Good Grief Festival:Joy in Sorrow
VICTORIA KINGHAM
Over the bank holiday weekend an unusual festival took place. Curated and arranged by the development education centre (DEC) 18 Hours, and called Good Grief: A Festival of Love and Loss, it consisted of a series of artistic, cultural, and sports events that collectively reflected on the nature of grief. It’s new to Hastings, though not the first of its kind. Begun in Brighton in 2020 during the pandemic, it aims to take grief and bereavement into the open, to encourage conversations and support those grieving in isolation. Since then, it has grown into a nationally-recognised festival bringing together researchers, healthcare professionals and counsellors, artists and communities. Well-organised, publicised and attended, it was a great credit to the promoters.
The festival program consisted of some 19 different happenings, from a Walk of Remembrance through talks by experts in the neuro-physiology of grieving, wellbeing, and therapeutic environments. There were musical and performance events (some participatory, some individual), running, films, and a final multi-media, cross-cultural event incorporating a short procession.
We explore here two excellent shows from this unique occasion – the art exhibition at Electro Studios and Bev Lee Harling’s Hey Good Lookin’ – and two other events which, while not strictly part of the Festival, could have been inspired by it. One of these is an art exhibition due to open at Kino Teatr on 13 June, previewed here by Nick and Helen Pelling. The other was an event at Mike Willis’ Norman Road shop on 24 May, a poetry performance that was, for a number of reasons, unique.
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