By Dan Thompson
Mermaid costumes, paintings about the sea, and poems about everything from sewage to rising sea levels make a water-themed First Friday at Margate’s Marine Studios.
The free, family-friendly event on 5 April will explore water through art, science and play. The evening at the studios at 17 Albert Terrace runs from 6pm-9pm and is suitable for all ages. It will feature activities and a performance from Poets for the Planet, costumes from drag artist Shelly Grotto and the Mergate Mermaid Parade, and a water-themed exhibit from Dan Thompson Studios.
Local studios, artists, shops and venues are invited to contribute to the theme in their own way on the same day and Marine Studios will share their events, activities and promotions on social media.
Poets for the Planet founder and award-winning poet Jacqueline Saphra said: “Poets for the Planet sets out to use poetry and creativity to understand and explore the climate crisis, so we’re excited to be part of this event. From the sewage crisis to rising sea levels, water has emerged as an important theme for us and we can’t wait to explore this with Margate’s community.”
The event is supported by Arts Council England as part of a partnership between Co-relate Communication CIC, Kent Poetry CIC and HKD, which founded Marine Studios as Margate’s first co-working space.
This is part of a full programme of events and workshops at Marine Studios bringing together Margate’s writing community with artists, designers, and creatives from Thanet and further afield.
Launched in December, the Writers’ Room at Marine Studios has quickly become a hub for writers of all backgrounds and means with affordable desk spaces, the highly popular Writer’s Block writing sprints, monthly poetry critique and reading groups, and Margate Fiction Writers, which has its first session 6.30-8.30pm on Monday 15 April.
See the full list of events and activities at www.marinestudios.com/events.