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BRISTOL Meet LaToyah McAllister-Jones, St Pauls Carnival executive director
Luke Jerram with his glass sculpture of the vaccine
Raise a glass To mark the ten millionth vaccination in the UK, Bristol artist Luke Jerram made and released a sculpture of the OxfordAstraZeneca vaccine in glass, with sale profits directed to global charity Médecins Sans Frontières to help communities heavily impacted by the pandemic. The artwork, 34cm across, is one million times larger than the actual nanoparticle. Created from borosilicate glass, it is made from the same materials and techniques used in medical scientific glassware for test tubes and distilleries. Having tested positive for Covid-19 in November, the artist continued feeling the effects of the virus for some time. “During my recovery, it became clear to me that my next artwork should focus on the vaccine, our way out of this global crisis, as a tribute to the scientists and medical teams who have been working collaboratively across the world to fight the virus,” he said. “It’s brilliant that such effective vaccines have been created in such a short space of time and that here in the UK we’ve been able to roll them out so quickly. However, the fight against the disease is a global one, which is why I wanted to support Médecins Sans Frontières.” Back in March 2020, the artist made a sculpture of Covid-19, in tribute to the huge global scientific and medical effort to combat the pandemic. From the sale of these sculptures to private collectors, including a global rock superstar, and museums around the world over, £17,500 was raised for Médecins Sans Frontières who have been assisting developing countries deal with the fallout of the coronavirus.
• lukejerram.com
10 THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE
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MARCH 2021
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I live in St Werburghs, on the border of St Pauls. It’s a great location; there’s nothing quite like having Carnival on your doorstep! I’m a Londoner and arrived in Bristol five years ago because we knew it; we had friends living in St Werburghs and liked the vibe of the city. It had a significant African Caribbean community and a carnival! I can’t imagine living anywhere else; Bristol has been good to us. Our eldest son was six when we came and he’s now lived here longer than anywhere else. It’s a city with great emphasis on community and social connections, and very much home. The environment I work in is quite unusual; in the run up to Carnival, it feels like an event organisation; everything focused on logistics. After the ‘wash-up’, it is an arts organisation more focused on delivering inspirational programmes like BHM offering Ketch A Fyah. A typical day for me is about connecting with partner orgs, looking for fundraising opportunities, checking in with staff and the programmes they’re leading on and preparing the ground for the next event… Despite having to cancel the live 2020 event, we did manage to deliver our first digital carnival, Spirit Up! United at Home. It was a great experience working on that; it’s given us a foundation for more digital events. We’re paying close attention to the Covid-19 situation and will soon need to make some firm decisions on what the 2021 event will look like. It’s difficult to imagine 100,000 people on the streets of St Pauls in July. We’re looking carefully at what the alternatives are. We’re also creating income generation streams for the organisation – an important part of the coming year’s business development strategy. We opened our first online shop for the festive season which was exciting. You can show support for Carnival by heading over to our Etsy store and buying our tees, prints and tea towels. You can donate to our crowdfunder at stpaulscarnival.net or get in contact via fundraising@stpaulscarnival.org.uk if you’re interested in supporting the 2021 event. A special shout-out to Guy and Rachel from St Pauls Adventure Playground: they had a terrible fire during the first lockdown which destroyed so much of the playground. Thankfully, no one was hurt. They had a really extensive job repairing the damage and getting ready to welcome families back. They’ve done amazingly with fundraising. It’s such an important space; the dedication is inspirational. No 196
LaToyah has been finding new ways to reach out to the community
I’ve been listening to a lot of soca, and Steve Reich for relaxation. I really love Da Fuchaman, who opened our digital carnival – conscious reggae with messages of positivity and unity. My family loves Caribbean Croft in Stokes Croft and Glen’s Kitchen in St Pauls. When I want a real treat, I love The Ivy and also Brace and Browns. The Farm does a great Sunday roast and has a fab beer garden for the kids to run around in. Napolita is a real favourite; right in the heart of the community, it’s a great place for breakfast and lunchtime catch ups. I’m also a qualified yoga teacher and spent time living on retreat in Nicaragua teaching yoga. Good times! Life became small during lockdown; we took pleasure from simple, everyday things that had been taken for granted. Going for a walk, having a barbecue with family, a long bike ride; these are favourite memories. Last year was a real lesson in being creative; realising that we will find ways to be together. For St Pauls Carnival, it meant finding new ways to reach out to the community. If I was mayor I would first address Bristol’s homelessness issue. It’s close to my heart as I worked with street homeless people for 20-odd years. The lockdown intervention showed what can be achieved when the will is there. No one should live on the streets in the sixth richest country in the world. It’s unacceptable. How we treat the most vulnerable is a reflection of who we are as a society. n • stpaulscarnival.net
