WOW November 2015

The Guildhall Museum

11 July 2015 - 10 January 2016

So much to see and do

An exciting, new, interactive exhibition about the events leading up to and during the Siege of Rochester Castle in 1215.

●A

huge scale model of Rochester Castle Blacksmith’s shed with all the tools ● Medieval market stalls ● Try on armour ●A

This exhibition has been made possible with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund and is part of the commemorative project - Siege 2015.

With special thanks to the University of the Creative Arts who have made this exhibition possible.

/siegerochester

High Street, Rochester, Kent ME1 1PY Phone: 01634 332680

www.guildhallmuseumrochester.co.uk

Bitesize RIC

Year 7 Taster Day Wednesday 11 November 9.30am-3pm Join us at Kent’s fresh alternative to a traditional independent school for one of our fun and educational days For families with children currently in Years 5 & 6 who want to find out more about our school * Small classes * No entrance exams * High performing * Co-educational * No uniform

We have over 30 years’ experience helping students to maximise their grade potential and secure places on highly competitive degree courses

Call admissions on 01634 828115

Day & Boarding School | Year 7 to 6th Form Star Hill, Rochester | rochester-college.org

CONTENTS 4 WELCOME 5 5 REALLY GOOD THINGS 6 NEWS 8 NEW ART SCHOOL 10 CLASSES FOR GROWN-UPS 12 STELLA GOLDSMITH 14 FILM 15 NICK WALKER: INDEPENDENT FILM X6 16 WE LOVE WOW: OUR CROWDFUNDING CAMPAIGN 18 TOTALLY TOUCHABLE 20 MUSIC 1 22 MUSIC 2 24 THEATRE/COMEDY 26 ROWLAND HILDER – THE WORKING ARTIST 28 VISUAL ART 30 THE ARTIST'S SPACE

CHRISTMAS FAIRS

EDITORIAL: editor@wowkent.co.uk 0845 388 2243 (Calls cost 5p per minute plus your network’s access charge) ADVERTISING: advertising@wowkent.co.uk New advertiser & excellent series booking discounts available. All ads also appear in the online edition at wowkent.co.uk FREE LISTINGS: listings@wowkent.co.uk FREE/PREMIUM LISTINGS (website) Submit your content at wowkent.co.uk DESIGN: A Stones Throw astonesthrowdesign.co.uk PRINTING: Complete Print Group (CPG) 9-10 Orchard Business Centre Sanderson Way Tonbridge Kent TN9 1QG 01732 366666 cpg-net.co.uk PUBLISHER: Emma Dewhurst WEBSITE: wowkent.co.uk Current print circulation: 10,000 copies Distribution: Medway Towns, Maidstone & Gravesend Copy/listings deadline for December 2015 issue: Wednesday 18 November ©WOW Kent magazine All rights reserved. While every effort has been made to ensure that details in this publication are correct, we cannot accept responsibility for such. Readers are advised to check information listed, to avoid disappointment.

Views expressed by contributors and advertisers do not necessarily reflect those of the editor and publisher.

WELCOME TO WOW! Your guide to the best of What’s On Where Medway, Maidstone and the accessible beyond It is hard to believe that WOW turns five this month. On 24 November 2010 the launch issue met the world and my own world has not been the same since. So it is fitting that WOW’s crowdfunding campaign also launches in the magazine’s birthday month: there is a symmetry about it which is pleasing.

I have set out our plans in this month’s main feature on pp 16 and 17. As I sit here before the campaign has gone live, raising the money we need to sustain and grow WOW seems like a well nigh impossible task. But I have never ceased to be amazed at the resources of this great community, and I have faith that we will make this work.

If you are not able to pledge money to the campaign at this time, please know that there is much you can do to help us, by sharing it with those who can, and spreading the word. It’s all about the numbers reached – and there are many of us, and creative thinking is most definitely catching.

Emma Dewhurst editor@wowkent.co.uk

CONTRIBUTORS Ben Cameron is an artist living and working on Rochester High St. His work ranges from doodles to large scale, highly detailed illustrations.

Often cited as creating the 'world's saddest doodle', Google it to see!

Website: strangepaul.com. Paul? Don't ask.

Cover: A Stones Throw PHOTOGRAPH OF THE EDITOR BY RIKARD ÖSTERLUND

BE A WOW AMBASSADOR! If you use any of our advertisers’ services, or attend an event because you saw it in WOW, please mention it – it really helps. Thank you.

Find us on Facebook facebook.com/WOWMedway @EmmaDewhurst7

Emma Dewhurst is the founder and editor of WOW. She is an actress with a long and varied career in theatre, television and film; a drama workshop leader and mother. This is her first magazine.

Anna Morell is a mother, writer and tentative filmmaker. Her WWI short, Every One of Them, won the For The Fallen Challenge's Best Screenplay Award. annamorell.wordpress.com.

Nick Walker is the director of Rochester Kino, screening contemporary world cinema and classic films at various venues around Medway and in London. Nick previously wrote for The Guardian, was director of National Schools Film Week and is a freelance writer, teacher and film cinema/ festival programmer. He currently works for London’s famous Phoenix Cinema. For more of Rochester Kino visit: rochesterkino.co.uk

Five

REALLY GOOD THINGS TO DO THIS MONTH

NEIL MCSWEENEY I have noted that those who were lucky enough to attend Neil McSweeney’s last gig onboard atmospheric lightship LV21 tend to go into a reverie when he is mentioned.

One of Sheffield’s most loved songwriters, McSweeney is an engaging performer of calibre whose songs come from the heart. He has toured with Bellowhead and Richard Hawley and there are a few tickets remaining to see his return performance on LV21 at Gillingham Pier on 7 November. Race to wegottickets.com/ event/334568 now.

TWELVE ANGRY MEN This month’s Afternoon Film Treat on 17 November at the Central Theatre is the 1957 classic, Twelve Angry Men. Henry Fonda is just wonderful as the dissenting juror in Sidney Lumet’s debut feature film which became one of the most celebrated courtroom dramas of all time. Lee J Cobb and Jack Warden lead the storming supporting cast. You even get a hot drink and a teacake thrown in for good measure! See Film for details.

DISCO PIGS One of the reasons I started WOW was to highlight events like ‘Disco Pigs’ – something it would be easy for theatre lovers to miss without a little extra shoutout.

On for one night only (13 November) at the Marlowe Studio, Canterbury, this is the Young Vic production of Enda Walsh’s play about a lifelong friendship at a moment of crisis.

Recommended for 14+.

See Theatre for details.

NICHOLAS MCCARTHY Following his appearance at Canterbury Festival 2015, Nicholas McCarthy is giving another concert in the county, in Gravesend, as part of The Woodville’s Classical Concerts at Lunchtime series. McCarthy is quite a phenomenon. Born without a right hand, he is the only one-handed pianist to have graduated from the Royal College of Music, and appeared with the British Paraorchestra at the Closing Ceremony of the Paralympic Games in 2012. His programme on 26 November (1pm) includes Gershwin, Chopin and Scriabin. All this for just £5. Book at woodville. seatlive.com.

COME AND SAY HELLO Come and pass a pleasant Sunday with us. Really! I would like to meet you.

It’s going to be very lonely at our crowdfunding launch day on Sunday 8 November if nobody comes! Fun stuff to do, good conversation to be had and fine Kentish coffee from Sun Pier Tearoom’s café. Have a read of the main feature on p16 and join our crowd.

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Congratulations!

WOW is delighted to report that SQUARE PEGS, the excellent ‘drama group with a difference’ for 7-25 year olds, was awarded ‘Outstanding Charity’ at the recent Ward and Partners Children’s Awards.

The group runs drama and arts activities in Maidstone, Medway and Canterbury for young people with learning disabilities or social communication difficulties and is holding a 10 year anniversary celebration ‘Sparkles and Stars’ on 7 November, 2-5pm at Bower Grove School, Maidstone ME16 8NL. The event is open to all. If you would like to attend or for more information contact beth@squarepegsdramaclub.com.

SIEGE 2015 TALK SERIES

‘WARFARE BY DESIGN: FORTIFY, HOLD, SIEGE & FIGHT’ Given by Richard Dunn, Director of Royal Engineers Museum Thu 12 Nov 7.30pm. Guildhall Museum, Rochester ME1 1PY £5pp inc refreshments.

Raffle on night.

Trophy Design

ART & SOUL

ART AT ALLINGTON LIBRARY Castle Road, Maidstone ME16 0PR 10-24 November Pupils of the Kings Reach Pupil Referral Unit, Maidstone are showing their work at Allington Library this month. Led by artist Jodie Devlin, the young people who created this work have struggled in mainstream education. Do support.

Competition KENT CREATIVE AWARDS Kent Creative Arts is inviting Kent based creative artists/designers to enter a competition for the creation of the trophy for the new ‘Kent Creative Awards’, a new annual event to celebrate the best in arts and culture in Kent.

Trophies will be presented to the winners in twelve categories during a ceremony to be held on 18 May 2016. The winning entry will receive a £600 fee.

For more details visit kentcreativearts.co.uk.

Board Games Night

Sun Pier House, Chatham Wed 25 Nov 7 – 9.30pm

All welcome! Bring your favourite games, or come prepared to learn. There will be a special focus on the new generation of board games like Settlers of Catan, Seven Wonders, Carcassonne, and Qwirkle. £2 on the door.

More info: 07519 620889.

Email joel.loves.trees@gmail. com.

A Creative Exchange Find your perfect match!

Arts groups and volunteers WHERE? Medway Voluntary Action WHEN? Wed 25 Nov 6.30pm - 8pm WHY? A chance for potential volunteers to meet with local arts groups, organisations and festivals to discover what opportunities are available.

The evening is hosted by Voluntary Arts (South East), Hands and Gillingham Volunteer Centre.

QUIZ NIGHT

All proceeds to the Challenging Behaviour Foundation. 7.30-10pm. Sun Pier House, Chatham ME4 4HF. Teams of 8. Booking: laura.brown@thecbf. org.uk. £5pp. BYO refreshments.

TO BOOK: Email Katie Rees, Development Officer for Voluntary Arts: katie@vaengland.org.uk or tel: 07818 031012.

COULD YOU BE A READING HELPER?

CHRISTMAS FAIRS Handmade Mid-Winter Market Sat 21 & Sun 22 Nov- 10am – 4pm The Tithe Barn, Lenham ME17 2QD Local handmade treasures and produce in a magnificent medieval barn.

Entry £1.

Christmas Craft & Makers Fair The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge Fri 27 & Sat 28 Nov Artists and makers will be gracing the galleries with their wares. With drop-in Christmas activities and festive food and drink in the café.

Christmas Craft Fair St. Margaret's Church, Lower Halstow Sat 28 Nov, 1pm to 3pm Wide range of crafts, gifts and home baking. The Three Tuns Public House is also holding its Christmas Market, making a trip to the village doubly worthwhile. Refreshments available.

Kent Wildlife Trust’s Christmas Fair Tyland Barn, Sandling, Maidstone, ME14 3BD Sat 4 December - 12 noon – 3.30pm Meet Bertie the Badger, listen to the Boxley Bell Ringers (2pm); make a bird seed cake and enjoy a candlelit walk around the nature park. Free entry, donations welcome.

Christmas Market Rochester Castle Gardens Sat 28 & Sun 29 Nov Fri 4, Sat 5 & Sun 6 Dec Fri 11, Sat 12 & Sun 13 Dec Open 11-6pm (10am-7pm on 5 & 6 Dec) Rochester Dickensian Christmas Sat 5 & Sun 6 December - 10am-5pm Street entertainment and stalls, song, dance, classic readings and a parade of Dickens characters.

MACLS Victorian Craft Fair Sat 5 & Sun 6 December - 10am-4pm Medway Adult Community & Learning Service (based at Eastgate, Rochester ME1 1EW) will be a hive of activity during the Rochester Dickensian Christmas weekend, with FREE creative workshops with a Victorian theme, including Book Illustration; Pottery and Victorian Music Hall and two Bespoke making workshop in Victorian Boutonnieres and Victorian Christmas Decorations (£21/£22 respectively).

The centre’s café has also had a bit of a facelift, re-launching as a craft café and exhibition space.

THE BIG CHRISTMAS LIGHT SWITCH-ON! Gravesend: Fri 13 Nov Chatham: Fri 14 Nov. Entertainment from 3.45pm, switch-on at 5pm Rochester: Sun 16 Nov, timings as Chatham Maidstone: Thu 19 Nov 4.30pm Gillingham: Fri 21 Nov, timings as Chatham Strood: Sat 22 Nov, timings as Chatham Rainham: Fri 28 Nov, timings as Chatham Christmas Tree Festival Christmas is big in Gravesend (the town even has its own Christmas website).

As part of the festivities, local arts groups, families and individuals are invited to decorate one of 80 Christmas trees which are divided between two churches: St George’s and Emmanuel Baptist. The Festival opens on 12 December and the public will able to vote for their best dressed tree all that day, with prizes awarded at 4pm. An Arts Trail will also run between the two churches.

Reading is one of the most crucial parts of learning for any child and is essential for a person to integrate into society and perform everyday tasks.

But one in six children in Kent leaves primary school unable to read and the problem that has been getting worse, as Medway falls further in the league tables.

‘Get Medway Learning’ is a scheme launched by Medway Council and the charity Beanstalk, aimed at solving the problem at its roots.

Beanstalk is searching for 95 local people to volunteer as Reading Helpers in schools.

Reading Helpers visit schools for 90 minutes twice a week, and work 1-on-1 with three students for a year.

This time should be different from school time and consists of fun reading, playing games and talking. For many children, it is the only individual attention they receive and the results are often miraculous.

300 Medway children need your help. The charity is also recruiting across Kent, including Gravesend and Maidstone.

For more information call Beanstalk on 01622 662 026 or visit beanstalkcharity.org.uk.

To register to decorate a tree, go to christmasingravesend.co.uk (live from 6 Nov).

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New Art School Good news! Artist and curator, Matt Bray, is launching a new, flexible art school. The school is suitable both for graduate students seeking to maintain the critical group environment of college, or new students looking for something akin to an art degree education at a much lower cost. Features of the School include: • • • • • •

Gallery and museum visits Projects designed to develop your practice One-to-one tutorials to explore your ideas Discussion groups on art history and key texts Studio space with 24 hour access and internet Visits to professional artists’ studios

Students will learn to create work that critically engages with the history of art and contemporary discourse in their chosen medium. In addition, Bray will encourage participants to develop a professional portfolio and online presence, as well as create exhibitions, submit work to galleries and competitions, and apply for funding for public art projects.

The group starts on 1 November but you can join at any time, because the project is on a rolling basis that can be tailored to individual circumstances. It is also designed to be affordable at £120 per month.

The New Art School will be based at Sun Pier House, Chatham where students will have access to the gallery, café and activities running at the centre.

For more information email mattbrayarts@yahoo.co.uk

Sat Nov 28th - 11 til 4 Gordon House Hotel

91 High Street Rochester ME11LX

Sat Dec 5th - 11 til 4 Nat West Car Park

Epaul Lane, Rochester ME1 1SN

vintage & second hand furniture, homewares, clothes, books, cameras, jewellery, collectables, art & handmade, bakes & cakes plus more www.therochesterflea.com

172b High Street Rochester ME1 1EX 01634 400240

rochester@kip-mcgrath.com

Lots of Christmas making on offer, and a lot more besides!

Treat yourself as the nights draw in to one of these excellent local classes…

CHRISTMAS ART & CRAFTS CHRISTMAS GLASS FUSING Thu 5 November 10am-4pm/Fri 6 November 10am-4pm Nucleus Arts Centre, 272 High Street, Chatham ME4 4BP £80. Suitable for adults only.

Join Beverley Bunn to make decorations and other Christmas themed glass art.

Book at eventjoy.com/o/nucleusarts.

MAKE A SPICED HANGING GARLAND Wed 12 December 2 – 3pm Nucleus Arts Centre, 272 High Street, Chatham ME4 4BP £8 per person. Suitable for adults and children over 6+ (with supervision) Make a sweet-smelling garland from dried fruit and cinnamon sticks to take home. All materials provided.

Book at eventjoy.com/o/nucleusarts.

CHRISTMAS BAKING DAY Saturday 7 November 10am-3pm £34 Mid Kent College Tel: 01634 338400 (MACLS) CHRISTMAS PRINTING SESSION (Taster) Saturday 7 November 1.30-3.30pm £18 Rochester Centre, Eastgate ME1 1EW Tel: 01634 338400 (MACLS) CHARMS & PENDANTS FOR CHRISTMAS SILVER CLAY WORKSHOP INTRA, High Street, Rochester ME1 1DA With the Skiving Scholar Sunday 22 November 10am-4pm Personalised, meaningful handmade gifts, all in Fine Silver. £115 includes all materials MAKE A CHRISTMAS GARLAND (MACLS) Saturday 28 November 10.30am-1pm £22 Rochester Centre, Eastgate ME1 1EW Tel: 01634 338400 (MACLS)

VICTORIAN CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS Bespoke Making Workshop Saturday 5 December 10.30am-1pm £22 Rochester Centre, Eastgate ME1 1EW Tel: 01634 338400 (MACLS) MAKE A CHRISTMAS DOOR RING Saturday 12 December 10.30am-1pm £22 Rochester Centre, Eastgate ME1 1EW Tel: 01634 338400 (MACLS)

COLOURING COFFEE & COLOURING CLUB AT ‘THE HUB’ Nucleus Arts Creative Riverside Hub, Military Road, Chatham ME4 Second Saturday of the month, 10am – 12 noon. A relaxed drop-in colouring and doodling club for grown-ups (16+).

Sharpies and high quality colouring sheets included.

PERFORMING ARTS

EXERCISE SUN PIER HOUSE, Medway Street, Chatham ME4 4HF PILATES: Tuesdays 12.15– 1pm. £4 per person, no need to book.

YOGA: Mondays 12-1.30pm.

Wednesdays 7.30 - 9pm.

Contact Bridget Reader on 07962 077597 BALLET: Sundays 10am – 11am. £5 per person, no need to book.

CRAFTS DIY Autumn-themed WRAPPING PAPER Sat 14 November 2 – 3.3-pm £5 per person. Suitable for 9+.

Nucleus Arts Centre, 272 High Street, Chatham ME4 4BP Make your own rolls of beautiful wrapping paper.

To book for craft workshops visit eventjoy. com/o/nucleusarts

For adults with physical disabilities A series of free monthly workshops in collaboration with Attic Productions Company held at Nucleus Arts Centre. Next session: Sat 28 November 2 – 4pm. Full disabled access.

For more details or to book call 01634 812108 or email natasha.steer@nucleusarts.co.uk.

OVER 55s FREE CREATIVE WORKSHOPS for over 55s, including clay modelling, photography, textiles and art. Held at Nucleus Arts Centre. Next session: Wed 25 November 10am – 12 noon.

Tea and coffee provided.

ART DRYPOINT ETCHING Wed 11 November 10am-4pm £50. Suitable for adults and children 14+ With local printmaker/artist Heather Haythornthwaite.

North West TF 2008

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TWO-COLOUR REDUCTION LINOCUT Wed 18 November 10am-4pm £50. Suitable for adults and children 14+ With local printmaker/artist Heather Haythornthwaite.

Both the above at Nucleus Arts Centre, 272 High Street, Chatham ME4 4BP. Book at eventjoy.com/o/nucleusarts

And not forgetting MACLS! In addition to the Christmas courses above, Medway Adult Community & Learning Service (Adult Education to you and me) have a great new range of creative courses on offer this autumn, including: • Ceramic sculpture • Botanical illustration • Children’s book illustration • Stained glass • Vintage button and brooch bouquet

design repro litho digital storage fulfilment distribution

Rochester Centre, Eastgate, High Street, Rochester ME1 1EW For more information telephone 01634 338400. Medway. gov.uk/macls.

9-10 Orchard Business Centre Sanderson Way Tonbridge Kent TN9 1QG e: enquiries@cpg-net.co.uk t: 01732 366666 www.cpg-net.co.uk

DESIGN l POS l LITHO l DIGITAL STORAGE l FULFILMENT l DISTRIBUTION

TONBRIDGE KENT e: enquiries@cpg-net.co.uk t: 01732 366666 www.cpg-net.co.uk 11

SHELLY GOLDSMITH

‘Drawn to Ohio’

'GOLDSMITH IS AMONGST THE FOREMOST TEXTILE ARTISTS WORKING IN THE UK AT THE PRESENT TIME'.

Prof Lesley Millar MBE For its last exhibition of the year, Rochester Art Gallery has pulled off another coup in attracting textile artist Shelly Goldsmith to the space, with her show, ‘Drawn to Ohio’.

Composed of works made by the artist over the past seven years, using a palette of textile traditions and new media, the exhibition explores the geographical and emotional distance between Goldsmith’s home in Ramsgate, Thanet on the Kent coast and her parents’ home in Cincinnati, Ohio; an on-going theme in Goldsmith’s work.

‘Drawn to Ohio’ runs from 27 November 2015 to 14 February 2016 at Rochester Art Gallery, Medway Visitor Information Centre, 95 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX. Tel: 01634 338319. Open Mon – Sat 10am-5pm, closed Sundays (Oct to Mar). Free entry.

WOW ASKED THE ARTIST SOME QUESTIONS PRIOR TO HER FORTHCOMING SHOW: How would you describe your work, is it fine art, installation, craft or even sculpture?

I describe my practice as an ‘ideas based practice’. I draw upon textile methods, reference, culture and history as a vehicle to explore and express a range of ideas. I suppose it is more akin to fine art but ‘crafting’ is very important in my work and certainly the outcomes are often sculptural and installation based.

Why do you use textiles as a medium?

I have a natural affinity with textiles, by its material qualities, its history, its resonance with the everyday.

I am seduced by the beauty of it, and how powerful it can be. I am naturally driven to explore new methods and approaches. I think that as an artist one can lure an audience in with the familiarity of textiles to present, pose and provoke contemplation around challenging or deeper ideas What makes a piece of clothing inspire you?

Its history, the previous wearer (or the imagined history or wearer) and the evidence of a life lived in the item: wear and tear, stains, hand alterations, seams let out, seams taken in… Also, hand stitching, name tapes lovingly sewn in by parents or by children when elderly parents enter a care home, for example.

I particularly like ‘ordinary’ everyday clothes that accompany us on our day to day lives – in museums we often see the grand and the couture preserved but I am interested in working with, commenting on and presenting a piece which is more in line with the everyday – and the issues I am exploring in our work affect us all.

Where do you begin when you are given/find a new garment to rework?

I am often gifted garments or pick them up on ebay or in charity shops.

I listen carefully to the story they tell me…

Forensics, psychiatry and the imprint of memory on clothing are all important to your work, from where does this interest in the hidden stem?

I have always been interested in medical issues and procedures, making sewn models of parts of the body as a young child! The forensics came about to understand how narratives are extruded and developed from garments left at crime scenes and the psychiatry to support ideas around the ‘self’ current in my practice. I think it is important/responsible to support an art practice with first hand and primary research and an in-depth understanding around the issues one is exploring.

The work in 'Drawn to Ohio' explores geographical distance between you and your family in Cincinnati and the tornadoes that happen there, why does their weather inspire you?

The weather has been another constant in my work, as a natural force and something we cannot control, often rendering us rather vulnerable. It also acts as a metaphor for psychological feelings

and events in our lives. The power of the tornadoes has a great impact on me, from first-hand experience when visiting, but also in the knowledge that my family live in “tornado alley’ and the dangers this poses and my inability to help from distance.

An overarching theme in my work is exploring the fragility of our life, of us as humans on the plant and as emotional humans in the 21st century.

How did you come to be given the wedding dress used in 'Internal Storm'?

The wedding dress and veil was owned by Diane Alexander who is the mother of my brother-in-law.

He grew up in Yellow Springs Ohio.

The dress was hanging in the closet through the Super outbreak of 1974 (tornado event), witness to the dramatic events, but also I see it as a symbol of resilience.

What next? What would you like to make that you haven't made so far?

I am continuing to explore the Locus of Control, a personality psychology theory which is being funded by UCA and the Arts Council. I am collaborating with a clinical psychologist to understand and represent the theory through a series of garment based pieces. I hope to show these in Thanet and Cincinnati next year.

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FILM AFTERNOON FILM TREAT Central Theatre, 170 High Street, Chatham ME4 4AS 01634 338338. Tickets £4.50 in adv, £5 on door inc hot drink and teacake TWELVE ANGRY MEN (U) 1957 Dir: Sidney Lumet. Cast: Henry Fonda, Lee J Cobb, Martin Balsam. Lumet’s debut feature is a superbly written courtroom thriller by Reginald Rose, considered a classic of the genre, with stellar performances. 96 mins medwayticketslive.co.uk MAIDSTONE FILM SOCIETY Hazlitt Theatre, Earl Street Maidstone ME14 1PL 01622 753922 Membership (13 films) £24; Couples £42; Senior/Student £19; Guest £4. Enquiries: info@ maidstone-film-society.org.uk.

Membership enquiries: 01622 746 078 SELMA (2014) Mon 16 November 8pm Dir: Ava DuVernay Cast: David Oyelowo, Carmen Ejogo, Tim Roth. The story of Martin Luther King’s epic march. See Nick Walker opposite. 119 mins ROCHESTER KINO @ CHATHAM ODEON Chatham Maritime ME4 4LL 0871 2244 007 Screening classic movies, cult films and contemporary world cinema. Every Thursday at 7.45pm. £9.95 / £7.75 (2 for 1 for students with NUS card) Every Thursday at 7.45pm LOVE & MERCY (12A) 2014 Thu 5 Nov 7.45pm Dir: Bill Pohland. Cast: John Cusack, Paul Dano, Elizabeth Banks. Beach Boys leader Brian Wilson’s struggle with psychosis. 121 mins IRRATIONAL MAN (12A) 2015 Thu 12 Nov 7.45pm Dir: Woody Allen

Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Emma Stone. Woody Allen’s 45th film, see opposite. 95 mins CLASSIC: THE LONG GOOD FRIDAY (X) 1980 Dir: John MacKenzie Cast: Bob Hoskins, Helen Mirren One The Guardian’s ‘Best 25 Crime Films’ of all time.

114 mins THE DIARY OF A TEENAGE GIRL (18) 2015 Thu 26 Nov 7.45pm.

Dir: Marielle Heller.

Cast: Bel Powley, Alexander Skarsgård, Kristen Wiig US comedy drama. A teenage artist living in 1970s San Francisco who has an affair with her mother’s boyfriend.

102 mins MACBETH (15) 2015 Thu 3 Dec 7.45pm Dir: Justin Kurzel Cast: Michael.

Fassbender, Marion Cotillard, Elizabeth Debicki Big screen Shakespeare adaptation. 113 mins rochesterkino.co.uk PAUL GREENGRASS CINEMA @THE WOODVILLE Woodville Place, Gravesend DA12 1DD Excellent cinema programme and cheap tickets. woodville.seatlive.com ROCHESTER FILM SOCIETY @ ROCHESTER PICTURE PALACE Princes Hall, Corn Exchange, High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX. £6, £3.50 students. Bar/ refreshments available & postfilm chat.

BLOOD MOON (15) 2014 (UK) Tue 3 Nov 7.30pm Dir: Jeremy Wooding Cast: George Blagden, Shaun Dooley. Western-horror genre mash-up. Special screening featuring a Q&A with the film’s director. 82 mins

NEW VENUE FROM 17 NOV! ROCHESTER PICTURE PALACE @ THE HUGUENOT MUSEUM Every other Tuesday at 7.30pm, The Huguenot Museum, 95 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX. £6, £3.50 students.

TIMBUKTU (12A) 2014 (Fra/Mau) Tue 17 Nov 7.30pm Dir: Abderrahmane Sissako Cast: Ibrahim Ahmed, Abel Jafri, Toulou Kiki See opposite. 96 mins.

THE WONDERS (15) 2014 (Ita) Tue 1 Dec 7.30pm Dir: Alice Rohrwacher Cast: Alba Rohrwacher, Maria Alexandra Lungu, Sam Louwyck. Coming of age tale of a 12-year-old girl and her three younger sisters in a family of beekeepers in rural Italy. 111 mins RFS @ THE CINE LOUNGE Sun Pier House, Medway Street, Chatham, ME4 4HF (No disabled access) 01634 812805 Cult film night, first Sunday of the month. Doors and themed music 6.30pm, film 7.30pm. £3, Bar/refreshments available.

NOVEMBER CULT FILM: BRAINDEAD/aka DEAD ALIVE (18) 1992 (NZ) Sun 1 Nov doors/music 6.30pm, film 7.30pm Dir: Peter Jackson Cast: Timothy Balme, Diana Penalver. Peter Jackson’s overthe-top splatter-fest. 104 mins SPECIAL SCREENING in collaboration with the Challenging Behaviour Foundation With Pre-show rock karaoke!

MISSION TO LARS Tue 10 Nov doors 6.30pm, film 7.30pm. Dir: James Moore, William Spicer. Stars: Kate Spicer, Tom Spicer, William Spicer . Life-affirming documentary about an autistic teenager trying to track down

his hero, Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich. 74 mins BAD SANTA (15) 2003 Sun 6 Dec doors 6.30pm, film 7.30pm. Dir: Terry Zwigoff Cast: Billy Bob Thornton, Bernie Mac, Lauren Graham See opposite. 91 mins FRENCH-THEMED CHILDREN’S FILM CLUB RFS @ THE HUGUENOT MUSEUM 95 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX Monthly Saturday morning film club for kids. BYO food and drink. Relaxed viewing setup. £3 per person.

RATATOUILLE (U) 2007 (US) Sat 14 Nov 10am Dir: Brad Bird, Jan Pinkava Cast: Brad Garrett, Lou Romano, Patton Oswalt A rat called Remy dreams of rising from the sewers of Paris to become a great chef... 111 mins. Book via rochesterfilmsociety.co.uk UNDERGROUND CINEMA Inspiring documentary films initiative.

NUCLEUS ARTS RIVERSIDE HUB 13 Military Road, Chatham ME4 4JG (no disabled access) CREATIVE DESPITE WAR Fri 6 Nov 7pm. The story of Afghanistan’s blossoming artistic movement. 85 mins NUCLEUS ARTS 272 High Street, Chatham ME4 4BP. £5. Full disabled access. IF YOU BUILD IT Fri 4 Dec 7pm. Film about a radical new approach to education. nucleusarts.com THE WORLD CINEMA CLUB Brook Theatre, Old Town Hall, Chatham ME4 4LX In association with Rochester Kino and The Stinking Pause Podcast. Last Wednesday of the Month at 7.30pm. £7, NUS £3. See opposite.

INDEPENDENT FILM

ROCHESTER KINO @ CHATHAM ODEON Chatham Odeon, Chatham Maritime ME4 4LL

IRRATIONAL MAN (2015) Thu 12 November 7.45pm An impotent, alcoholic philosophy professor (Joaquin Phoenix) finds a sense of purpose after overhearing a stranger’s conversation. Returning to a theme he has previously explored in ‘Crimes and Misdemeanors’ and ‘Match Point’, writer/director Woody Allen contemplates the perfect murder in this darkly humorous quasi-thriller which combines the philosophical weightiness of his best dramas with the playfulness of his best comedies.

MAIDSTONE FILM SOCIETY @ HAZLITT THEATRE Earl Street, Maidstone ME14 1PL

SELMA (2014) Mon 16 November 8pm Chronicling Martin Luther King's campaign to secure equal voting rights via an epic march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama in 1965 this film wonderfully portrays the mood of the period and a time of struggle for human rights against a backdrop of prejudice and oppression.

David Oyelowo as King is terrific in director Ava DuVernay's razorsharp portrait of the Civil Rights movement.

ROCHESTER FILM SOCIETY @ ROCHESTER PICTURE PALACE Corn Exchange, High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX

TIMBUKTU (2014) Tue 17 November 7.30pm Nominated for Best Foreign Language Film of the Year and the Palme d'Or in Cannes, writer/director Abderrahmane Sissako (‘Bamako’) shows the peaceful lives of citizens of rural Mali whose lives are disrupted by Jihadists when they declare new hard-hitting rules based on Sharia Law. Based on an actual event from 2012, the smaller story of a cattle herder and his family who reside in the dunes of Timbuktu and find their quiet lives disturbed is wonderfully constructed and observed.

NICK WALKER previews

ROCHESTER KINO CLASSICS @ CHATHAM ODEON Chatham Odeon, Chatham Maritime ME4 4LL

THE LONG GOOD FRIDAY (1980) Thu 19 November 7.45pm Focusing on forty-eight hours in the life of Harold Shand, London crime boss and all round cockney geezer (portrayed perfectly by Hoskins, in a role he was born to play) and his moll (beautifully played by Helen Mirren), this is a study of what happens to a violent man when his seemingly perfect life starts unraveling as Shand tries to get the Mafia to invest in his grand ideas for London's Docklands.

THE WORLD CINEMA CLUB Brook Theatre, Chatham ME4 4SE

THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS (1966) Wed 25 November 7.30pm Gillo Pontecorvo’s riveting political docudrama observes with equal intensity and human regard the opposing sides involved in the revolution against the French occupation of Algiers (officially the Algerian War of Independence 1954-1962). The film takes an objective look at the nature of terrorism and revolution amidst the social and political chaos with a sympathy lent to the Algerian rebels - in the light of the French occupation being an act of oppressive imperialism.

ROCHESTER FILM SOCIETY @ CINE LOUNGE Sun Pier House, Medway Street, Chatham ME4 4HF

BAD SANTA (2003) Sun 6 December 7.30pm Bad Santa, by director Terry Zwigoff (‘Ghost World’), is about a washed up, alcoholic man of questionable ethics (played by Billy Bob Thornton) who was taught by his father to crack safes. He teams up with a midget and together they get the gig as Santa and his helper each Christmas, and then rob the department store they work for on Christmas Eve. A funny and unusual dark comedy…

NOVEMBER SEES THE LAUNCH OF OUR CROWDFUNDING CAMPAIGN TO CHANGE WOW’S BUSINESS MODEL AND SECURE THE FUTURE OF THE MAGAZINE Founder & Editor EMMA DEWHURST asks for your support There are few things in life I’m more proud of than this little magazine. Making the best, most beautiful 32 pages possible about local and regional arts every month for the past five years has been my passion and my obsession and given me a purpose matched only by raising my daughter.

Pledge between Sunday 8 November to Monday 7 December 2015 wowkent.co.uk/campaign

During those five years we have won three awards for WOW; but even more rewarding are the many times we’ve been told that the service WOW provides has helped to bind together what was here before and to create what was not. I’m told that as a result of WOW’s presence audiences have grown; artists of all disciplines have been helped to connect and creative organisations have a platform on which to stand and shout about their work.

With a committed community of readers and a loyal, growing number of advertisers, in many ways what we’re experiencing here at WOW HQ is the impact of the magazine’s success. I have subsidised it for many years to get to this point, but in order to grow it further – and I’m positively bursting with ideas about what we could achieve together in the future! - I need your help.

So it is with excitement, trepidation and not a little humility that I ask you, please, to join our crowd and pledge to our campaign.

FAQs: How can I help?

We need to change our business model, so that our income from advertising sales is supplemented by annual reader subscriptions to ensure we have a bottom line cashflow to produce the magazine. We are looking for 1000+ people to become WOW Subscribers by pledging £25 to our campaign. All Subscribers will have the magazine delivered to their door for one year.

Can I pledge less/more than £25?

Yes! Pledges of £25 or more make you a WOW Subscriber but all pledges will be most gratefully received, thank you.

Will WOW be printed in 2016?

Only if we reach our target. If we don’t, all monies pledged will be refunded and we will not be able to print WOW in 2016.

Will you print it online instead?

No. WOW was always conceived as a print magazine. Our arts website, wowkent.co.uk, will continue to exist for you to find arts listings for events and workshops county-wide, but we won’t be able to make WOW magazine online because of the time involved in making it.

Will WOW only be available to paying subscribers?

If we reach our target we will be able to keep WOW in print and continue to supply our pick-up points in addition to posting out to subscribers. That’s the great thing about being a Subscriber – you are helping the whole community!

Why would I subscribe to a free magazine?

It’s not a new idea but one that takes a bit of getting used to. The subscription model has often been used by publishers to provide an additional source of revenue. In the case of WOW, the crowd would be doing something amazing for the community, because you would be making sure the information WOW provides stays available in one handy place.

I receive WOW through my letterbox – will this stop?

The copies currently letterboxed will no longer be so as this would not be fair to our Subscribers. We are very sorry that we have to stop this service. Please consider pledging to become a WOW Subscriber, so that you can continue to receive the magazine.

Why is your target £35K? We have worked out this is what the business needs to move forward; any lower would be putting a sticking plaster over the problem. Some of this money will go towards fulfilling our campaign rewards and our crowdfunding platform’s fees, of course. Then the monies will, together with our advertising sales, go towards Subscriber postage costs; any 2015 shortfall; an intention to pay ourselves on a monthly basis and pay for the help of a media sales person. We also aim to pay our contributors in the future, to put the magazine on a more professional footing and help the careers of those who give their work freely now.

For more information or to pledge if you are not online, please call 0845 388 2243.

You are invited to…

OUR CAMPAIGN LAUNCH!

SUN 8 NOVEMBER Drop-in 10am-4pm Sun Pier House, Medway Street Chatham ME4 4HF Help us give the campaign that vital strong start!

• A unique, handpainted doodle by WOW’s resident doodler, Ben Cameron goes to everyone who pledges on the day!

• Design your own A5 WOW cover, or decorate one of our enormous A1 poster covers.

Children welcome!

• Yarnbomb the WOW logo and anything else we can cover with our knitted squares! Use our needles/ yarn or BYO. After the event, all our knitted squares will be made into blankets and sent to woollyhugs.com, an online community of crafters who send blankets to people in need.

Complete beginners welcome: knitting supremo Maddy Randall will be on hand to teach you the basics. Maddy holds weekly Friday knitting sessions for all, 12.30-3.30pm, at Intra, 337 - 341 High Street, Rochester, Kent ME1 1DA for Unravel and Unwind.

• Music in the Tearoom. Art in the Gallery. Random readings, and more!

Thank you.

17

TOTALLY TOUCHABLE EMMA DEWHURST visited WENDY DAWS in her studio to find out more about this exhibition with a difference

It’s a simple but persuasive idea: come to our art exhibition and touch the exhibits. Not just one or two of them in a special corner, but all of them! Everything! At ‘Totally Touchable’ you can do just that. For sighted people it’s a bit like saying you can taste all the sweets in the sweetshop but for artist Wendy Daws and the blind and partially sighted members of the Kent Association for the Blind Gravesend Art Group who created the art, it is a considered decision to make the art meaningful for all.

We are all driven by the things we love. In the case of Wendy Daws, her empathetic desire to know how a visually impaired person can and should experience art has informed the body of her work for years. She has become something of an expert in the field: the Graffiti Project by the Medway KAB Art Group Daws founded won an Epic Award for ‘Exceptional Work with Disabled People’ earlier this year; the group’s exhibition ‘Through Our Eyes’, was an extraordinary body of works in response to the collections at the Royal Engineers Museum; and the bronze tactile plate she painstakingly created to enable visitors to experience Rochester Cathedral’s Fresco by Sergei Fyodorov through touch will, no doubt, remain in situ for many hundreds of years.

I visited Daws’ studio as she prepared for the ‘Totally Touchable’ exhibition.

The central table is peopled by half formed wire and plaster of paris figures. In spite of being unfinished, they are highly expressive, each bearing the character of their maker. The figures share an obvious bloodline with the tall, sculptural forms for which Alberto Giacometti is famous. So why did she choose Giacometti’s work for inspiration? I ask Daws.

“It’s so tactile,” she says at once.

“I want to touch the work. The figures are really simple, really effective and everybody has been able to make one of these themselves.”

Vincent Van Gogh’s masterpiece, ‘Sunflowers’, has also been an inspiration. The group hit upon sunflowers when Daws asked the group to bring her a memory in the form of a photograph; something that was meaningful to them as a starting point for their art. One group member, who lost her sight in her late 20s, mentioned that she had a painting of sunflowers by her mother, which she can still visualise.

So Daws got hold of a tactile version of Van Gogh’s iconic painting from the Living Paintings Trust, which group members were able to feel with one hand and draw their own version of what they felt with the

other. The initial 2D representations are built upon to create 3D pieces of art in the form of collaged canvas.

The group have also created a tactile memory blanket created from self-portraits which have been transferred onto fabric: indelible face prints which are both evocative and strange.

But perhaps my favourite exhibit is a collection of small, holdable objects of Daws’ own invention, which she laughingly calls her ‘Cinderellas’, because each one is a perfect fit only in the hand of the person who made the shape for the original cast.

I am ceremoniously handed a lump of bright green Play Doh to squeeze. The resulting shape bears the imprint of the lines of my palm, and my hand’s twist as I squeezed.

Daws takes the altered Doh, puts it on a stick and dips it into liquid latex, which will be peeled off my hand squeeze when dry and filled with plaster of paris. It is the drying plaster ‘Cinderellas’ that cover the studio table when I visit. Daws plans to gild some of them with gold leaf and cover others with flock (think 70s wallpaper).

These small, inexpressibly satisfying expressions of self epitomise for me the spirit of the work of Daws and her group. I defy you to visit ‘Totally Touchable’ and not pick one up.

‘Totally Touchable’ runs from 3 – 22 November at Blake Gallery, Civic Centre, Woodville Place, Gravesend DA12 1DD. Opens Mon – Sat 9am8pm, Sun 10am-2pm. Free entry.

More information: Lyndsey.thompson@ gravesham.gov.uk. Tel: 01474 337442.

The project is funded by Arts Council England, Gravesham Borough Council and KCC and supported

by Canterbury Christ Church University and Kent Association for the Blind.

MEET THE ARTISTS: Fri 6, Mon 9, Fri 13, Mon 16, Fri 20 Nov, 10am-4pm ‘Simulated spectacles’ will be available to view and handle the art through the eyes of those who created it. Braille and large print guide books also available.

FREE FAMILY ART ACTIVITIES: Sat 14 November 10.30am-3.30pm Drop in workshop led by Wendy Daws. Create your own touchable artwork to take home.

Photographs by Gary Weston - This page is sponsored by the Totally Touchable project.

Facebook: KABGravesendArtGroup wendydaws.co.uk

MUSIC 1

LIFE'S A GIFT The fifth album by Medway's GROOVY UNCLE, is out now.

ANNA MORELL reviews Summer has gasped its last, but never for MedwayCardiff beat combo, Groovy Uncle – purveyors of anachronistic, beehive and bright smile 60s pop.

And angry rock. And psychedelia. And country.

It's a right tuppence bag of mixed bon bons, this album.

Many of the tracks sound like they were recorded by singing into coffee mugs, the rich shimmer of previous albums lost in fuzz.

That aside, all the GU hallmarks are here, plus some bonus sitar. The wonderful Suzi Chunk veers vocally from Dusty Springfield to Grace Slick to Robert Plant, and on ‘My Precious Time’ sounds like an older, wiser, whisky-soaked Sandy from ‘Grease’. That, and ‘Tea and Cake’ (imagine ‘Toast’ by Streetband, sung by Chas and Dave when they're cross), are favourites. It's a refreshing change from the tuneless, shouty noise that makes up the bulk of the Medway music scene.

And for that, I'm eternally grateful, man. Groove on.

‘Life’s a Gift’, an album of 12 new songs written and arranged by Glenn Prangnell, is available from groovyuncle.co.uk and downloadable from iTunes and Amazon.

ANCHORIANS RUGBY CLUB Darland Avenue, Gillingham ME7 3AN Fri 20 Nov: JOHN ETHERIDGE BLUE SPIRITS TRIO. John Etheridge (guitar), Pete Whitaker (organ) and Mark Fletcher (drums). Tickets £10, doors at 8:30pm. Enquiries to 01634 365353 or 07544 312743.

THE BARGE 63 Layfield Road, Gillingham ME7 2QY 01634 850485 Music starts 9pm, free entry Wed 4 Nov: BARDS @ THE BARGE Open Mic Fri 6 Nov: FRAN MCGILLIVRAY BAND Sat 7 Nov: SALLY IRONMONGER Thu 12 Nov: ARCELIA Fri 13 Nov: DAVEY MALONE & THE LONGTAILS Sat 14 Nov: THE DREDGERMEN + SUPPORT Fri 20 Nov: NASHVILLE EXTRA Sat 21 Nov: THE ONLY SUN + SUPPORT Fri 27 Nov: THE BLUSINGER DUO Sat 28 Nov: ATLANTIC CURRANTS thebargepub.co.uk THE BOWERHOUSE 20 Warwick Place, Maidstone ME16 8SG 01622 763448 Doors 7pm, 7.30pm show Sun 22 Nov: TOPETTE! New Anglo-French band playing acoustic dance music.

Workshop and dance. £5.

Sun 29 Nov: TOPETTE! Evening concert and dance at Fort Amherst, Chatham. £12. thebowerhouse.info BRITANNIA THEATRE Dickens World, Leviathan Way, Chatham Maritime ME4 4LL 0844 858 6656 Sat 7 Nov 7pm: DR FEELGOOD. From £15 thebritanniakent.com BROOK THEATRE Old Town Hall, The Brook, Chatham ME4 4SE 01634 338338 Tue 17 Nov 8pm: PADDY MILNER’S LONDONOLA Jazz and blues piano fused with New Orleans funk. £12

Thu 19 Nov 8pm: CURVED AIR. British prog rock. £15. medwayticketslive.co.uk CENTRAL THEATRE 170 High Street, Chatham ME4 4AS 01634 338338 Sun 1 Nov 7.30pm: THE STYLISTICS. £24.50, £22.50.

Wed 5 Nov 7.30pm: DONOVAN – The 50th Anniversary Tour. 60s legend. £30, £28.50. medwayticketslive.co.uk COOPERS ARMS 10 St Margaret’s Street, Rochester ME1 1TL 01634 404298 Music starts at 7pm. Free entry Sun 1 Nov: TALKING BOOK. thecoopersarms.co.uk EAGLE TAVERN 124 High Street Rochester ME1 1JT 01634 409040 Sundays 12 noon. Thursdays 7pm. Free entry.

Sun 1 Nov: ARTIE ZAITZ & FRIENDS Thu 5 Nov: BROKEN Sun 8 Nov: TOMMASO STARACE QUARTET Thu 12 Nov: BEER PRESSURE Sun 15 Nov: DAVE BARRY / ART THEMEN QUARTET Thu 19 Nov: SIXFOLD Sun 22 Nov: SIMON SPILLETT QUARTET Thu 26 Nov: THE THROWBACKS Sun 29 Nov: THEO TRAVIS QUARTET theeagletavern.org.uk EARLS 30 Earl Street Maidstone ME14 1PS 01622 751286 Doors 9pm unless stated. Free entry. Thu 5 Nov: BANDICOOT, LUNA LACUNA, L.T.D.M.S. Doors 8:30pm. Thu 19 Nov: DEAD BEARS, KILL RPNZL + GUESTS. earlsmaidstone. co.uk THE FLOWERPOT 96 Sandling Road, Maidstone ME14 2RJ 01622 757705 Free entry. Doors 9pm.

Sat 14 Nov: MIDGEN & GIBSON. Sat 21 Nov: FUNKE & THE TWO TONE BABY, MIKEY PRICE & JON FULLER.

Sat 28 Nov 6pm-11pm.MINI ACOUSTIC FESTIVAL: THE DREDGERMEN, VAUGHAN BATCHELOR, THE BREAKS, EMILIA, DAVID JAMES RUMSEY, JILL LUCAS. flowerpotpub.moonfruit.com 44TWO SPORTS & SOCIAL CLUB Featherby Road, Gillingham ME8 6AN The Jazz Line: 01634 405037 Thu 12 Nov 8.30-11pm: DONN BARCOTT BAND with ELAINE DYAN singing songs from the Great American Songbook.

Plus Andrew Hawkes, a magician at your table, quality raffle and licensed bar.

Admission £6. Every second Thursday of the month. For more information phone the Jazz Line.

FORT AMHERST Khartoum Road, Chatham ME4 4UB 01634 847747 Sun 29 Nov: TOPETTE! Evening concert and dance at Fort Amherst, Chatham. £12.

THE GOOD INTENT John Street, Rochester ME1 1YL Fri 6 Nov 8.30pm: JAZZ with SARAH BOLTER (Sax), RAY SHEA (Keys), TONY TOTTS (Drums). Free entry.

HASTINGS ARMS FUNCTION ROOM Lower Rainham Road (leading to Danes Hill) Gillingham ME7 2YD Free parking Thu 26 Nov 8.30pm: Musicians of the ROCHESTER SWING PRESERVATION SOCIETY and special guests, the Saxes and Trombone of Cake Five with the music of Glenn Miller, Tommy Dorsey and more from the Swing Era. 8.30pm doors. £7 entry. Raffle and nibbles.

For more details or to reserve a table tel: 01634 712217 or check website. sukotto5.wix.com/rsps

Tues 3rd Nov: UKULELE JAM NIGHT Wed 4th Nov: PORCH SWING BLUES Thu 5th Nov: JEM TURPIN & NIGHTSHIFT Wed 11th Nov: IAN PETRIE & SUE HUDSON Thu 12th Nov: JON DOE BLUES Tues 17th MIKEY D'S FUNTIME QUIZ Wed 18th BROOKE SHARKEY & ADAM BEATTIE Thu 19th KENT DUCHAINE Wed 25th ASH MANDRAKE Tues 24th: ‘THE GAME SHOW' Thu 26th Nov THE MERCURIALS THUNDERSTRUCK THEATRE COMPANY

DESIGN: www.astonesthrowdesign.co.uk

Saturday 21 November 2015 to Saturday 20 February 2016

The Magic of Masks & Puppets Presenting a beautiful and quirky collection of masks and puppets from around the world.

Strangeface

All day WORKSHOP Saturday 30 January 2016, 10:30 – 16:00 Spend a day making a bunraku-style puppet with award-winning company, Strangeface. Suitable for ages 14+, £40 per person.

For more details telephone 01622 602862

This exhibition from The Scottish Mask and Puppet Centre, is kindly supported by: The Hazlitt Theatre, Wickes & ‘Sew a Good Yarn

Maidstone Museum & Bentlif Art Gallery, St Faith’s Street, Maidstone, Kent, ME14 1LH facebook.com/MaidstoneMuseum Admission FREE @MaidstoneMuseum p 01622 602838 Please check the website

www.maidstonemuseum.org

for opening times

MUSIC 2 JAZZ AT THE 144 CLUB The Roffen, 41 New Road Rochester ME1 1DX 01634 404770 Wed 4 Nov: MARTIN HATHAWAY Doors at 7.15pm, performance 8.15pm. Tickets for non-members £13 (without meal) in advance online or on the door (cash only). See website for tickets and information. 144club. co.uk THE LADY LUCK 18 St Peters Street, Canterbury CT1 2BQ Tue 3 Nov: ADVENTURES OF LITESPEED, BANDICOOT, IN CROWDED SKIES, ROCK PAPER SCISSORS. Doors 8pm. Sun 8 Nov: YORKSHIRE RATS, TAX RETURN, WOLF SUNDAY, KATE WINTIE. Doors 6pm.

LV21 Gillingham Pier, Pier Approach Road, Gillingham ME7 1RX Sat 7 Nov, doors 7.30pm: NEIL MCSWEENEY + Special guests VERAN VAN HEERINGEN and CLEA LLEWELLYN. £10. Cash pay bar. See 5 Really Good Things page 5. Fri 4 Dec: THE FLOWING ALBUM LAUNCH ‘Talk About Wonder’ is The Flowing’s first fully studio recorded album, with cover artwork by Lupen Crook.

Doors 7pm, music 8pm.

Tickets at seetickets.com with special price if you order the album at the same time. lv21.co.uk MAN OF KENT ALEHOUSE 6-8 John Street, Rochester ME1 07772 214315 For full gig listings see opposite.

MARLOWE THEATRE The Friars, Canterbury CT1 2AS 01227 787787 Tue 3 – Sat 7 Nov: GLYNDEBOURNE TOUR 2015. See website for details.

Sat 14 Nov 8pm: NINE BELOW

ZERO £15, conc £13.

Wed 18 Nov 7.30pm: THE WATERBOYS £32, £27.50.

Thu 19 Nov 7.30pm: THE BLUES BAND £23.

Sat 21 Nov 7.30pm: PHILHARMONIA ORCHESTRA Love, loss and revenge: Bernstein, Greig, Sibelius, Tchaikovsky. £11-£34, concs available. marlowetheatre. com (Booking fees apply) THE MIDDLE EI8HT 1-2 Town Pier, Gravesend DA11 0BJ 01474 328947 Sun 1 Nov: TERMINAL HEADS Fri 6 Nov: BROKEN BANJO Sat 7 Nov: THE ASSORTED Fri 13 Nov: THE CHAPS Sat 14 Nov: TRASH HEADS – Album Launch!

Fri 20 Nov: THE BLOX Sat 21 Nov: BALLS DEEP Fri 27 Nov: NO LIMIT STREET BAND Sat 28 Nov: PANIC! Open mic night every Wednesday from 8pm. Full backline supplied.

MOTE HALL Mote Park, Maidstone ME15 7RN Sat 28 Nov 7.30pm: MAIDSTONE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA with 18 year old cellist LAURA VAN DER HIEJDEN (2012 BBC Young Musician of the Year) playing Walton’s Cello Concerto, Richard Strauss, Roussel and Elgar. Conductor is Brian Wright. £26, £21 £12. Students £5, under 18s are free. Tickets: 07817 429143 or pay on the door. Season tickets also available. mso.org.uk PIZZA EXPRESS MUSIC ROOM 32-34 Earl Street, Maidstone ME14 1PF 01622 683548 Doors 7pm, show 8pm unless stated.

Fri 6 Nov: SOUL TRIPPERS. £15.

Sat 6 Nov: THE BOOGIE DOCTORS featuring LEWIS ELLEN. £10.

Fri 13 & Sat 14 Nov: PETER

WHITE. £25.

Fri 20 Nov: LESLEY ALEXANDER. £15.

Sat 21 Nov: FATE THE JUGGLER. £10.

Fri 27 Nov: PIZZA EXPRESS HOUSE BAND with special guest NATALIE WILLIAMS. £25.

Sat 28 Nov: MATTHEW VANKAN CELEBRATES SINATRA. £20. pizzaexpresslive.co.uk ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL The Precinct, Rochester ME1 2PY Sat 14 Nov 7.30pm: CITY OF ROCHESTER SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA with ROCHESTER CHORAL SOCIETY. Mozart (‘Don Giovanni’ overture), Brahms and Beethoven (Symphony no 9 ‘The Choral’). With four soloists. This is the opening concert in the CRSO’s 2015-16 Concert Season programme. Cathedral Nave £20, Side Nave £10, Children & Students £1. Tickets from Central Theatre, Chatham ME4 4AS (01634 338338) or via medwayticketslive.co.uk. rochestercathedral.org

SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE St William’s Church Walderslade Village Centre, ME5 9LR Sun 1 Nov: KEITH SADLER Singer-songwriter. Pay What You Want. Doors 6pm for 6.30pm start. Part of new initiative The Arts Café, on the first Sunday of the month. southchatham.org SUN PIER HOUSE Medway Street, Chatham ME4 4HF 01634 812805

Thu 5 Nov 7pm: OPEN MIC NIGHT featuring THE MOORE BROTHERS in the Sunspot.

Licensed bar open til late. £2 entry, free for performers.

Fri 4 Dec 7pm: FUNKY CHRISTMAS PARTY with THE PAPER MOON JAZZ CLUB sunpierhouse.co.uk THE WHITE HORSE 46 London Road, Maidstone ME16 8QL Jam night every Sunday from 8.30pm. Sat 7 Nov: FUNKY SOUL REGGAE BAND Sat 14 Nov: FAMILY AFFAIR Sat 28 Nov: BITTEN BY MONKEYS THE WOODVILLE Woodville Place, Gravesend DA12 1DD Box Office: 08442 439480 Thu 26 Nov 1pm: LUNCHTIME CLASSICAL CONCERT with one-handed pianist NICHOLAS MCCARTHY. See 5 Really Good Things p5. £5. woodville.co.uk RECOLLECT MUSIC FAIRS ROCHESTER (Mini Fair) Princes Hall, Corn Exchange High Street, Rochester ME1 10am-4pm. Free admission NEXT FAIR: Sun 29 Nov RAINHAM MARK SOCIAL CLUB (Opp Tesco superstore) ME8 6YX Free parking.

Admission: £1 9.30am-3.30pm.

Refreshments.

NEXT FAIRS: Sun 15 Nov, Sun 13 Dec Information: 07715 635152 or 01227 506368 DO YOU HAVE MUSIC LISTINGS? Our Music listings are compiled by Luke Crook of banjaxxedmusic.wordpress. com. Please send your gig listings to Luke with venue, date, time, ticket price if any and contact information at musiclistings@wowkent.co.uk

Legal advice with a personal touch

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THEATRE/COMEDY BROOK THEATRE Old Town Hall, Chatham ME4 4SE Box Office: 01634 338338 Fri 6 and Sat 7 Nov 7.30pm (2.30pm Sat mat): ADVENTURES OF NARNIA presented by Play on Words and Brook Young People’s Company. A pre-Christmas family favourite. £8, concs available.

Fri 20 Nov 8pm: DIZZY O’DARE CABARET OF CURIOSITIES – Burlesque Special. Delightful decadence with A-list burlesque stars. £12.50 Fri 4 Dec-Thu 24 Dec: THE TIMID HEDGEHOG and the Forgotten Christmas Forest.

Especially for 3 – 6 year olds.

Adults £7.95, child £7.50. medwayticketslive.co.uk CENTRAL THEATRE 170 High Street, Chatham ME4 4AS Box Office: 01634 338338 Thu 12 Nov 7.30pm: THE SIMON AND GARFUNKEL STORY 50th Anniversary Tour. Huge projection photos, original film footage and a live band performing the hits. £18.50, £16.50 Fri 13 Nov 7.30pm: RAT PACK LIVE CHRISTMAS PARTY £22, £20, concs available Fri 20 Nov 7.30pm: THAT’LL BE THE DAY CHRISTMAS SHOW £24.50, £23

medwayticketslive.co.uk MARLOWE THEATRE The Friars, Canterbury CT1 2AS 01227 787787 Tue 10 (7.30pm) & Wed 11 Nov (2.30pm): ROYAL NEW ZEALAND BALLET: A Passing Cloud. Canterbury debut for this world-renowned company with their UK premiere of four new works with the colour and

flavour of the Pacific. £20.50£39.50, concs available.

Thu 12-Sat 14 Nov 7.30pm (Sat mat 2.30pm): ROYAL NEW ZEALAND BALLET: GISELLE New staging of the classic ballet. £26-£43, concs available.

Fri 27 Nov – Sun 10 Jan, various times (see website): SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS. Various prices: cheaper ‘Saver’ and Preview tickets available.

MARLOWE STUDIO: Fri 13 Nov 8pm: House presents the Young Vic production of DISCO PIGS by Enda Walsh. A ‘furious, funny and violent dash through a lifelong friendship at the moment of its destruction’.

Recommended for 14+. Tickets £12, concs £11 marlowetheatre.com (booking fees apply) NUCLEUS ARTS CENTRE 272 High Street, Chatham ME4 4BP Sat 21 Nov 7.30pm: THE ELEMENT IN THE ROOM: A Radioactive Musical Comedy About The Death And Life Of Marie Curie performed by John Hinton and Jo Eagle. An adventurous musical-comedyroad-movie following Marie Curie’s real-life journey across the USA to collect a gram of radium to continue her research. Book at eventjoy. com/o/nucleusarts or call 01634 812108. Adults £8, Under 16s £6. nucleusarts.com ORCHARD THEATRE Home Gardens, Dartford DA1 1ED 01322 220000 Mon 2 – Wed 4 Nov 7.30pm, Wed mat 2.30pm: THE SIGNALMAN by Charles Dickens & THE WAITING ROOM by Robert Aickman, starring Jack Shepherd with Richard Walsh and supporting cast. A double-bill of classic ghost stories. £15-£24, concs available.

Tue 10 – Sat 14 Nov 7.30pm (Thu & Sat mat 2.30pm): PUTTING ON THE RITZ The Song & Dance Extravaganza with the music of George Gershwin, Irving Berlin and Cole Porter. With special ‘Strictly’ guest dancers, Gordana Grandosek and Trent Whiddon. £18 - £29.50.

Concessions and meal deal available.

Thu 26-Sun 29 Nov, day and evening shows (see website): David Walliams’ GANGSTA GRANNY. A Birmingham Stage Company production of muchloved children’s novel prior to its run in the West End. £19.50, Under 16s £15, concs and meal deal available. orchardtheatre.co.uk (booking fee applies)

COMEDY

ARTS CAFÉ at ST WILLIAMS CHURCH Walderslade Village Centre, ME5 9LR Sun 6 Dec, doors open 6pm: JOHN ARCHER. Top UK comedy magician. The café operates a ‘Pay What You Want’ scheme, to make it accessible to all. For more information email arts@ southchatham.org.

BROOK THEATRE Old Town Hall, Chatham ME4 4SE Box Office: 01634 338338 Sat 7 Nov 8pm: MILTON JONES and The Temple Of Daft. As seen in ‘Michael McIntyre’s Roadshow’ and heard on Radio 4. £24 Thu 12 Nov 7.45pm: LAUGHING BOY COMEDY CLUB: Upcoming and established comedians. Food offers available if booked in advance. £11 medwayticketslive.co.uk MARLOWE THEATRE The Friars, Canterbury CT1 2AS 01227 787787 Sun 15 Nov 7.30pm: ALAN DAVIES – Little Victories. £25, concs available.

Tue 17 Nov 7.30pm: ONE MAN BREAKING BAD The

Unauthorised Parody with L.A. actor Miles Allen. £19.50.

MARLOWE STUDIO: Thu 5 Nov 8pm: THE ALTERNATIVE COMEDY SHOW Discover some of the newest acts around. £10, concs available. marlowetheatre. com (booking fees apply) ORCHARD THEATRE Home Gardens, Dartford DA1 1ED 01322 220000 Sat 21 Nov 8pm: STEWART FRANCIS Pun Gent. Star of ‘Mock the Week’ and ‘Live at the Apollo’. Master of the oneliner. £22.

Sun 29 Nov 8pm: MILTON JONES and the Temple of Daft.

See The Brook. £25. orchardtheatre.co.uk (booking fee applies) OAKWOOD HOUSE HOTEL Oakwood Road, Maidstone ME16 8AE 01622 620720 info@oakwoodhousehotel. co.uk Fri 6 Nov 7pm: THE LAUGHING POD: MC PAUL RICKETTS with BOBBY MURDOCK (opener); musical comedy star ROBERT WHITE (middle); and headline acts from NINIA BENJAMIN and MIKE GUNN. Food available on the evening. Pre-booking required. £10. oakwoodhousehotel.co.uk THE WOODVILLE STUDIO Woodville Place, Gravesend DA12 1DD 08442 439480 boxoffice@gravesham.gov.uk Thu 26 Nov 8pm: LAUGHING BOY COMEDY CLUB: Acts TBC. £10, or £14.50 with curry. woodville.seatlive.com

SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE ARTS CAFÉ

1st Sunday of the month:

Free Same Day Delivery Order online or tel: 01634 843 024 www.rochesterflorists.co.uk

Send your love with Christmas flowers!

1 Nov: Singer-songwriter KEITH SADLER 6 Dec: Comedy magician JOHN ARCHER

PUBLIC LECTURE SERIES

2nd Sunday of the month: 8 Nov: THE STORY OF GOD Rev’d Dr Alan le Grys

Stephen Harries

Clas ses AvaiNow labl e

Stained Glass design and restoration E: stephenharries.glass@gmail.com T: 0779 608 0338 Facebook: Stephen Harries Stained Glass Rochester & Goldfinch Galleries Whitstable

Doors 6pm for 6.30pm start Free to all – Pay What You Want!

Paint Your Own Pottery & Craft Studio Opens 10am-5pm Thu to Sat Sunday by appointment only

DISCOUNTS ON ALL CHRISTMAS STOCK! Nucleus Arts, Tel: 07910 529271 Chatham E: info@potterycrafts4u.com ME4 4BP W: potterycrafts4u.com

St William’s Church, Walderslade Village Centre ME5 9LR southchatham.org

Hot off the Hazelnut Press Printroom Sale Sunday 13th December - 10am-4pm

New work, favourites and bargains

Ridley Road Rochester T: 07702 269972 E:Heatherhtt@mac.com hazelnut-press.com

PET PORTRAITS www.emmabaker.me.uk

The Working Artist The final exhibition of the year by The Historic Dockyard, Chatham, co-curated by Francis Iles Galleries, is a collection of fine art and illustrations by landscape painter and illustrator, Rowland Hilder ANNA MORELL reviews Rowland Hilder loved the coast so much that along with a friend, he bought an old lifeboat from which to paint it. The sea captured his imagination. Boats.

Salt-spattered skies. It was a love to which he would return, in oils and watercolours, decade after decade. This, and the landscapes of the Kentish Weald which made him so popular in his day, make the Dockyard’s No.1 Smithery a fitting location for this retrospective exhibition.

Hilder was born a Long Island New Yorker to English parents in 1905. The family moved back to their native Kent at the outbreak of war, when he was nine. He studied drawing at Goldsmith's College in London, and taught himself watercolours by studying

the classic English masters, eventually becoming President of the Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours in 1964. In his time, he was a popular, populist painter and prolific illustrator, producing a series of works for Shell's Guide to the Countryside, and countless illustrations and sketches for novels.

It is in the illustrations that his magic really lies. Little pictures full of life. Effortless in their execution, charming and delightful. Here, select sketches are grouped from books. Lively, the kind that fill bibliophiles with glee and nostalgia.

Another wall has a silk screen print of a boat; an illustration from a Christmas card, with tiny golden lights pinpricking out from cottages caked in snow; and one of his wife Edith's flower illustrations (they would often collaborate – he, drawing the landscapes, she filling

in the blooms in the foreground).

There is something of the Betjeman about these pieces – something entirely ordinary, and comfortingly wonderful because of that. It's a pity that too much of this work is cluttered into cases. There is so much of it, and, contrary to the feel of its curation, its commercial purpose in no way detracts from the merits of its execution. Indeed, it represents some of the artist’s finest work.

The maritime works are a hit and miss affair. The oils feel flat and workaday, lacking strength of narrative and execution or a proper command of light. But the watercolours absolutely sparkle.

Hilder had a way of working that floods his backgrounds with colour and detail, while his subjects – farmers, Oasts, farmhouses – retain the sparseness of sketches. This makes them pop – the space in the hull of a boat, or a wall of a farmhouse, glowing bright and white – the silence on the canvas becoming the noise. It's a neat and powerful trick, one no doubt gleaned from his background in illustration. ‘Penny Platts Farm’, an understated study in white, black, greys and a scumbled dazzle of cerulean blue, is the poster print example of this, and you can buy it in many forms in the gift shop after.

His Kentish landscapes fall into the same mould as the boats. The oils are clunky while the watercolours calmly zing, frozen in temperature, space and time. The watercolours are absolutely lovely. Contemplative, timeless, and full of light and weather rustling on the edge of a palpable moment.

Hilder specialised in watercolour winterscapes, noting that none of the masters really did much with that particular season. It's nowhere near enough of a USP to allow him to join them, but they certainly are pretty.

A significant niggle: the popular classics in the background Beethoven's Fifth, ‘Ave Maria’ and the ‘Flight Of The Valkyries’ - do little to enhance the subtleties in Hilder’s watercolours of water meadows and market towns. They do, unfortunately, enhance the maiden aunt table mat qualities of his oils. You want those watercolours to suck you up quietly; to absorb you into the paper. It's hard to allow them that space with that terribly tasteful classical soundtrack going on.

The rest of the exhibition is mainly made up of pictures Hilder painted on his travels, a reconstruction of his work space and a corner given over to works by his family. None are particularly noteworthy. The works by his son-in-law are positively gauche. But also nestled in that corner are two portraits – one, a pencil sketch: boyish, humble,

curious, endearing – Hilder by Hilder. The other, a bold, confident oil painting of his wife that made me gasp with how full of personality she was, and a slight sadness that I can't really get to know enough in this exhibition about either person positively shining out of that quiet corner.

‘Rowland Hilder – The Working Artist’ runs at No.1 Smithery at The Historic Dockyard, Chatham Maritime, ME4 4TY (sat nav) until 29 November.

Opening times: 10am-4pm. Tel: 01634 823800. Exhibition entry is included in the price of an annual ticket. thedockyard.co.uk

VISUAL ART ALLINGTON LIBRARY Castle Road, Maidstone ME16 0PR 01622 683435 Mon-Fri 10am-6pm, Sat 10am-2pm Tue 10-24 Nov: ART EXHIBITION by pupils of Kings Reach Pupil Referral Unit, led by artist Jodie Devlin.

THE BEANEY HOUSE OF ART AND KNOWLEDGE 18 High Street, Canterbury CT1 2RA 01227 862162 Mon to Wed 9am to 5pm, Thu 9am to 7pm, Fri and Sat 9am to 5pm, Sun 10am to 5pm To Sun 15 Nov: THE BRITISH WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHY AWARDS ‘Please Pay what you can’. Sat 31 Oct to Sun 31 Jan: CARDBOARD CANTERBURY in The Front Room. Free entry.

Canterbury as seen by those who have experience of homelessness in the city.

Sat 21 Nov to Sun 28 Feb: FIRMIN & POSTGATE: THE MAKING OF SMALLFILMS. Peter Firmin and Oliver Postgate’s Smallfilms created children’s programmes such as Bagpuss and The Clangers using pre-CGI animation.

‘Please Pay What You Can’. thebeaney.co.uk BELOW 65 GALLERY Gilbert & Clark Frame and Print 65 High Street, Maidstone ME14 1SR 01622 685146 Free entry Open 9.30am-4.30pm Mon-Sat 13 - 30 Nov: JOHN WOODBERRY: ‘In Search of Bill Evans’. Directional pen drawings giving the artist’s response to 13 tracks by jazz musician Bill Evans. Johnwoodberry.squarespace.com. gilbertandclark.com BLAKE GALLERY Civic Centre, Woodville Place Gravesend DA12 1DD Open Mon – Sat 9am-8pm, Sun 10am-2pm Tue 3 – Sun 22 Nov: TOTALLY TOUCHABLE. Works by KAB Gravesend Art Group and Wendy Daws. See page 18.

Free entry.

FRANCIS ILES GALLERIES 103 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX 01634 843081 Opens Mon-Sat 9.30am5.30pm. Free entry AUTUMN EXHIBITION: TRAVELS AND TURINO featuring Michael Chaplin RWS, Piera Luisolo and Luisa Albert + new works from the Gallery Artists. See website for full details. Christmas Room now open! francis-iles.com GUILDHALL MUSEUM High Street, Rochester ME1 1PY 01634 332900 Open Tue-Sun 10am-5pm. Free entry. To 10 Jan 2016: SIEGE 2015 Interactive exhibition about the siege of Rochester Castle in 1215. guildhallmuseumrochester. co.uk HISTORIC DOCKYARD CHATHAM Chatham Maritime ME4 4TY (sat nav) 01634 823800 Open 10am-6pm (to 24 Oct); 10am-4pm (to 29 Nov) Entry included in normal admission price.

To 29 Nov: ROWLAND HILDER - THE WORKING ARTIST Major retrospective co-curated

by Francis Iles Galleries featuring many of the iconic paintings that made Rowland’s name synonymous with Kentish and Winter landscapes.

See page 26. thedockyard.co.uk HUGUENOT MUSEUM 95 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX 01634 789347 Opens Wed-Sat 10am-5pm + Bank Hol Mon 10am-4pm Artworks and treasures. £4, concs £3, family £10, under 5s free. huguenotmuseum.org LV21 Gillingham Pier, Pier Approach Road, Gillingham ME7 1RX 31 Oct & 1, 5, 6, 7 & 8 November: MUD & CLINKER: IMOGEN TAYLOR-NOBLE New ceramic works using foraged coastal materials. See website

for accompanying workshop programme. Open daily 11am5pm. lv21.co.uk/events

Faversham Magna Carta and Textus Roffensis. Free entry. rochestercathedral.org

MACLS (Craft Café) Eastgate, Rochester ME1 1EW To 18 Dec: LEARNERS EXHIBITION in the newly revamped café. Get a feel for the place and find out more about the creative courses on offer. macls.com

ROCHESTER ART GALLERY & CRAFT CASE Medway Visitor Information Centre, 95 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX 01634 338319 Open Mon-Sat 10am-5pm, Sun 10.30am – 5pm (closed on Sundays Oct - Mar). Free entry To 14 Nov: ANIMA: Paintings

by Dan Perfect; ceramics by TOMMASO CORVI-MORA in the Craft Case. Fri 27 Nov to 14 Feb: DRAWN TO OHIO: TEXTILES BY SHELLY GOLDSMITH. Meet the artist at the opening reception, Thu 26 Nov 6.30pm-8.30pm. See interview p.12.

MAIDSTONE MUSEUM & BENTLIF ART GALLERY St Faith's St, Maidstone ME14 1LH 01622 602838 Opens Mon-Sat 10am-5pm, closed Sun & Bank Holidays To Sun 8 Nov: CONTEMPORARY BRITISH WATERCOLOURS Sat 21 Nov – Sat 20 Feb: THE MAGIC OF MASKS & PUPPETS. Admission free. museum.maidstone.gov.uk NUCLEUS ARTS 272 High Street, Chatham ME4 4BP 01634 812108 Gallery: Mon- 10am-4pm (café to 5.30pm) Closed Sun. Free entry. All welcome to previews.

To 5 Nov (1pm): ROCHESTER & WEST KENT ART SOCIETY. Preview: 30 Oct 6-8pm.

Fri 6 – Thu 19 Nov (1pm): ‘OCEANS, LAND & SKIES’ 2015 Art Exhibition: Kent Autistic Trust. Preview: Fri 6 Nov 2.30-4.30pm. Fri 20 Nov – Thu 3 Dec (1pm): RONDA NOW VOYAGER INN OF THE SIXTH HAPPINESS: David Wilkes. Preview: Fri 20 Nov 6-8pm. nucleusarts.com

ROYAL ENGINEERS MUSEUM Prince Arthur Road, Gillingham ME7 1UR Tel: 01634 822839 Open Tue-Fri 9am-5pm; Weekends & Bank Hol: 11.30am-5pm. Normal admission charges apply. To 15 Nov: FRONT 1914-18: The Great War in 3D. To 20 Dec: RESPONSES TO THE ARCHIVE by final year students on UCA’s BA (Hons) Photography Course. re-museum.co.uk

NUCLEUS ARTS ROCHESTER 75 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX Open 9am-5pm Mon-Fri; Sat 10am-5pm; Sun 11-4pm 01634 812108 Shop gallery, café and garden.

ST ANDREW'S ARTS CENTRE Royal Pier Road Gravesend DA12 2BD Free entry. Sat 7 & Sun 8 Nov: SHOWCASE KENT Photography exhibition by ten local photographers.

10am-5pm. Sat 14 & Sun 15 Nov: ARTIST & ARTISAN An exhibition and sale. Sat 21 & Sun 22 Nov: ACTIVE ARTISTS. Meet the eight artists taking part and watch them work. graveshamarts.co.uk

ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL The Precinct, Rochester ME1 1SX 01634 843366 Mon-Sat 10am-4pm, Sun 12-4pm To Sun 6 Dec: MAGNA CARTA REDISCOVERED Major interactive exhibition pairing

SUN PIER GALLERY Sun Pier House, Medway Street, Chatham ME4 4HF 01634 401549 Open Tue-Sun 10am - 4pm Closed Mon. See the Artist Space.

Visit our Festively Fabulous

Christmas Room

Drawn to Ohio Textiles by Shelly Goldsmith

Rochester Art Gallery and Craft Case, Medway Visitor Information Centre, Ground Floor, 95 High Street, Rochester, Kent ME1 1LX

27 November 2015 > 14 February 2016

Opening times may vary during bank holidays, please check in advance.

Free admission www.enjoymedway.co.uk Phone 01634 338319 or email arts@medway.gov.uk

Grierson Publications proudly presents

NB GURUNG

Nepalese Watercolour Artist www.nbgurungart.com

View his amazing artwork at St Ronan’s School Christmas Market, Water Lane, Hawkhurst, Kent TN18 5DJ on Sat 5 Dec 10am - 3pm Grierson Publications, 11-13 Stone Street, Cranbrook, Kent TN17 3HF Tel: 01580 715856 www.griersonpublications.com

PROUDLY SUPPORTING

Registered Charity No 1103669

THE ARTIST’S SPACE

SONIC MASK

BY DARRELL HAWKINS

EXHIBITION AND CHARITY ART AUCTION

Following a terrific response to their callout to artists for works based on the theme of ‘Challenge’, Medway based charity the Challenging Behaviour Foundation is holding a month-long fundraising exhibition at Sun Pier House Gallery, Chatham. Contemporary artist and recent Saatchi exhibitor, Darrell Hawkins, has also submitted work for the show and all artworks will be included in a Charity Art Auction at the end of the month.

The exhibition runs from 3 – 29 November at Sun Pier House Gallery, Medway Street, Chatham ME4 4HF. Borstal, Rochester, Delce, Strood, Frindsbury, Wainscott, Upnor, Hoo, St Friday 6 Nov 6pm-9pm Private View & Meet the artists Tuesday 10 Nov 6.30pm Rochester Film Society will be screening of a ‘Mission to Lars’ with pre-show karaoke Friday 20 Nov 7.30pm Quiz Night – tables available, see News.

Sunday 29 Nov 2pm Charity Auction of artwork

The Challenging Behaviour Foundation is a Medway based charity supporting families caring for a loved one with a severe learning disability whose behaviour challenges. challengingbehaviour.org.uk

RICHARD WATTS CHARITIES

art competition

RICHARD WATTS CHARITIES

lESSER

Borstal, Rochester, Delce, Strood, Frindsbury, Wainscott, Upnor, Hoo, Stoke, Grain, Allhallows, Cooling, St Mary’s

grain stoke hoo

stoke

hoo

Borstal

upnor

grain

cooling frindsbury

frindsbury

delce allhallows

, Rochester,

Strood

, Rochester,

Borstal

tt, Upnor, Hoo, Stoke, Grain, Allhallows, Cooling, St Mary’s Hoo, High Halstow, Gads Hill and Higham

Borstal

rochester

Theme: Lesser Known Rochester Entries will be accepted in any 2D or 3D medium, including photography.

Every entry will be considered for purchase

by Richard Watts Charities. In addition to the cash prizes Richard Watts Charities will hold an exhibition of short-listed work at Nucleus Gallery in Chatham for two weeks from 8 April – 21 April 2016.

There is a £10 fee per entry, with a maximum of five entries per person.

For further details and to enter please visit www.richardwatts.org.uk Email fleur.boyce@richardwatts.org.uk or telephone 01634 823115 for more information.

Closing date Friday 26 February 2016.

DESIGN: www.astonesthrowdesign.co.uk

PRIZES: 1ST - £1000 2ND - £500 3RD - £250

admFree issio n

Christmas Craft and Makers Fair

Fabulous gifts from local designer makers and craftspeople Friday 27 November 9am to 5pm Saturday 28 November 9am to 4pm Plus: Saturday 2pm to 4pm Family Christmas Craft making session: make your own Christmas cards and crackers and play festive games! All ages. ÂŁ2 per child Plus: Both days 10.30am to 4pm Pop up stand serving seasonal hot drinks and mince pies!

Plus: All day Friday and Saturday Free Christmas activities including a Christmas quiz and the chance to make your own Christmas tree decoration!

The Beaney House of Art and Knowledge 18 High Street, Canterbury

thebeaney.co.uk @beaneyfrontroom