We had a beautiful event with author Kamin Mohammadi, poet and writer John Constable (his performance of The Book of the Crow is never to be missed!), artists Mike Moran, Birgit Muller and Rhonda Klevansky, and asylum seeker Bernard who shared his experiences in a heartfelt and warm manner, plus Zibiah from Evelyn Oldfield Unit (EOU) and members of Southwark Day Centre for Asylum Seekers (SDCAS). Thank you to all who participated and reminded us of the challenges faced by migrants, refugees and asylum seekers everyday, whose image in the media is often contrary to real life experiences. Kamin read from her work The Cypress Tree ("a love letter to my family and to Iran") - Kamin and her family were exiled from Iran - and shared movingly about what it is like to grow up caught between two cultures, feeling neither fully belonging to one or the other, and what it meant to truly embrace the role of being a 'bridge' between the two. Thank you to EOU for allowing to show clips from Belonging: Voices of London's Refugees. The exhibition of Rhonda Klevansky's work, Fragments from Another Life, and Mike Moran and Birgit Muller's Waiting For will be up until 3 July at our gallery, so if you haven't caught it yet, please do so. As one visitor remarked, "It reminds us of our common humanity." And from another: "I am so proud that so many of these displaced people have been able to call London/UK 'home.'"
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The premise is simple - 20 images and 10 minutes - to tell your true story according to the event's theme (Life Stories Cafe is a quarterly event). This quarter, the theme was 'Recycle.' Four brave souls stepped up to share - educator Jane Trowell, haiku poet Nigel Young, artist Kinsi Abdulleh and writer Karen McCarthy Woolf. With such a mixed bag of participants, the evening was full of surprises and interesting takes on the theme. The next session is scheduled for 7 October 2011, so don't miss it :)
Irish musicians John Garvey, Jessica Harris and Hugh Murray were in town on Sunday the 19th June for an afternoon of music at Woolfson & Tay. John and Jessica performed several duets, some of them original numbers written by John, as well as some old favourites, including the Irish number, The Galway Shawl -- apt really as John's originally from Galway :) Hugh Murray did some bluesy bluegrass numbers which showcased his deft guitar work. It was awesome and truly beautiful. Stay tuned, the trio may make another appearance at W&T in the near future! Check out the video below for a flavour of what the audience experienced. Local poet and author John Constable delighted and electrified the audience in his inimitable way, as he shared a bit about Southwark's history and performed poems and songs. New print editions of his books The Southwark Mysteries and Secret Bankside – Walks In The Outlaw Borough are available now. Signed copies in store.
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