Arts Council England Commissions
AN APPRECIATION BY PHIL GIBBY, AREA DIRECTOR, ARTS COUNCIL ENGLAND
We were delighted to invest in a series of high quality arts commissions for Bristol 2014. Through a number of small investments an ambitious and impressive arts programme has emerged that has moved and inspired audiences across the city’s many communities on an exceptional scale, building new partnerships and bringing people together. These projects and others like them see artists, audiences, communities, eminent speakers and young people united in joint commemoration of one of the most poignant dates in our recent history. Through educational and artistic activities like this we can begin to develop our understanding of the many different faces of war, our responses to it and how it resonates deeply within our society today. On Remembrance Day 2014, I sat in Bristol Museum and listened to the magnificent Lydbrook Band playing Liz Lane’s Rosenberg song cycle Silver Rose. It was an incredible experience and just one of many this year. This unique record of the arts commissions for Bristol 2014 gives us all a chance to reflect and remember whilst providing a rich legacy to take forward. Phil Gibby Area Director, South West, Arts Council England
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