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It’s been a bit of a year to review, to say the least! We started 2021 in lockdown and it seems rules and restrictions will be with us for a while yet as we continue to navigate Covid-19. Despite the devastating impact the pandemic has had on businesses of all shapes and sizes, I have…

Over the last year, I’ve had the pleasure of being paired up with Joanne Taylor as part of The European Pointed Pen Collective (EPPC) ‘calligrabuddy’ scheme. We’ve exchanged envelopes on a monthly basis, with my contributions talking inspiration from a lucky dip of vintage first class stamps I bought on Etsy from Piece of the…

Tyne and Wear Archives and Museums (TWAM) has unveiled its first programme of events celebrating the return of the Lindisfarne Gospels to the region in 2022. The Lindisfarne Gospels will be on display at Newcastle’s Laing Art Gallery from September 17 to December 3, on loan from the British Library. This will be the first time the ancient book,…

The Cultural Spring has been granted £1m to extend its award-winning work by three more years. As an artist that has benefited greatly from the project, having been involved since 2015, I’m delighted by this news and couldn’t be happier for the team. The project has been increasing the number of people taking part in…

As we move into autumn, I’m entering the sixth year of my involvement with The Cultural Spring. The project has been connecting people in Sunderland and South Tyneside with the arts since 2014 and not even a global pandemic has been able to stop its amazing work. Its latest programme – dubbed #CreativeAutumn – sees…

Manuscript Pen Company has launched this year’s World Calligraphy Day with the aim of spreading joy and positivity after a tough 18 months. The brand is hoping to encourage people to put pen to paper and share their love of words with others on Wednesday, August 11, 2021. Founded by Manuscript Pen Company in 2017,…

Can you believe Creative Calligraphy is celebrating its seventh business birthday? And what a year the last one has been. I spent my sixth business birthday in lockdown, having cancelled 10 calligraphy workshops, two private classes, two talks/demos and a whole term of weekly classes. Several events I was due to take part in –…

Autumn, Winter – and now Spring! A third seasonal activity pack – Spring Wellness – has been launched by The Shipley Art Gallery in Gateshead to help people unlock their creative potential from the comfort of their own homes. Several north east artists have once again created activities inspired by the gallery’s collection and the…

An exhibition exploring Islamic art, women and creativity, has been launched at Arts Centre Washington. Srijoni – meaning (the) creative – is the culmination of a project involving women from ethnically diverse communities in Sunderland and South Tyneside. They worked alongside artists Padma Rao and Roohia Syed-Ahmed to explore the notion of culture, cultural entitlement…

How have you been keeping in touch with people over the last year? Phone calls? Video conferencing? E-mails? Letters? I’ve been putting pen to paper on a number of projects in the last 12 months, each one designed to spark joy via snail mail. It started with an envelope exchange via The European Pointed Pen…