CoolTan Arts launches its poetry book ‘Anthropology’, produced by CoolTan Arts’ poets in our workshop, at the Liberty Festival on 4^th September 2010.  The title is a play on the word ‘anthology’, of course; it’s also meant to evoke the sense that people with mental distress often have of being clinically observed: seen as phenomena rather than as individuals.

With their poetry, our writers are expressing a much broader, truer, more interesting picture of their own perspectives – which take in everything, from flights of fancy to political rant.

Thanks to a grant from Vodaphone world of Difference we seconded Elizabeth Cochrane, who worked with our poetry group, the tutor Emile Sercombe and volunteer Trevor Kemp to finalise this amazing poetry book.

Ali Smith, a brilliant and respected writer and patron of CoolTan Arts has written the foreword to the poetry book that we are publishing, called Anthropology. She called the book a “heartening collection”, quoting many lines from individual works.  She says it is “a book of brilliant growling poems, dandified wild work”, and “funny, witty, moving, political, sassy, wise“.  Everyone is so delighted with these words: it means so much to get outside support.

The book is dedicated to David Morris, the disability campaigner who passed away earlier this year. He was a massive supporter of CoolTan Arts and was also Senior Policy Advisor on Disability to the Mayor of London.

He was closely engaged in the organisation of the Liberty Festival, celebrating the contribution of Deaf and disabled people to London’s culture.

It’s a real honour for CoolTan Arts to launch ‘ANTHROPOLOGY’ at this year’s Liberty Festival on September 4^th.

CoolTan will launch its Anthropology with a performance by our poets and we’ll also have a stall. It will be a great chance to meet the poets, buy to poetry book and enjoy performances from a wide range of UK artists and companies as well as workshops, stalls, food and much more.

This year Liberty Festival programme includes: Sport and Arts, Aerial Performance, Street Arts, Children’s Arts, Cabaret and Comedy, Music

Liberty welcomes everyone and is friendly and accessible. Complete programme on http://www.london.gov.uk/liberty/.

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