Collision

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Art and vulnerable children

Camila Batmanghelidjh runs an organisation she founded in 1996 called Kids Company which provides therapeutic support for vulnerable children.

Today, Collision participants and Southbank centre staff got to meet this extraordinary woman at her company in Lambeth where spoke about how to help at-risk youngsters and the role art plays in their development.

In this picture Camila is explaining the role a part of the brain plays in emotional connectivity to external parties, namely people.

She said in vulnerable children this section is under developed which leads to poor attachments with adults.  In mothers, she added, this region plays a pivotal role in child-bonding.

A talk peppered with anecdotes about emotional scenes from traumatised youngsters and how Kids Company is working with some 14,000 lapsed quickly in the two hours.

Why the last thing you should tell an at-risk child is to calm down, is loaded.  And the effect of looking a vulnerable youngster in the face, were decoded.

This was a rare privilege to hear from one of the UK’s most respected authorities on one of the major elephants in broken Britain, full of Shattered Lives, which is the name of Camila’s deeply insightful book, shortlisted for a 2006 Young Minds prize.

A few relief moments which were amusing included, when she had to leave a meeting with the Queen; the “why” had serious consequences: she had to meet with one of her many vulnerable children.

An overwhelming feeling as we left was what can we do to help? Next year the Southbank Centre will be hosting an event with Kids Company.

In the meantime, the message of Camila needs to be heard unfiltered.

Jude Kelly, Artistic Director  Southbank Centre and Jeremy Deller, Artist in Residence, listen on whilst Camila talks.

Micachu and the shapes play a benefit gig for Haiti during Collision

Micachu and the shapes play a benefit gig for Haiti during Collision

An insight into Intel

Martin Bright- ex newspaper journalist and magazine editor specialising in intel and security matters with former Rear-Admiral Nick Wilkinson, a former D-Notice Secretary share questions from Southbank artists, following a talk by Nick.

The former Rear-Admiral has been a supporter of greater transparency in government secrets. Both were part of a BBC Radio 4 programme on the issue which you can listen to here

Collision Poetry

Two amazing figures in poetry, Poet and writer Lemn Sissay and Lebo Mashile pose together art-directed by Lemn.

The pair have been colliding for the last week in a unique arts programme called Collision, in which Southbank centre artist in residence Lemn requested whether South African based Lebo would join him in London for a fortnight to share ideas.

Feedback and Cello

Oliver Coates and Mica made this short collaborative piece. We’ll bring you more details on this piece later

Collision

Artistic Director Southbank Centre Jude Kelly with staff and Collision members

Collision, devised by Artistic Director Jude Kelly and Jeremy Deller, is a radical development period for Southbank Centre’s Artists in Residence and the staff of Southbank Centre to test current creative and organisational practice and forge new artistic relationships and ways of working.

Artists in Residence include:

• visual artists Jeremy Deller and Jane and Louise Wilson
• poets Lemn Sissay and Simon Armitage
• kathak dancer and choreographer Gauri Sharma Tripathi
• beat-boxer, Shlomo; cellist Oliver Coates
• 11-piece folk band Bellowhead
• cultural theorist and composer Paul Morley
• video journalist David Dunkley Gyimah
• art & climate change pioneers Cape Farewell
• and the creative industry think-tank New Deal of the Mind.

Each Artist in Residence has identified another artist they wish to join them in creative dialogue.

Those artists joining Collision by invite include poet Lebogang Mashile; musicians Dave Clark, Colin Currie, Mica Levi and Jagdish Mistry; writers Shumon Basar, Anna Minton and Will Montgomery; film-makers Mark Cousins and Penny Woolcock; and the architects Eyal Weizman.

Collision – Mark’s film

Three days into Collision and we rounded off Wednesday with Mark Cousin’s magical-realist film:The First Film –  which hovers gently over its subject matter, children in a Kurdistan Village.

Then, ever so often it caresses the viewer with the lightest of touches as the children take us into their own magical, innocent, at times difficult-past world.

You could pick any number of superlatives: inviting innocence, beautifully compositional painted shots, poignant delivery. Once in a while you just need to see the film. Words get in the way. I’m hoping we cna have a few words form Mark before he returns to Edingburgh.

The last few days have certainly be an entropic experience emanating from Collision

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