Evie Stevenson

Lincoln shoppers have shared their deepest goals and ambitions in life, supporting Dying Matters Awareness Week.

The annual bucket list concept, featuring a ‘Before I die…’ wall and coffin, commenced on Monday, May 8 and will run until Friday, May 12.

In support of the campaign, end of life care charity St Barnabas Lincolnshire Hospice have set up challenges and activities in Waterside shopping centre.

Dying Matters Awareness Week runs until May 14.

The bucket list concept aims to make the difficult subject of death easier to talk about. People are encouraged to write down their goals in life and what they aim to achieve before they die.

Volunteers and staff from St Barnabas are with the campaign in Waterside from 9:00am to 5:30pm every day. They are answering any questions and welcoming members of the public.

Along with the 6ft by 12ft bucket list boards, the campaign also has a cardboard coffin which was donated by the Co-op. People are encouraged to write poems, quotes or words that mean something to them on it.

An interactive installation of an elephant has also been created, addressing how death is similar to the phrase ‘the elephant in the room’. St Barnabas are encouraging people to tie ribbons on the installation and make it look pretty, showing that death cannot be ignored.

The elephant in the room.

Cat Maddy, Marketing and Communication manager for St Barnabas said: “I think it’s a really great idea to get people talking more honestly and more openly about dying.

“The response has been really positive. People are really interested in what other people are writing. Some of them are really honest, it goes to show you don’t really know what people are going through or thinking each day.”

Cat she said that before she die’s she want to: “Make sure my family is happy.”

Other members of the public had wrote ‘Share the love’, ‘Make sure my children are happy’, ‘Make my dreams come true’ and ‘Meet Gary Barlow’.

The boards have been taken very positively by local shoppers. Nicola Chanamuto, a Lincoln resident said: “I think it’s really interesting to read what is most important to people in life and to learn about what other people’s priorities are.

“It’s really important for people to be focused on what they want to do in life. I think I would make many more goals than just one of them.”

A new four-week festival celebrating emerging creative talents will launch in Lincoln later this month, taking centre stage within some of the city’s most iconic buildings.

The Lincolnshire Festival of Creativity will take place from Friday, May 12 until Friday, June 9, beginning with the University of Lincoln’s annual fashion show from the Chapter House at Lincoln Cathedral.

The festival aims to celebrate the young and exciting talent Lincoln has to offer, whilst encouraging creativity in the local region and has been organised by the University of Lincoln’s College of Arts.

Fashion shows, exhibitions, interactive installations, talks and visual performances will all play a part in the festival’s packed programme featuring students’ work.

Take a sneak peek of some of the creations Lincoln fashion students will be showcasing:

Other events will include talks from leading creative industry experts, including one of the world’s leading and respected admen, Sir John Hegarty, who will share his brilliant and provocative insights into creativity and the creative process gained from a career spanning over six decades.

Events will also take place at other locations including the New Theatre Royal. This venue will showcase film work, digital art, photography, soundscapes, radio and audio work, script readings and multi-media installations.

The organisers have chosen more locations including a shopping centre and the public art gallery, located on Lincoln University’s main campus.

Here’s a taster of some of the amazing illustrations and digital artwork on display:

Professor Matthew Cragoe, Pro Vice Chancellor and Head of the College of Arts at the University of Lincoln, said: “I hope as many people as possible will join us for the festival and find it both insightful and inspiring.”

For more information about the Festival of Creativity, including dates, times and locations of each show, visit https://www.lincolnfestivalofcreativity.co.uk.

Festival highlights

• Friday, May 12: The magnificent setting of Lincoln Cathedral’s Chapter House will provide the stage for the University’s End of Year Fashion Show, with students’ wildly creative collections offset against the spectacular medieval surroundings. Tickets can be purchased for this event via the LPAC website.
• Tuesday, May 16: One of the world’s leading and respected admen, Sir John Hegarty shares a range of brilliant and provocative insights into creativity and the creative process in his talk, ‘Sitting on a bean bag doesn’t make you creative’. Taking place from 1.30pm-3pm.
• Wednesday, May 17: Science and creativity combine in a workshop hosted by the School of History and Heritage. Bringing together creative use of scientific techniques and instruments to inform our understanding of the past, the workshop will include fingerprints and forensics in medieval England and digital conservation and the possibilities offered by virtual and augmented reality.
• Monday, May 29: Students from the Lincoln School of Film and Media showcase their creative endeavours in the New Theatre Royal for their show featuring films, digital art, photography, soundscapes, radio and audio work, script readings and multi-media installations. Open 10am until 4pm.
• Friday, May 26 – Friday, June 9: A unit in the popular Waterside Shopping Centre will be transformed into a gallery displaying a range of still and moving image created by final year Photography students. Open 10am until 4pm.
• Friday, May 26 – Friday, June 9: Lincoln’s School of History and Heritage present ‘Out of the Attic’, a conservation and restoration exhibition where visitors can learn about treatment processes and see the transformation of historic objects restored by student conservators. Open 10am until 4pm.
• Friday, May 26 – Friday, June 9: Visitors to the University’s on-campus public art gallery, Project Space Plus, can enjoy ‘Do Not Microwave’ – a fine art exhibition showcasing a range of practices, from drawing and painting to performance and sculpture. Open 10am until 4pm.
• Tuesday, June 6: A panel of five leading international industry thinkers, designers, technologists and entrepreneurs, come together to discuss the different ways that creativity can become social innovation in ‘I’m MAD as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore – creatively making a difference’. 1pm.
• Wednesday, June 7: The city’s waterfront Odeon Cinema will screen a series of 2D and 3D short films created by final year Animation students. Screening at midday.