A Love Letter to Woolwich
Our blood pulsates through the veins of this old town…
Follow the story of the Woolwich Epic poem, written by Rasheeda Page-Muir, in collaboration with local residents, as it bursts into life on the walls and windows of the High Street.
Collect a map from Woolwich Centre Library or download one here (will need a link) then follow the poetry trail of brightly coloured Speech Bubbles, designed by artist R.M. Sanchez Camus, around the High Street, collecting the pieces of Rasheeda Page-Muir’s poem.
Poet in the City has joined up with the Royal Borough of Greenwich and RevolYOUtion London to facilitate the creation of new artwork that celebrates Woolwich High Street’s history and local people.
The project has been developed in response to regeneration plans for Woolwich and has a purpose to illuminate voices from the high street, forge new connections across communities and use creativity to re-imagine the high street for current and new generations. Bringing together poetry, film, storytelling and public art, we showcase some of the stories of the people past and present that make Woolwich what it is today.
Rasheeda and youth-led local social enterprise RevolYOUtion have spent the last few months facilitating workshops and conversations around memories of the local area and her poem, The Woolwich Epic, will be premiered as a poetry film, created by Crixus Productions, in a special event, Love Letters to Woolwich on Tuesday 18 May.
Get your ticket to the event now
Get involved!
- Pick up a map from Woolwich Centre Library and follow the Poetry Trail around the High Street.
- Tell us about your Woolwich memories and tweet a photo of yourself following the trail with #WoolwichSpeaks
- If you don’t live locally to Woolwich, why not tell us your favourite memory of a High Street local to you, using #LoveLettertotheHighStreet
- Join us for Love Letters to Woolwich where you see the premiere of the poetry film as well as hearing Rasheeda Page-Muir talk about her experience of writing the poem. You’ll also hear from local artists and activists.
- Share our project on your social media platforms – follow on Instagram: @Poet_in_the_City, @revolyoutionlondon and Twitter: @PoetintheCityUK, @revolYOUtionLDN to stay up to date with the project.
Artist Biographies
Rasheeda Page-Muir is a 23-year-old poet, public speaker, writer and community organiser from South East London. After serving as a member of the UK Youth Parliament for 2 years at 17 years old, she founded the organisation RevolYOUtion London providing a platform for young people to discuss social and political issues whilst also supporting new youth organisations in the area. Rasheeda has spoken on the world-renowned TEDx stage twice, discussing the importance of rap music, feminism and masculinity within contemporary culture. In 2018 she won the SOAS Social Activist of the Year Award.
RevolYOUtion London is a social enterprise designed to facilitate debate within communities, run for young people, by young people – will be leading the way, reaching and and talking to people and communities.
R.M. Sánchez-Camus is a creative practitioner who develops works of art in collaboration with community partners. They create site-responsive works that activate dialogue, interaction, visual impact and community cohesion. Their interests lay in neighbourhood narratives, hidden mythologies, psychogeography, and outdoor works. Last year they developed the project ‘Text Bender’ for Home on the High Street in Slough with local communities. A community visual text take-over of the 3,000 Sq Ft gallery of HOME Slough.
Crixus Productions was founded and is run by Rupert Hopkins and Joe Watkins. They began trading in 2016. Since then they have acquired numerous clients in the music industry such as Island Records, Crixus has produced videos for artists such as Jesse Ware, Disclosure and Chase and Status. They have also made commercials for big brands such as Kellogs and Tesco. In 2017 they built a film studio space in Woolwich, since then they have expanded to three studios and run a creative office within the same location exclusively for filmmakers. In 2020 they released their first feature film ‘South of The River’ a South London based comedy, now available on Amazon, Sky Store and iTunes.