In 2005, Full Circle was funded by the Arts Council, the Allan Willett Foundation, the Co-op Dividend Fund
and business sponsorship from Skipaway Ltd, Cleanaway Ltd, and Somefield supermarket. Many shops and
cafes displayed artists' work and entries from the childrens' competitions. Medway Friends of the Earth worked closely
with the artists providing funding and help in organisng events.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, as the old adage goes. Gillingham was challenged to view their
discarded waste as something to be admired by Full Circle artists and writers. Full Circle came into being in
February 2005 in Gillingham in Kent, consisting of a group of artists and
Medway Friends of the Earth, with participation from several local schools
and the youth and community groups which use the Sunlight Community Centre.
The driving force of the whole project involves the artist’s view on planetary protection, including recycling. Our objective is to create
art from recycled waste via artist-led community projects, which were exhibited in Gillingham High Street for the festive season in Nov-Dec
2005.
Art is our way to perceive reality; a way to see the world with slightly wider eyes, often capturing those things even
we do not understand and interpretation by the observer may simply question established realities or facts. We
envisaged a town transformed, an exhibition of colourful form uplifting the High Street and its general
public, involved and enthusiastic about the project.
The reality, however, is that by becoming part of the Medway Towns in 1990, many citizens feel
that the town has lost its own community sense. Walking from the railway
station down the High Street, there is no central focus, no town hall, no
natural place to stop and sit, to view the world going by. Apart from
market days with its hustle and bustle, there is no civic heart, no
cinema, no theatre, the has-seen-better-days look made more poignant by
the long-term unoccupied buildings on the main street. Considering that
the only local gallery space (in the library) was also closed in December
2004 ‘due to a budget decision’ artists in Gillingham are the latest group
of disgruntled residents, now devoid of space to view and exhibit art.
The team worked to a Christmas 2005 deadline, bringing a festive spirit
to the town centre by altering its drab appearance to a magical scene.
Local community involvement included art, installations and sculptures
made of recycled rubbish located in shops and premises on the High Street
and in Somerfield Mall and the creation of a giant Christmas tree modelled
by artists and local groups from discarded plastic bottles and other
refuse, with local schools, youth and community groups helping to create
decorations from found objects. This tree was created in the Sunlight
Community centre at 105 Richmond Road. The work was recycled after the exhibition.
Overall we wanted to trigger some changes and challenge some
established ideas giving our art a social dimension while also
establishing a dialogue with whoever is looking at the art. To quote Chris
White, a worker in the local Sunlight Community Trust, these artist-led
communal projects, provided a means to give local people,
environmentalists, community and artists’ groups ‘ownership of the idea’
through participation in their creation with artists. In collaboration
with Friends of the Earth, events were also planned to coincide with the
exhibition, such as workshops and public debates. Although the life of the
project was seasonal and temporary, we believe that in the longer term,
through supporting these newly-formed creative partnerships, we can put a
civic heart back on the town’s agenda for the future. We believe that this
exhibition with its associated publicity and events will cause a change in
attitudes to recycling, waste and art in Gillingham.
In 2006 Full Circle will again open an exhibition of artwork on Saturday 2 December in Somerfield mall.
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