Octopus Garden opens this weekend
Sedgefield is fast becoming the mosaic capital in Africa as a result of the Sedgefield community mosaic art tourism and job creation project, Masithandane, believes the organisation’s chairperson Jacky Weaver.
The opening of the Octopus Garden Under the Sea at Scarab Village in Sedgefield on Saturday, April 1 will give residents of this slow town, and visitors from all around the country, the chance to experience this for themselves.
Set to take place at 14:30, Weaver says everyone is welcome to attend the launch and celebrate with the artists, crafters and children involved. “The event will serve as a fundraiser for Masithandane, with a live performance by the Romantix – a refreshing upbeat duo performing songs from the Beatles, ’50s and ’60s, and some other “romantic music”.
The performance starts at 19:30 and will cost R100 per ticket, available from the Sedgefield Info office.
“Although the National Lotteries Commission is the major funder, the new park would not have been possible without the help of Scarab Village, the Knysna municipality, Johan Grobbler the architect, Alistair Fraser the engineer and our many volunteers,” said Weaver.
About the park
“The new Sedgefield Community Interactive Mosaic Park is integral to the bigger picture of the Sedgefield community initiative for art, culture and tourism projects supported by the National Lotteries Commission,” said Weaver.
“In summary, it promotes participation in and the development of a variety of art forms that celebrate and exhibit culture and national heritage. It preserves and promotes cultural, historical and natural heritage as well as traditional knowledge and cultural expression.
“The project also involves 140 adults and children from the greater Sedgefield area including the rural areas of Karatara and Ruigtevlei. It provides upskilling, income generating and employment opportunities through the beautification of Karatara and Sedgefield in the form of 18 new public artworks and the Sedgefield Community Mosaic Interactive Park,” she said.
“Furthermore it provides opportunities to embrace interactive experiential learning in a fun and enjoyable way allowing nature to be the teacher, and will have a positive effect on the town’s income and provide job creation opportunities,” said Weaver.
The park will include three large mosaicked 3-D artworks. A water feature in the shape of a whale will highlight the plight of water, and the octopus will house a projector room to allow for the screening of documentaries on the stage wall and form seating. “It will highlight our dependence on the sea and its attraction to tourists and locals alike,” said Weaver.
“The third is a dolphin, which will highlight the importance of protecting our marine life and create additional seating,” Weaver added.
The interactive park will also have musical instruments made by children from recycled and upcycled materials, which will encourage an interactive musical meander around the park, street art created by youth and children to be used as part of the envisaged walkways, and a stage for interactive experiences for all ages.
There will also be an exhibition area for local artists and performers, a meeting space for astrological, gardening and other societies, a venue for small cultural events such as Saturday-morning buskers at the market, an afternoon of jazz, art exhibitions such as art in the park, the screening of documentaries and other visual art functions or a backdrop for functions.
“It will be a centre stage for the promotion of visual arts incorporating cultural and environmental awareness,” said Weaver.
Working on the octopus. Photo: Supplied
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Source: Knysna Plett Herald News