Some dates for your diaries, suggests Debbie Thrower. Friday and Saturday March 22 and 23 are when former Anna Chaplain Helen Jesty, and Anna Friend Becky Shaylor, are mounting a joint exhibition in Winchester of their creative work. 'The Bitter and the Sweet' explores how one can live 'sweetly' in the face of some bitter experiences.
'The exhibition has grown out of both women's considerable time listening to men and women in their later years and to the stories of their lives,' says Debbie. 'As with all of us, the tapestry of a life incudes both light and shade. As William Blake wrote:
'Man was made for joy and woe;
And when this we rightly know
Through the world we safely go.
Joy and woe are woven fine,
A clothing for the soul divine.
Under every grief and pine
Runs a joy with silken twine.'
( from 'Auguries of Innocence')
Some of the the artists' work was first exhibited in 2019 in Alton, Hampshire - the town where Anna Chaplaincy began in 2010. A follow up exhibition had been planned for Winchester in 2020, but unfortunately had to be postponed because of the pandemic.'
'The new, even bigger, collection of work will be on show this Spring, opening from 10am until 5pm on both days at St Paul's Church, on St Paul's Hill, Winchester and it features a jazz concert on the Saturday lunchtime. The exhibition is free, but with a limited number of the Saturday March 23 concert tickets available at £10 each, (to include a light lunch). Book early to avoid disappointment!' www.ticketsource.co.uk/helen/jesty-beckyshaylor
