Earlier this month, the community gathered at Ram Quarter for the launch event of the annual Wandsworth Arts Fringe.  There was even more to celebrate than usual this year, with the Fringe playing a major part in Wandsworth’s London Borough of Culture Festivities.

Visitors to Greenland’s award-winning redevelopment of the Ram Brewery were treated to live acts from artists at the Fringe, which is an annual extravaganza of arts and culture, with performances taking place in venues and public spaces across the borough.

Autin Dance Theatre brought Parade – The Giant Wheel to Ram Quarter’s Bubbling Well Square, giving a powerful dance performance centred on a 12-foot-tall wooden wheel.  The evening also featured a solo recital from world-renowned musician Hyelim Kim, who filled the square with music from the daegeum flute.

There was a bustling atmosphere at Ram Quarter as walkabout mask performers weaved among the crowd, and the event attracted some high-profile visitors, including the Mayor of Wandsworth Jeremy Ambache.  Alongside deputy youth mayor Sophia Dyson, the Mayor announced the opening of the 17-day festival in Bubbling Well Square.

The performers were among 30 projects to receive a Wandsworth Arts Fringe grant, provided by Wandsworth Borough Council, which supports creative projects that could engage meaningfully with local Wandsworth communities, unite the borough, and help people express their creativity.

For those who missed the launch event, there is still time to get involved in the Wandsworth Arts Fringe: the fun continues across the borough until 22 June.  The festival will also be back at Ram Quarter on Saturday 21 June, when Sambrook’s, the oldest independent brewery in London, will host a heritage tour.  Wherever you’re visiting across the borough, and whatever you’re seeing - whether a poem, play or parade - there will be a pint of culture and delicious food waiting at Ram Quarter to complete the experience.