[ TEXT ONLY: HOME PAGE | GRAPHICS & TEXT: HOMEPAGE ]
[ PUBLIC ART | GEORGES HOUSE GALLERY | CELEBRATORY ARTS | TRAINING & EDUCATION | THE GIANTS PROJECT ]
[ NEWSROOM | PUBLICATIONS | CONTACT US | LINKS | NEWSLETTER | SLIDESHOW ]
It is believed that every community has a giant slumbering in the landscape and that each one can simply be 'woken up' by creating a body for them to inhabit.
The five East Kent Giants were created by Strange Cargo using traditional skills researched on a visit to France in 2001. Torrent, the Littlebourne Giant has his origins in the river Nailbourne which runs through his village; Hawkinge Harry grew out of the village's historic association with flight; Flora reflects the green necklace of woodland that surrounds her home in Singleton; Herne Bay Lily mirrors the town's seaside and architectural heritage, and John Drury was a real mayor and hero from Sandwich who was kidnapped and murdered by the French in 1457 and returned the town in several pieces. These Giants were made by Strange Cargo artists for and with their communities, and were financed in the main by Make It Real, the urban cultural programme for Canterbury and East Kent which ended in 2006. Since then the Giants have begun to spread beyond East Kent and there has been much interest in them across the UK. Joss, the Margate Giant, was the first of these, commissioned by Turner Contemporary in Margate.
Our ethos of access, participation and excellence underpins all of our projects. Why is participation so important? We believe in an innovative and contemporary approach to participation, and recognise that if people are happy and willing to work with us to make a carnival costume or lantern, and enjoy the experience of taking tot he streets then they are more likely to put their trust in us and explore more challenging creative opportunities.
The Giants are born of much interaction with the people of the communities in which they will live. Initially, the Company holds an 'awareness day' in the town or village to which people come and put forward ideas on what form the Giant's character may take, based usually on myths and legends surrounding the area. Children draw pictures of who the Giant might be; people tell Strange Cargo about the history of the town they live in which might influence the Giant's appearance. Following the awareness day, the team begin to build the Giant in residence in the community itself if possible. Open days are held where people can come along and try their hand at Giant-making techniques and other fun activities, and see how their own Giant is progressing. At the Open Days the public are asked to suggest a name for the Giant. During the whole process Strange Cargo often has trainee artists and volunteers from the community itself working alongside the established team, learning the techniques and skills themselves. When the Giant is finished, he or she is ceremonially presented to the community by Strange Cargo in an 'awakening ceremony' and given their name. From that moment on, the Giant is owned by the community and its diary is organised by a Giant Association, which Strange Cargo helps set up before handing them the reins.
The Giants have proved to be an immensely powerful tool in encouraging communication and involvement, not just between towns in the UK, but also across international borders. Brought out for carnivals, festivals, fetes and parades by their own associations, the Giants maintain links between communities which might not have been in contact before, and foster great relations between them. They also generate a pride in their own home town-each association is immensely proud and protective of their own Giant.
Traditionally on the Continent Giants marry, effectively 'twinning' towns through wedlock. Many of the Giants made by Strange Cargo are looking for eligible suitors (although some aren't the marrying kind!). Already they are often invited to France to participate in processions and carnivals there with the traditional French géants, and they are forming a strong international bond which is extremely beneficial to both parties. It doesn't take long before the Giants begin to take on their own personalities, and Strange Cargo is proud to see them forming links and friendships and becoming part of their towns' character.