Highlighting Eden

Highllighting Eden Banner featuring artwork by Eleanor Sanchez

Stained glass artwork by Eleanor Sanchez – check out her amazing Instagram feed here – www.instagram.com/elliesstevens

Highlights Rural Touring and Eden District Council are working together to invite communities across the district to engage in Covid-secure arts activities and events, on and off-line. Highlighting Eden hopes to find some light within the current darkness, with activities centred around the themes of light, rebirth and growth to fit in with the coming of Spring.

Working with a number of regional artists and makers, the programme leads up to a Light Up festival around the March Spring Equinox on Saturday 20 March – inviting individuals, businesses and schools to light up 1000 windows, doorsteps or gardens with homemade lanterns.

Over the next two months, Highlights will be hosting online workshops in lantern making, writing, singing and performance and inviting people of all ages and abilities to join in. Artists involved so far include writer Katie Hale, performer Peter Macqueen, Studio Morland, Upfront Gallery, Sula Hancock and BlueJam Arts.

Additional activities include storytelling and an augmented reality game with Funnelwick Limb’s Atom & Luna and Street – a digital collection of locally collected stories from Imitating the Dog and The Brewery Arts Centre, Kendal.

Download the Highlighting Eden programmes here:

Online Workshops

Book now for one of our free online workshops and be sure to check back here as more are added to the programme.

Creative Writing Workshop with Katie Hale

Whether you’re an experienced poet, or you’re completely new to writing, come along to an online workshop with Cumbrian poet & novelist Katie Hale. We’ll look at how other writers have written about the changing seasons and have a go at putting our own experiences and observations into words.

Wednesday 10th February 2021 – 10am – Book Here
Tuesday 16th February 2021 – 7pm – Book Here
Wednesday 17th February 2021 – 2pm – Book Here

For more information please visit the Creative Writing Workshop event page.

Highlighting Eden Community Choir with Jilly Jarman and BlueJam Arts.

Sing in the Spring with our Highlighting Eden Virtual choir and Penrith composer, Jilly Jarman, BlueJam Arts, to celebrate the coming of Spring with an anthem written specially by Jilly with help from Eden schoolchildren.

Monday 15th February – 7pm – Book Here
Monday 22nd February – 7pm – Book Here
Monday 1st March – 7pm – Book Here
Monday 8th March – 7pm – Book Here

For more information please visit the Community Choir event page.

Write a Character Monologue with Peter Macqueen

Renowned actor and writer Peter Macqueen invites you to join him for a 3 part series of workshops where you will create and develop a character, devise a monologue and learn about performing and recording the finished work.

Workshop 1 – Developing a Character

Wednesday 17th February 2021 – 7pm – Book Here
Friday 19th February 2021 – 11am – Book Here

For more information please visit the Developing a Character Workshop event page.

Workshop 2 – Writing Your Monologue

Wednesday 24th February 2021 – 7pm – Book Here
Friday 26th February 2021 – 11am – Book Here

For more information please visit the Writing Your Monologue Workshop event page.

Workshop 3 – Recording Your Monologue

Thursday 11th March 2021 – 7pm – Book Here

For more information please visit the Recording Your Monologue Workshop event page.

Make A Puppet From Recycled Materials with Upfront Gallery

Using basic materials that can be found at home, in the first session, you will make a simple puppet around a Green Man theme. In the second session, breathe life into your puppet and devise some dialogue or make it sing! Sketches may be recorded on zoom for showing online later.

Thursday 18th February – 10am – Book Here
Saturday 6th March – 10am – Book Here

For more information please visit the Make a Puppet Workshop event page.

Create a Spring-Themed Comic Book Character

An opportunity for young artists to learn how to develop the look and personality of their character and write it into a Spring-themed story. At the end of the workshop they will have the first page of a comic strip.

Saturday 20th February – 10am – Book Here
Saturday 20th February – 11:30am – Book Here
Saturday 27th February – 10am – Book Here
Thursday 25th February – 11:30am – Book Here

For more information please visit the Comic Book Character Workshop event page.

Create an Art-Window for Eden Window Wanderland

A workshop to inspire you to create your own unique art-window for Eden’s Window Wanderland!

Karen Babayan will run an inspiring and instructive session on creating a window for your own home or business.

Thursday 25th February – 4pm – Book Here

For more information please visit the Window Wanderland event page.

Activities to Download

We’ve put together a range of lantern making and garden activities to help while away the indoor hours and keep the family engaged, busy and having fun. There are activities for all ages using materials found at home or easily available on the internet.

Take the kids outside and make a bug hotel or scatter some seed bombs. Let them get messy in the kitchen making bird fat ball feeders to hang on bushes and trees to attract the birds to your garden.

Make some lanterns and put them on your doorstep, on a wall, or in your window and let’s LIGHT UP EDEN with 1,000 lanterns on 20^th March to celebrate the coming of Spring and better times.

Just click on the links below (opens in new tab) to download it and have endless hours of creative fun!

Lighting Up Eden Lanterns

Garden Activities

If you work with a school or community group and are interested in promoting the activities to your students or members please contact [email protected] for more information.