Retrospective
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Retrospective COMMEMORATIVE GUIDE 2015 1 FOREWORD As we celebrate our 50th Welcome to the anniversary, I am proud of how Retrospective far we have come as a Council since Camden was formed from the boroughs of Holborn, St Pancras and Hampstead. Innovation and democracy have been a key theme in the development of Camden over the past 50 years, with our residents at the heart of everything we do. Our Council’s original logo of eight hands clasped together, featured on the front cover of this commemorative guide, was designed in 1965 to symbolise the structure and function of local government. The interlinking hands signify our goal to bring communities together to help one another through communal effort and support, and this symbol is just as relevant today as it was then. So many people have been involved in helping to commemorate this milestone in our history and I’d like to say a personal thank you to everyone who has taken part. This Retrospective gives a snapshot of the activities that have taken place since 1 April 2015 – I invite you to reflect on the year’s celebrations with us. Councillor Sarah Hayward, Leader of the Council The first London Borough of Camden Official Guide from 1967. Photos taken from a selection of Camden publications. 2 CELEBRATING 50 YEARS OF CAMDEN Highlights from our projects To celebrate the 50th anniversary of Camden, an We knew that our residents and partners were eight-month programme of activity took place across passionate about Camden, but people have the Borough. The programme, themed around come out in their thousands to join in, whether it innovation, democracy and radical thinking, included be through the many entries to our photography an exhibition about Camden’s radical theatre history competition run in partnership with the National by Dmitri Galitzine, a photography and oral histories Portrait Gallery, the summer party hosted on the project by Elly Clarke, the duo Walls on Walls Roundhouse Beach or the many other Camden 50 working with three housing estates, and Ladies activities that have taken place. of the Press* producing live ‘Demo Press’ zines. It’s been an exciting anniversary year and we look We also worked with RADA, The Hospital Club, forward to the next 50! the National Portrait Gallery and the Camden Tour Guides to complete a busy programme. Here are some highlights from this year’s commemorative programme. 50photos Over the summer we held a photography competition in collaboration with the National Portrait Gallery. From June to September we invited residents to share photos that captured what the Borough meant to them – or what it has meant over the past 50 years. Several hundred entries were displayed digitally at an event at the National Portrait Gallery in October, with nine competition winners receiving prizes from Councillor Larraine Revah, Mayor of Camden, and Councillor Patricia Callaghan, Cabinet Member for Housing, at an event at the Town Hall in November. All shortlisted and winning entries can be seen on our @camdentalking Instagram feed. Participant’s view Anne Clements, overall winner of the competition: “Camden is an eclectic mix of Victorian houses rubbing shoulders with 70s council blocks, new builds and mews conversions. I took the bold step of knocking on strangers’ doors, and to break the ice I asked the inhabitants to pose for my camera outside their homes. I was surprised at how many people were willing and friendly.” 3 ReStage, Dmitri Galitzine Local artist Dmitri Galitzine created the exhibition ReStage at Swiss Cottage Gallery. Taking inspiration from the Camden archives, the interactive exhibition looked at the legacy of, as well as celebrated, the alternative theatre scene in Camden from the late 1960s up to the present day. Audiences were invited to take to the set to re-think, re-imagine and re-stage these histories. The stage of the main exhibition was also home to several performances by poet Bernard Kops and RADA’s MA Text and Performance students, along with writers Cindy Oswin and Daniel Kelly. Artist’s view “I think as an artist it is important to work with something that really interests you. The story of alternative theatre inspired me because of its contemporary legacy. I work very collaboratively. In this way, the show is like a piece of theatre in that it draws together a huge variety of very talented people with a shared interest.” Participant’s view Visitor to Swiss Cottage Gallery: “I don’t normally like having my photo taken, but it was really exciting to stand in the costumes and become part of the set.” Walls on Walls, Laurie Nouchka and Tullis Rennie Walls on Walls helped us to celebrate the year by highlighting the rich history and evolving identity of three specific local communities in Camden – Castle Road, Medway Court and Camelot House. Using the patterns, colours and textures of local historic walls and community oral history as a starting point, the residents from these estates were asked to consider what stories the walls of their homes might hold. After a series of workshops, the residents designed and created new visual and sound artworks for their estates, with participants co-designing all aspects of how the new works looked and sounded. Artist’s view “We aim to encourage everyone who encounters the pieces to look, listen and absorb their surroundings with fresh eyes and ears, and to consider the historic beauty and rich history hidden in the everyday details of their local walls.” Participants’ views Sky, resident of Castle Road: “I’m not normally allowed to paint on the walls of my house. It’s cool to show it to my friends.” Medway Court residents meeting attendee: “The painting is fantastic and it brings a welcome blast of colour to our garden. We would like to paint our large flower pots in the same colours.” 4 Demo Press, Ana Cavicˇ ´ and Renée O’Drobinak The dynamic Ladies of the Press* democratically produced several live ‘Demo Press’ zines throughout the celebrations, all of which celebrated the women of Camden. They were also artists in residence at Camden Arts Centre for a week in the summer and helped the Centre commemorate their own 50th anniversary. Ladies of the Press* created a unique identity for Camden 50 of rainbow wigs and silver catsuits, which were an icon for our programme. Artist’s view “Ultimately, we want our work to be empowering for the audience. We hope that the zines we produce will provide a glimpse of the amazing grassroots work that is going on in Camden at the moment, but really, what we would love to see is our work helping to ignite more small projects, more art, more activism, more communities and communication in the Borough.” Participant’s view Audience member at Camden Arts Centre: “The Ladies of the Press* really remind me of the Guerrilla Girls – using art and design to talk about sexism.” Camden Encounters, Elly Clarke For the Camden 50 celebrations, artist and photographer Elly Clarke collected ‘sticky memories’ from residents and people who work in Camden. She gathered on-site audio recordings and photographic portraits, as well as making video portraits of the locations themselves. This project acts as a screen grab of what Camden looks like right now and where it has come from. It provides us with glimpses into people’s memories and hints at how Camden has become the loved Borough it is today. Explore all the sticky memories online at camden.gov.uk/camden50 Artist’s view “The longer you live in a place, or even when you’ve only been somewhere a bit, memories become attached to specific corners, cafes, parks, bus stops – and no matter what you do, those memories get somehow embedded in the landscape. I call these memories ‘sticky memories’.” Participant’s view Ubah Egal, Director at Camden Somali Cultural Centre: “I had such a nice time hanging out with Elly, I almost forgot she was taking my picture. I really like the results and the conversation. Very inspired!” Find out full details of all our Camden 50 projects at camden.gov.uk/camden50 5 13. We have the fourth largest Bangladeshi population in 50 FACTS London. for 14. On an average workday, our population more than doubles in size to over 530,000 people, including For the Camden 50 celebrations, the Camden Tour Guides 71,000 domestic and overseas tourists. organised walking tours on the themes of democracy, women, radical theatre, film locations and architecture. 15. Nearly 35% of Camden’s population is from a black minority ethnic group (BME) background, compared The Guides are full of informative, quirky and fun facts to the England average of 9%. about Camden and its history. So, for those who couldn’t make it to one of the tours, here are some top facts 16. We have the largest population of students about Camden. compared to any other borough in London. 17. Our Buddhist population is the 11th largest in England and Wales. Over the past 50 years, Camden has been the home of inspiration and firsts: And it’s not just people that Camden 1. The bouncy castle was invented in Camden. is home to: 2. The clothing brand Red or Dead started life on a 18. We have one of the highest proportions of museums market stall here. in London. Check out @MuseumMileLDN on Twitter 3. Camden had the first Bangladeshi and Muslim for 13 museums within a mile of the British Museum. mayor in the UK, who was also the youngest in the 19. The Jewish Museum moved to Camden Town in country (2003, Nasim Ali elected Mayor aged 34).