Hillaballoo

In a bit more than 6 weeks, it will be Hillaballoo.

We have done some of the hard work, organising activities, getting forms filled, raising some funds, putting leaflets in 4,000 Hilly Telegraphs which will be hitting mats this weekend. There are a few things still to sort out, and we could still do with more contributors of activities or helpers on the day. If you’re interested to find out more, come along to a drink (hopefully in the garden) at Skehans on the corner of Kitto and Gellatly Road, at 8.30 on Wednesday 11 June.  

Without too much effort so far, we already seem to have plenty going on for Hillaballoo (July 19th 2008):

The Young Friends of the Park are organising park conservation activities, in the lower park. That’s your chance to get into the pond.

The Young Friends are also organising art activities, aiming to get more children and young people involved in park activities.

The Telegraph Hill Craft Fair will be taking place that day.

There will be a film night in the Centre that evening.

Friends of the Livesey Museum for Children will be doing creative activities, raising awareness of the campaign to reopen the Museum.

The Amazing Camera Obscura is back again by popular demand.

The Telegraph Hill Society will have a stall, with some extra activities.

There will also be some wandering joke collectors and local artists doing some ’stuff’. 

Put the date in your diary and start planning your summery outfits and contents of your picnic hamper.

It’s been pointed out correctly that 2009 is actually year of the telescope, or the International Year of Astronomy. http://www.iau.org/iau0702.486.0.html

Unfortunately, if you Google ‘year of the telescope’, the previous post in this website comes to the very top. At least it shows that doing a blog helps get publicity for local community projects, but it also shows how the internet can spread falsities as well as knowledge. I shouldn’t have got that wrong. It was lazy of me.

Please bring donations of art materials (especially card, heavy paper, thick felt pens) - for the art tent.

Useful items to bring include picnic tables, chairs, big umbrellas or tents, plastic sheeting, and a recycling bin or two.

If you are a musician/group and feel confident to do a spot without amplification, you can pitch in following the performance by Nouvelle Croix in mid-afternoon.   

You can help support art activities, such as drawings of clouds and shadows, and the skyline, and portraits of dogs & people.

The event is unfunded, but is costing some money, so there will be a donations box.

Please upload any photos to the Flickr group ‘Telegraph Hill Visions’.

This is a reminder that Hillaballoo is a Power Party. This means that all steps are taken to reduce its carbon footprint. A party is a great way to get people outside of their many homes, where they would otherwise be boiling kettles, watching TV and playing computer games. See http://powerparties.wordpress.com/ for more information.

It’s 42 days until Hillaballoo. It’s time to start publicising it so the whole community in and around the Hill knows about it. We will be at the Farmer’s Market next Saturday, on the Telegraph Hill Society table with flyers and ideas. Help with spreading the word would be much appreciated. Here’s how:

Give out some flyers or put up a poster - pick up a few at the Market, or from 152 Waller Road, or email bridget.mckenzie@flowassociates.com for an e-copy, or download one from http://filexoom.com/pupload/view/23437

Send out an email or a listing in a newsletter or blog, using this text:

Hillaballoo is an event celebrating views and visions of Telegraph Hill. Take part or share your own arts and community activities. Or simply enjoy the view and the Amazing Camera Obscura with your picnic and your friends. Saturday 21st July, Top Park and Cafe Orange, Kitto Road, noon til late. See http://hillaballoo.wordpress.com for more.  

The publicity will be helped greatly if you can dream up a brilliant contribution of your own, however small, and let us know as soon as you can.

Finally, put the date in the diary and tell your friends.

Bill Blanco is a local artist who teaches photography at art colleges and also acts as the treasurer for the Telegraph Hill Centre. He has very kindly worked on a series of five photographic compositions for Hillaballoo publicity. One of them is used in the header for this website - with pieces chopped off to fit I’m afraid. Hopefully there will be a chance to see good prints of the photos around the day as using them in publicity doesn’t do them justice. Bill uses his own unusual technique for joining each photo together to make a broad scene, so that there is a jagged external outline. The semi-seamlessness between each separate photo and the width of the finished image gives a strong impression that you are looking at the real scene. But the irregular edge strongly reminds you that the scene is created with rectangles formatted by a camera.  

Many thanks to Bill.

Today was the Farmer’s Market in the Park, on a ridiculously sunny day. All the trees are starting to leaf up, the playground was buzzing, and you could sit chatting for hours without that nip that nags you to go indoors and get your hands round a cup of tea. I’m starting to spread the word about Hillaballoo and everyone seems to like the idea. Read the page ’What is Hillaballoo?’ to find out more.