Eye - 17 October 2014

From patchwork to Quaker spotting

Joyful patchwork

A delighted Quaker prison chaplain recently visited ‘Catching Dreams’, the annual Koestler Trust exhibition.

Joolz Saunders, of Norfolk and Waveney Area Meeting, said: ‘Imagine my thrill walking into the exhibition… and seeing the patchwork shoulder bag I had encouraged one of “my” ex-prisoners in Norwich to submit hanging up on display!’

The exhibition features a wide range of work from offenders, secure patients and detainees of all ages – from drawings, paintings and photography to poetry, music and textiles.

Joolz explained: ‘Over 8,000 works of art and craft pieces were submitted for this annual display of prisoners’ creative work. The exhibition of well over 100 items is an awe-inspiring proof of the sheer skill, imagination and creative energy that is locked up “inside”.’

The Koestler Trust is a prison arts charity that has been encouraging and exhibiting prisoners’ artwork for over fifty years. Joolz said: ‘as well as awarding prizes it provides mentoring schemes which assist prisoners after their discharge to further their artistic lives – many of them with great success.’ The ‘Catching Dreams’ exhibition itself has been curated by graduates of the Trust’s mentoring programmes, in collaboration with the Southbank Centre.

Several ex-prisoners spoke at the exhibition’s official opening. Joolz reports that they ‘gave very moving accounts of their journey from total despair to their triumphant achievements, having written, drawn, painted and crafted their way to freedom and positive lives. You could feel their joy and zest for life!

‘Service as a Quaker prison chaplain has its full share of sad, challenging and frustrating times but it also regularly reminds us that “there is that of God in everyone” and this exhibition is another proof of that truth.’

‘Catching Dreams’ will be on display at the Royal Festival Hall in London until 30 November.

Spied in the press

Two very different mentions of Quakers popped up in the press recently.

A tongue-in-cheek article in the Financial Times caught Epping Friend Alan Fricker’s attention.

Journalist Lisa Pollack wrote a light-hearted piece in September about how different phone operating systems define people’s identities. In a Star Wars analogy, she compared Apple to a domineering Empire and competing companies, running Android operating systems, to a ragtag, motley group of rebels.

One paragraph caught Alan’s eye. In it Windows phone users were described as being ‘somewhat like Quakers. While it’s broadly understood that they are devoted to the “Live Tiles” on their homescreens and cannot shut up about them, no one else is sure exactly what they stand for, least of all themselves. But they seem to have made a decision they are happy with, so everyone can agree that they are largely inoffensive and certainly not a threat of any kind.’

Thankfully, not all recent mentions of Friends have been in this vein. Adrienne Jeorrett got in touch with Eye when she spotted a letter to Times Higher Education in September.

Farah Mendlesohn, head of English, communication, film and media at Anglia Ruskin University, wrote: ‘Last year I offered an afternoon course in listening skills to members of my department in response to requests. I found a listening skills facilitator by contacting the local Quaker Meeting as Quakers have three centuries of “listening skills” to draw on. I would recommend this source of support to anyone else wishing to strengthen their listening skills.’

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