An exciting new project focused around the life and times of Olivia Parkes is underway in Ventnor, and your stories, memories, newspaper clippings and photos are wanted.
Two Isle of Wight artists, Teresa Grimaldi and Sarah Vardy, are collaborating on an Arts Council-funded project to explore Olivia’s unusual life and through workshops, walks and conversations to stimulate self-expression, raise awareness and promote inclusivity.
Unconventional life
Known by many locals simply as ‘Britannia’, Olivia Parkes lived a precarious life off-grid in a wooden boathouse on stilts just west of Ventnor Beach for around 40 years from the 1920s to 1958.
In that time she ran a sweet shop on Pier Street and was once imprisoned for selling sweets after hours and faced a month in jail.
Olivia’s life raises many questions about how unconventional people are treated within society and as these themes of alienation and loneliness are still relevant today, the project intends to provide creative opportunities for people experiencing these issues.
OLIVIA
The project – entitled OLIVIA – will feature a series of community workshops with two different focus groups, a set of young people from St Catherine’s School and a group of adults at the Better Days Cafe.
During these workshops content will be developed examining themes of isolation, mental health and alternative perspectives.
Memories from the ‘naughty boys’
Sarah and Teresa have already been speaking to several older locals who still have vivid memories of Britannia, including the ‘naughty boys’ who used to throw stones at her roof to goad her out of the unusual boathouse on stilts.
The outcome from all of this work will be an animated film, as well as a zine (a small circulation self-published piece of work) and a Website dedicated to the OLIVIA project.
Fringe installation
The aim is for a body of work to be completed in time for Ventnor Fringe Festival (21st-30th July) as an installation in the La Falaise car park shelter – which is very close to where the boathouse was positioned on the coast.
We’ll share more about that event nearer the time.
The artists are grateful to Arts Council England for the funding, as well as Ventnor Town Council and Ventnor Community Shed for their support.
Share your stories
If you have any memories, photos or even newspaper clippings about Olivia Parkes, Teresa and Sarah would love to hear from you.
They’re extremely keen to find out more about Olivia’s story and are hoping that News OnTheWight readers may have information to give them a better understanding of her character, background, and possibly why she chose to live as she did.
Get in touch with Teresa Grimaldi by email on: [email protected]
More about ‘Britannia’
Britannia’s hut is featured in the much-loved mural commissioned by Ventnor Exchange as part of Lift the Lid on Island Culture project of the Ventnor Giant, painted by Sheffield artist, Phlegm, on the side of a building in Ventnor’s High Street.
The life of Olivia Parkes is marked on the Ventnor Heritage walk, which was put together by Ventnor Heritage Centre who also have lots more detail about the boathouse that Olivia lived in – read more via their Website.
Find out more about Teresa and Sarah’s collaboration on their Olivia Parkes Blog.
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