Light Up Your Home - Light Up Your Community

Tonbridge Lions Club is to again run a competition for Christmas lights outside domestic residences in the Tonbridge area. 

The club is offering three £200 prizes, to be given to the local charities nominated by the owners of the best Christmas lights displays. Three prizes will be awarded for the best installations in the Tonbridge, Hildenborough and Hadlow area. In addition the winners will each receive a Christmas gift for themselves.

Entries are limited to private domestic residences and photographs of the lights will be required (either by post or email) for the initial assessment. The judges will then visit the short-listed installations before picking the three winners. The judging panel will include the President of Tonbridge Lions, Keith Bourne and local sculptor, Guy Portelli KBA, ARBS.

An entry form can downloaded here http://www.tonbridgelions.co.uk/portfolio.html

Good Luck!!!!!!

Light Up Your Community

Winning Christmas Lights for TN9 - Elaine Knight, St Marys Road

Tonbridge Lions Club’s first competition for Christmas lights outside domestic residences in the Tonbridge area came to a close on the 20 December as the judges came together to consider the entries.

Having studied the photographs of the submitted entries, Mike Stout, President of Tonbridge Lions, Guy Portelli, well known local sculptor, and Robert Ham, son of the Lion member who had the idea of the competition, inspected the lighting installation of each of the selected finalists before reaching their decision.


There being no entry from the TN11 area it was decided to have two winners in the TN10 area from where the majority of the entries came.

Winner in TN9 was Elaine Knight’s lights in St Mary’s Road. She earned a £200 donation to The Bridge Trust.

TN10 joint winner Adrian Winter, Hopgarden Road

 Winners in TN10 were Adrian Winter of Hopgarden Road and Chris Owen of Framley Road. Both nominated Hospice in the Weald as their chosen charity so a £400 donation resulted. Each winner received Christmas food hamper.

TN10 joint winner Chris Owen, Framley Road

Chairman of the organising committee, John Ruck said,
“The competition was widely publicised in the local press, local news magazines and on internet blogs. We delivered over 100 entry forms to houses where good lighting displays had been installed. Whilst the quality of the entries received was good we saw many more that could have been contenders but were not entered. But we are delighted with the winning lighting schemes and pleased to donate to the nominated charities.”

Tonbridge Arts Festival Open Art Exhibition has an Olympic Flavour

Olympic fever is slowly edging to a crescendo with only 11 days to the Opening Ceremony of London 2012. The Torch Relay is about to arrive in Kent, passing through our neighbouring towns and communities on its final journey to the Olympic Stadium. The Australian team have arrived in our town and are settling in to the first class sporting facilities at Tonbridge School. Sadly, Tonbridge missed out on being en route for the Torch Relay, but tomorrow through the sheer determination of Dame Kelly Holmes the people of Tonbridge have a chance to join in the celebrations as she brings The Flame to her home town.

So whilst the Olympics are forefront in our minds I thought I'd make a diversion, and catch up with blogging about the Arts Festival that took place in Tonbridge for 10 days in June.  Unfortunately, I wasn't able to do this whilst all the events were taking place, due to problems with the blog.  Perhaps this could be a slight diversion from all things sporting, to something more art related, but it just happens that my favourite event during the Tonbridge Arts Festival was the private view at the Open Art Exhibition, which actually did have a slight Olympic flavour as Guy Portelli brought along a prototype of his new sculpture inspired by our own Dame Kelly Holmes.

Not only did Guy talk about his vision for the sculpture, and where in Tonbridge the larger sized finished work might be placed, but he was eager to show me how his idea would bring together both the viewer as a participant and the sculpture itself.  The end effect can be seen in the photograph below as the daughter of Maria Heslop, TMBC Cabinet Member for leisure, youth and the arts becomes a living artwork.

Sculptor Guy Portelli

Portelli's living artwork

The opening evening of the exhibition was the first chance to view the brilliant and diverse selection of local art that had been chosen and hung in the Castle Council Chamber, including work by Hildegard Pax of Hadlow, who currently has work included in the Summer Exhibition at The Royal Academy of Arts in London.

The artist of the winning artwork, who had been selected by the judging panel earlier in the day, was presented with a metal life sized paintbrush designed and made by Guy Portelli. I was surprised as to the weight of this beautiful piece of work when the winning artist allowed me to hold it in my hands. I'm not sure if there is such an amazing prize every year, but it almost had me rushing off to sign up for a course in fine art, just to submit a piece and be in with a chance next time.

Winning artist holding her prize

Judging Panel

This really was a super event and for me a highlight of the Arts Festival. My only criticism of the event was that the exhibition didn't last for the full 10 days of the Arts Festival. Maybe next year.