Arts charity’s poetry film sends a message of hope

Arts charity’s poetry film sends a message of hope

An arts charity we fund has commissioned a community poetry film for the county on the theme of hope.

Award-winning poet Helen Mort has been commissioned by Arts Derbyshire and the council’s Derbyshire Arts Service to produce the film.

'Ticket to Hope' can be seen on Arts Derbyshire’s social media channels. Members of the public were invited to submit words, poetry and images to inspire the poem and 75 people responded to the call.

Helen Mort is a former Derbyshire Poet Laureate and a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. Matt Black, also a former Derbyshire Poet Laureate, produced a worksheet to help local families get ideas on how to become involved with the poem.

Helen Mort said: Over the past few weeks, I have been gathering stories of everyday optimism from people who live and work in Derbyshire. Some were experienced poets, but many had never put pen to paper before. Every image that I was sent moved me and inspired me.

“It was a particular joy hearing from the students at Henry Fanshawe School in Dronfield who impressed me with their generosity, kindness and appreciation of landscape. Hope is in the small things. I hope this community poem speaks to a wide audience.”

Councillor Barry Lewis, Derbyshire County Council Leader and Cabinet Member for Strategic Leadership, Culture and Tourism, said: “The arts have taken an enormous hit during the pandemic and that has given us all a taste of what life is like without the beauty, music, performance and togetherness that the arts give us.

“This has been a very difficult time for everyone and, as it’s gone on, it’s made us all realise how precious the arts are.

“The theme of this project is hope and I think it’s important that, even in really tough times, we can experience hope for the future.”

Arts Derbyshire is the strategic arts charity for the county. Its aim is to enrich people’s lives through the arts. They work with artists, service providers and the public to provide strategic direction for the arts in Derbyshire, to enable collaborative working for arts development and to encourage people to take part in the arts.

The film can be found on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.

For more info, visit: https://www.derbyshire.gov.uk/council/news-events/news-updates/news/arts-charitys-poetry-film-sends-a-message-of-hope.aspx

 

 

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