Hilgrove Arts Projects
Hilgrove Creates
Hilgrove Creates has brought together 6 local artists living on the Hilgrove and Chalcots estates in Camden to share their artistic skills with other neighbours in the borough. Over the course of 2 months residents have met to learn about painting, sculpting, script-writing, theatre performance, film-making and photography.
The aim of the project was to build on the skills, knowledge and experience of local residents, and provide an opportunity for them to contribute to the local community. The project also aimed to make art accessible by providing free, local workshops and encouraging residents to form connections with one another over a shared interest. In total, this project has reached 53 Camden residents.
Watch the Hilgrove Creates video below to find out more about the project.
Humans of Hilgrove
In August 2020, the Hilgrove Community Organisers were thinking about how to get to know their residents on the estate and launch Hilgrove Community Action.Their idea? ‘Humans of Hilgrove’. The photo exhibition celebrated the people, stories and diversity of Hilgrove. It contained portrait photographs of residents, and their experiences of living on Hilgrove.
“During this process, we have learnt so much about the estate and our neighbours.”
Kaamila, Hilgrove Community Organiser
Between August and October, the Community Organisers met with almost 20 residents. They spoke about their memories of the estate, and had their photo taken. The participants ranged from 13- 98 years in age, and included those who had lived on the estate for less than 5 months, to those who had lived there for over 60 years!
The exhibition launched on October 8th, with 17 boards located outside, across the Hilgrove estate. As well as the photograph and experiences, the boards also contained a QR code linking to the ‘Humans of Hilgrove’ website. Here, you can view more of the interview with each participant, video footage from the interviews, and extra photographs.
The exhibition caught the eye of many residents, who have since become involved in the project. It has been featured on BBC London’s Instagram, the Ham & High, and the Camden New Journal.
