Serpentina Creations

Time Capsule Project
for Mid Kent College

January 2008

See childrens' crests

My crest is made from moulded waste paper and then decorated with newspapers, magazines, found collage items and then painted. Like everybody else on the project, my crest is based on the old town crest of Gillingham and mine has a red cross of St George, lined with the names of the streets I cycle and know and love in the town. As somebody with no family ties here, I had few childhood memories to draw on so looked at how the seasons change the town. It was only after I finished the front that I realised that actually what I most love about Gillingham is all connected to the river Medway.
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Time Capsule Crest 2008

Creating a piece of artwork to place in a Time Capsule is a historical and spiritual exploration and has made me look very closely at Gillingham, the town where I live, and where the new Mid Kent College will be built. As a local artist, writer and journalist who was not born here, I am fascinated with the old town crest of Gillingham. It exists in many places in the town, lovingly hand-painted by council craftspeople on old bollards, on bank clocks and hidden away in the Municipal Buildings.

I found this example on a bollard on Railway Street, close to Gillingham railway station.

This project has encouraged me to create an image based on the crest but incorporating my favourite places and feelings in Gillingham. For many years as an artist, I have used recycled waste material in my art as a statement about the waste we produce and the transformation made possible with a little imagination. For me, the project was greatly enriched by having children of all ages from local schools working on their own crests. Each child brought a world of favourite things and place into their paintings and it was wonderful to see such positive affirmations about a town that has lost its identity somewhat since the creation of the Medway Towns from Gillingham Chatham, Rainham, Rochester and Strood.

I breathe in Spring; The daffodils on Gillingham Green
Every year in late January and all through February daffodil buds poke bravely out of wintry ground on the green in front of Gillingham's Parish Church, St Mary Magdalene. This is the oldest church in Gillingham, overlooking the river Medway and located on the Saxon Shore Way, this church is steeped in history. It is here that Will Adams the explorer was christened and there is a record of a church on this site in the Domesday Book.

Summer shines on me at The Strand
The River Medway eases by as everybody comes to play outdoors; The Strand become an adventure playground for the season with toddlers cavorting in the paddling pool and swimming down the elephant's trunk slides in the outdoor swimming pool. School holidays, ice-creams, summer fun beside the river.

Autumn harvest at Woodlands Road Allotment Allotment holders are a strange breed who converse about slugs, composting and uses for all sorts of waste that other people chuck away and end up supporting beans or making compost bins. We all love to be outside to grow fruit and vegetables, and despite our politicial differences, we hold the earth connection true in all our hearts. Woodlands Road allotment No 138, overlooking the river Medway, has seen me in humours as varied as an English summer's weather! Harvest time is every season but particularly good in Autumn with pumpkins and butternut squash ripening.

Snuggle up to home fires, festivities and winter river watching at The Barge

The Barge, my favourite pub in Gillingham, is Medway's only candlelit pub according to Tim, the owner. Live folk music attracts many drinkers, for others the delight of seeing the river flow past while sitting in the garden is a pleasure that is hard to beat. Even in winter, it's lovely to nip outside and peek at stars and feel the calm of the river.