03/05/2011 - Permalink

Design a flag for Shropshire Olympian Festival

Related topics: Leisure, culture and heritage

People from across Shropshire are invited to work with international textile artist Wendy Meadley and create 10 legacy flags for the historic Shropshire Olympian Festival on 17, 18 and 19 June 2011.

The event is a celebration of the 1864 Shropshire Olympian Festival which grew out of the pioneering Olympian Games, started by William Penny Brookes in nearby Much Wenlock and went on to inspire the Olympics we recognise today.

Workshops will take place on:

  • Wednesday 4 May 2011 from 6.30pm to 9pm at Disability Arts in Shropshire (DaSh), Unit 45, Hartley Business Centre, Monkmoor Road, Shrewsbury.
  • Tuesday 10 May 2011 from 6pm to 9pm at Oswestry Community Action (Qube), Oswald Road, Oswestry.
  • Thursday 12 May 2011 from 6pm to 9pm at Mayfair Community Centre, Easthope Road, Church Stretton.

The flag designs will be themed around Olympian ideals, which include both physical activities and the finer arts.  The flags will form part of important  decorations in The Quarry park , which were described at the original Shropshire Olympian Festival as having “beautifully arranged colours…the like of which was never before seen in Shrewsbury” (Shrewsbury Chronicle, 1864).

Wendy Meadley said:

“We welcome anyone interested in helping to create 10 original designs to stand out and proud in the vast Quarry park during Shropshire’s extraordinary historic Olympian Festival.  During the workshops we will play around with themes and ideas, and when we’ve got something we’re happy with I will fabricate the designs into nylon to ensure they are durable as legacy flags for years to come.”

The workshops are ideal for families and groups of friends as well as individuals with a flare for capturing a simple symbolic image out of a large idea.  All ages/abilities are welcome.

Councillor Steve Charmley, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for culture and leisure, said:

“This is a fantastic opportunity to design an image or a caption that captures not only the Olympian values but our ‘Shropshireness’ too.”

The Shropshire Olympian Festival, which will be free for participants and visitors, has already won a Government Inspire Mark, to recognise its importance as a major event in the Cultural Olympiad, and it has also been supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund and Arts Council England.

For full details of the Shropshire Olympian Festival and to register your interest call 01743 252305 or email customer.service@shropshire.gov.uk.