The Trench Report

While I kicked off my weekend in Roath with a trip into the past (which you can read all about here) it wasn't until I reached the Blocked Road, and caught sight of the familiar washing line flags, strung across the entrance to Plasnewydd Road, that I felt like I had reached Made in Roath 2014 proper. 

As anyone who was afield in Roath on Saturday will know, the Blocked Road was a hubbub of activity; local food stands jostling shoulders with stalls where kids could try their hand at pottery or printing, an official merch point selling the excellent Made in Roath tote bags, and the Studio 22 stage, where young local talent got a chance to perform in public - sending out slick renditions of Bowie ('Let's Dance') up to contemporary Arctic Monkeys ('Do I Wanna Know'). 

Meandering along at the height of contentment, I bought myself a very excellent brownie of the crispy outside and gooey inside variety, and swung by the Writers' Shed to say hullo to Jill Berrett. Jill had decorated the shed with her own work and various talking points pertaining to the complex relationship between poetry and disability. Not only this, but she was also treating passersby to impromptu readings. (I would like to say my own stint in the Writers Shed was as impressively prepared, but as you will discover in a few paragraphs' time, can not do so with any honesty).

 

Before said stint in The Writers' Shed, I headed over to The Gate where Green City Events and Cynefin Cardiff were hosting a gigantic swap shop event! I was greeted outside with the very welcome sight of a 'Pedal Disco', and one determined dancer in a Green City events t-shirt letting rip to 'Beat It'. 

Inside the first set of doors I found - once I managed to pick my way through the crowds! - a plethora of arts and craftsy-stalls, including t-shirt printing and a Zap Upcycled workshop where some Roath-ians were primping ('pimping'?) their clothes with ribbons, badges, beads, and a whole variety of shiny things.

Through another set of doors and I descended upon the true swap shop madness: tables heaped with clothes, accessories, toys, and other goodies - including a suspicious abundance of Most Haunted DVDs.

Leaving the Most Haunted DVDs for someone more paranormally inclined, I beat it back to the Writers' Shed to take over from Jill. The inside of the shed was rather stylishly set-up, with a vintage typewriter to boot ... so of course I spent my hour sat on the step, with an A4 pad freshly bought from WH Smith, and handmade sign tacked to the door reading:

Over the course of an hour I think I managed about 6 poems, based on prompts from members of the public ranging from samosas and foxgloves, to 'Female nude, seated reading.' To all those that received them - I hope you liked them! I even got a poem in return, from one gentleman named Tom, who wrote me a poem about a lion (also named Tom) who likes to eat dragons, as part of his otherwise well-balanced diet. Thank you Tom!

Finishing up at the Writers' Shed, I took in one more sweep of the Blocked Road, stopping to scribble on the chalkboard that the Cashmore Johnson Art Collective (or the artists formerly known as Celia Johnson and Jenny Cashmore) were using to prompt Roath residents into thinking about what 'Roath' meant to them. To me it meant the seagulls which I used to hear scavenging along the streets at 6am, the sound always signalling to me that I was home. 

My next port of call was the yurt out the back of Milgis, where Frankie Armstrong and Jessica Akerman were running their Women's Work Songs workshop (and more on that enlightening experience in another blog post, soon to follow). On my way however, I swung into the Roath Park Pub, where boatloads of Made in Roath events were occurring this weekend.

On Saturday I got a chance to check out the everyday art fair, and you can see from the pictures below the sheer range of pieces on sale:

It wasn't till Sunday, when I dropped back in after the art fair had moved out, that I noticed this painting on the walls of the pub too!

I also took the opportunity to venture upstairs, passing this eye-catching photography collection, from street artist Alfero, entitled 'Don't Tell Me What To Do.'

And my personal favourite ...

And then - quite by accident! - I stumbled upon the performance piece of Karl Price, entitled 'Between Our Sleep and Our Dreams We Can Make More Than Beautiful Fossils'. Set up in a bare room, with stripped back wallpaper and exposed floorboards, Karl moved slowly, pacing his steps, kneeling down to make an ink rubbing on the floor - I quietly watched him, feeling a little intrusive as I whipped out my camera, but fascinated nonetheless.

 

As mentioned by Rosey, I then dropped in to another open house to get my portrait drawn and shot some whiskey (ta again!), which has she has devoted some words to here.

And yes, we also caught an impromptu sword dancing performance!

Saturday was rounded off in an excellent fashion with a cabaret showcase featuring Marmaille and Honey O'Matics, and hosted by the very dapper and operatic Jayde Adams. Similarly, I began my Sunday with a creative writing workshop in the Poets Corner pub on City Road, with Jodie Kay Ashdown; discussing the 'lost places' of Cardiff. All these ladies were fab, and deserve their own blog posts (since frankly this one is already becoming ridiculous in length) so keep your eyes peeled for those shortly. 

Sunday afternoon on a whole was a lot calmer than Saturday, and after joining with Jon, we trawled the backstreets of Roath for some art and culture. And were not disappointed!

On Inverness Place we encountered The World of Roath, a wonderful world-map where Roath-ians had marked out their international connections - demonstrating the extreme global diversity within Roath itself, and its many links to a wider community. We made sure to pin on a tag for Christina - Made in Roath's literary coordinator - who was away in the Ukraine this weekend!

We also made sure to stick our noses into the volunteer house, where we sneaked a cheeky cuppa. Thanks guys!

Our last port of call was the exhibition of Mohamed Hamza's work. Mohamed works mainly as a portrait artist, and we saw a small, but highly impressive, selection of his portraits of Butetown and Cardiff Bay residents. The full collection currently resides at the Butetown History & Arts Centre in the Bay and Jon will be hitting you up with some more words and pictures on the exhibition later.


Unfortunately I couldn't make the Requiem Mass for Howard Gardens, as I had a train to catch, but by all accounts it was a poignant and important service. Nia, the organiser of all of MiR's open houses, discusses it here.

And th-th-th-that's all folks. I imagine you're fairly exhausted after reading all that - well pity me, I had to live it! Except don't pity me at all, because it was a wonderful weekend - here's to the next one! 

-Rebecca


You can find out more about Studio 22 through their website or on Twitter @Studiotwentytw 

You can learn more about the Cashmore Johnson Art Collective at their website
or on Twitter @CJArtCollective