AiRM 2021: Breathing Out – Art in Romney Marsh
Art in Romney Marsh is excited to present the work of artists that have made an outstanding contribution to British Contemporary Art History. Breathing Out aims to celebrate and honour their legacy and with kind permission from respective estate representatives, we are able to present their images as large scale billboard installations in the churchyards. We are grateful to the church guardians and to Arts Council England for supporting us to achieve our ambitions. The work of these artists challenges notions of a fixed cultural identity using photography/lens based media as a tool for exploring the dynamics of private and public, personal and political, past and present. Each artist we are exhibiting has significantly contributed to the development and use of photography and film as a method of exploring the complexities of reality. The lens has historically been identified as the vehicle for truth and objectivity. These artists have expanded upon those fixed perceptions to develop the medium and explore and experiment with the conventions of documentary and portrait photography using exciting and exploratory methodologies.
All the artworks are exhibited outside and produced at large scale. Current restrictions and need for extra safety measures has created a new set of challenges. At the heart of Art in Romney Marsh is the desire to support visitors to enjoy Romney Marsh and its medieval churches through an imaginative artist-led exploration.
The AiRM visual arts festival benefits greatly by the close proximity of the churches, the sites are within a tranquil, magical and unspoilt 10 mile radius that spans across Denge marsh and Walland marsh. This area of marshland can be easily accessed by train, steam railway, road and bicycle, perfect for a day or weekend of relaxing and exploring.
Art in Romney Marsh is a registered charity and has ambitions to increase its profile on the marsh by continuing to provide creative opportunities, initiate artists residencies, build its community educational programme and to continue to work with local arts organisations such as Creative Folkestone, UCA Canterbury and Open School East, Margate. This year, we are able to support student participation by offering an internship and commission marketing and publicity
Designs. Our organisation supports environmental sustainability and low impact approaches to encourage local people to explore natural resources, gain creative skills and enjoy this unique and generous landscape.
Festival Dates:
18th, 19th, 25th and 26th September 2021
2nd, 3rd, 9th and 10th October 2021
Opening times:
13:00 – 17:00
Festival Locations:
St George’s Church, Ivychurch
St Clement’s Church, Old Romney
St Mary’s, St Mary in the Marsh,
St Augustine, Brookland,
Thomas à Becket, Fairfield
Selected artists: Khadija Saye, Maud Sulter, Rotimi Fani- Kayode, Rose Finn-Kelcey, Fay Godwin
Support and thanks:
We are grateful to the National Heritage Lottery for funding to enable us to implement recovery strategies, to Kent County Council for funding us to work with consultants from Social Enterprise Kent. We want to thank Arts Council England for supporting this project and allowing us the chance to rise to the challenges we set ourselves this year. We see Breathing Out as a transition project that will help us to build our resilience and to continue as an important contributor to Kent’s growing coastal, cultural successes.
#AiRM2021
Posted by Luke on Monday 20 September 2021