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Skate boarding, mural painting and flag making in the Yorkshire sunshine.

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In September 2020, after the Covid-19 lockdown and local restrictions had prevented live cultural happenings from taking place, The FOLD, produced by Deco Publique, spent two days with artists and local residents enlivening the skate park in Bentham.

Through a series of co-design sessions and meet-ups in Bentham, we engaged with a group of young people who told us how important the Playing Fields, and skatepark within it, was to them. When restrictions eased, we were pleased to be able to reconnect with some of the artists who had applied through The FOLD open call. The resultant two-day event saw free flag painting workshops with design duo Jive Prints, and a mural designed and painted by Charlie Kondras, assisted by Ben Hall, both of who grew up in North Yorkshire and attended a local high school.

As one of the first activities to be programmed in the area post lockdown, the mural and its accompanying workshops became an opportunity for young people to socialise safely again whilst engaging in a creative process.

Date
September 2020

Location
Bentham Playing Fields

Client
Great Place Lakes and Dales

Funder
National Lottery Heritage Fund and Arts Council England

Artwork
Commissioned by Deco Publique - Mural designed and painted by Charlie Kondras; Flag painting workshops led by Jive Prints.

Project highlight
Spending a sunny weekend reconnecting with artists and local young people after months of Covid-19 lockdowns

Project Areas

Skate Park Mural

Focusing on clean and cheerful aesthetics, artist Charlie Kondras designed 4 options for a mural on the Playing Fields skatepark. These were shared on the FOLD’s instagram account using polls on Stories, allowing the young people to have their say and tell us their favourite. The option with the most votes was painted onto the ramps in the Yorkshire sunshine, surrounded by skaters and flag painters.

“Me and my friend came here and saw it and we were blown away. It’s nice to see that people have put some time into it.”

- Joe, 18

Flag Painting Workshops

The free, playful, hands-on flag-making workshops explored organic, geometric, positive and negative shapes. Led by Hollie and Aimee of Jive Prints, the workshops took inspiration from Matisse as well as the local landscape. Participants were encouraged to draw, cut and collage shapes they could see whilst listening to Hollie and Aimee share their design journey. They then painted their own designs onto the flags which were subsequently gifted to Bentham to be erected each summer on the Playing Fields.

The FOLD

The FOLD was a programme of cultural activities focused in three locations in the Lake District and North Yorkshire - rural locales each selected for their distinctive identities and communities. Led by young people through a series of co-design sessions in Bentham, Kendal and Settle, the purpose of The FOLD was to produce a relevant cultural programme that engaged and supported young people to become creatively empowered in their own spaces. Read more about The FOLD here.