking, windsock creating, yoga and banjo making on the website, alongside my two workshops (see the workshops at the end..)
And off we went – Filming our little instructions as we went – I bought a tiny light rig and phone holder to stand above my table to do mine, attached to a wooden box. A real Heath Robinson affair. After lots of head-scratching download / upload fun, all the film clips went to film-maker Paul to create his magic. Meanwhile we artists and a willing small socially distanced gang of helpers were making 100 free kits to go with each film – that’s A LOT of free kits!
On top of this, I’ve started making my own films, the first one can be found here:
So here they are .. I’m really chuffed with my films and amazed by the others, the story and Umar’s storytelling too. Get yourself to the Mela website and fill your own world with colour and magic…
Wrapped Mandala ( using the basis of god-s eye wrapped sticks)
It’s that time of the year again! My favourite yearly event rolls into town, and this time it’s almost on our doorstep, in the neighbouring town of Redcar.
The Festival of thrift was devised and began three years ago as a collaboration between a local business man (who just happened to own Lingfield Point, the funkiest industrial estate you’ve ever seen) and retro genius, designer and Red or Dead owner Wayne Hemingway. I visited in year 1, met one of my now closest friends who had a stall (hello Jane) and was totally won over by it all. Finally something totally up my street had arrived in the Tees Valley!
Year 1 brought 17,000 visitors and I knew at the end of the two days I just had to be part of the next one. A year passed, and in year two I was there with my stall, and my book classes, with 40,000 visitors, my friends Geraldine and Abi selling too, and the lovely ladies from the Bobbin Shed (at the time artists in residence at Lingfield Point) as well as hundreds of stalls, classes activities and loads of shows. In year 3 the visitors had topped 45,000.
Image: festival of thrift
This year there’s been a change. The fab F0T people have decided to move the event and bring it to Kirkleatham, on the edge of seaside town Redcar. Kirkleatham is what remains of the village that surrounded Kirkleatham hall and is a hidden gem of gorgeous homes, a stunning little church and buildings which now serve as a Museum, almshouses and a bird sanctuary.
I’ll be doing a new thrifty ‘Mini-screenprinting’ class, suitable for those aged 14+, which can be booked here, and will be selling on my stall with the help of my children George and Sadie. To find out more about this fab event which comes our way on 17-18 September, click here.
Discovering Berlin
This Summer we visited Berlin. In September my son will be off on a new adventure, starting Uni in Leeds, so this one was a special ‘last time we’ll all live together’ holiday.
Thoughts: amazing laid back city, creative as could be with plenty to see and do. SAFE, even at night, everyone is laid back and pace is slow. Rush hour still isn’t packed and S & U Bahn trains are clean and efficient – go by tram if you want to see the place..
Loads of graffiti on everything! Everyone lives in a flat, has a bike and a bottle of beer. Police are calm even if there’s been a spectacular accident (which we observed). If you try to speak German you’ll probably find the person you’re talking to is Australian.
There are urban beaches all over ( you need to find them) and a swimming pool in the river. You can tour the city on a hired bike, on a Trabant tour, in a mini-dragracer, in a horse and carriage, or on a London Bus. Sit outside and eat, take in the atmosphere in Kreuzberg or Friedrichshain (where we stayed) in E Berlin. Do a river trip in Moby Dick and wonder at the modernist government buildings around the Reichstag. Visit the old Jewish quarter of Scheunenviertel with its galleries, gorgeous old buildings and the labyrinth of independent shops in the Hackescher Markt
If you go, go on a Sunday when all the amazing flea markets in the east of the city are on. If you miss that, then every Tuesday there’s a fabulous Turkish market in Neukoelln, full of gorgeous eastern food, fabrics, jewellery and sounds. … Wonderful.
Whole lot of Rosie Update
The life of a creative is never smooth, but always interesting!
In-between my job at TeesValley Arts, our shop, the markets and events, somewhere there is a creative / foodie business. So – how far have I got with the update of my tea brand? I have the new name, domain name, and email address sorted, and next has been the logo and labels.
Summer is always busy, I try and fit spending time with my children between all this and there are holidays to be had (see above) as well as events to prep for, but I’ve got back to the drawing board (literally) and made myself everything I need.
New name, labels in hand, some images to take next and we will be off! Whole lot of Rosie teas will be here soon, with a new site where you can look and buy.
Gosh! It has been a while since I posted on here, but SO much has happened! Will tell you more at the end, as I do a little recap of the year!
Let’s start with a little Rosy Lea. As you know if you follow my of my blog, my love of all things tea has led to me starting my own Ruby and Blue Tea brand, with a nice little range for sale in Maison Belle, and soon to be for sale in two cafes, one in Redcar and one in Chaloner Street, Guisborough. My latest tea for the tasting, I have actually called ‘Rosie Lea’ after the Cockney rhyming slang for tea. It’s a gorgeous blend of rose buds and petals from Tuscany, which can be drunk as a tea on it’s own or added to your favourite leaf tea to make your own blend. I’ll very soon be able to give you the whole lowdown on the available teas on my dedicated tea page, but for now, I’ve added all the details of this delightful and refreshing tea. To go with, I’ll be making some rose inspired makes for the shop, and will have pics as soon as they’re done.
Over the years, I’ve done lots of classes of all types with all ages, and I particularly enjoy the classes I’ve run at Leven Crafts, because I love the space and the ladies on the shop, Ruth and Lorna are two of the most delightful and supportive people I have met. Happily I can report that from February 2014, I’ll now be running a weekly class, which will run Tuesday evenings in school term-time from 7- 9, and my great friend Geraldine will be doing them with me too. Here’s the poster with all the info and further details of exactly what’s running can be found here.
With markets at Guisborough and on the moors and one being prepped for at Lingfield Point, as I write. There was a fantastic spirit at the market and the sun shone brightly as we chatted to visitors both from the local area and from further afield.
Here I am with the stall I share with Geraldine of Bean Creative.
Latest Classes
Join us this Friday and next Monday for two really different classes, both of which you can try on either day. During our Batik session, we’ll be looking at tribal and Aborigine art as inspiration for our designs, or you can go with your own ideas!
If you want something decidedly less ‘waxy’ then have a try at contemporary cross-stitch, incorporating modern sayings and today’s icons with this traditional craft.
If you want to look for some inspiration, look no further than our favourite cross-stitcher ‘Mr x-stitch’, the male sewer you may have seen on the ‘Kirsty’ programes on the TV.
In-between my job at TeesValley Arts, our shop, the markets and events, somewhere there is a creative / foodie business. So – how far have I got with the update of my tea brand? I have the new name, domain name, and email address sorted, and next has been the logo and labels.
Miki Rogers 