Journey to the heart of Peckham

I Love Peckham week of events in review

If you journeyed around Peckham in mid July you would have been amazed at the creative talent on show.

From 14 to 20 July, I Love Peckham once again took over the streets, shops and venues of SE15 with a massive range of happenings, from exhibitions in multi storey car parks to children meeting aliens in Peckham Library. It was a hugely positive week for Peckham and culminated with a big celebratory weekend event with outdoor music, stalls, workshops and more.

I Love Peckham 2008 was themed on travel with visitors being taken on a journey through the cultural hub of SE15. The festival launched at Area 10 Project Space with ‘Life in Peckham’ by Arts Express, an exploration of life in Peckham from the eighteenth century to present day. This exhibition was created in partnership with three Peckham Schools.

United Peckham Carnival, a new event this year, wowed audiences on the streets and at Brimmington Park. The carnival, coordinated by Sarah Nunn, saw over 1200 young people from Camelot, St Francis and Peckham Park primary schools take part wearing a dazzling array of colourful costumes. On top of this there were other cutting edge art exhibitions and installations, open studio events, arts and crafts events for children, free film showings, treasure hunts, literary trails, a bring and take flea market and drop in family sessions at the South London Gallery.

Councillor Lewis Robinson, Southwark Council’s executive member for culture, leisure and sport, said:

“I Love Peckham is a celebration of all that is unique about Peckham. It’s an opportunity to bring people together for a fantastic cultural community experience as well as showcase the vast amount of creative talent in the area. It shows there is much to be celebrated in this vibrant and culturally diverse quarter of London.”

If you would like to get involved in I Love Peckham 2009, visit www.southwark.gov.uk/ilovepeckham