Community art facility Cine Window has re-opened in its new venue within the Winsford Cross Shopping Centre.

Sharing its space with Crosshatch Studios, Cine Window Winsford supports and showcases local creative talent. It shows film, moving image and photography by artists, makers, students, and community organisations from Winsford and beyond.

Councillor Louise Gittins, leader of Cheshire West and Chester Council, said: “We welcome back Cine Window Winsford to the town and look forward to viewing the wonderful arts and culture being shown over the coming weeks.

“An interesting and festive array of moving images are on display this month and next. I encourage all visitors to Winsford to go along to the Crosshatch Studios to have a look for themselves.”

The Christmas Showreel will be entertaining shoppers viewing Cine Window from through December and January, focussing on cut-out paper animation.

This includes a specially commissioned Christmas animation made by artist Sheryl Jenkins using more than 800 star drawings from eight Winsford schools within a magical night sky.

Cine Window viewers will also be treated to ‘The Christmas Card’, an animated scene of the town featuring local landmarks shown in meticulously cut-out detail. This is a commission by local artist Lynn Haffenden in collaboration with animator Lauren Bennett.

Lynn Haffenden said: “I have loved designing and cutting this piece to represent my home town. I really hope that everyone enjoys finding landmarks that they recognise from around Winsford.

“From a starting point of the Flashes, I tried to incorporate structures that were instantly recognisable as part of Winsford’s story, like the Salt mine shaft, the War Memorial and the Seven Sisters’ sculptures, alongside buildings that mean a lot to our community like St. Luke’s hospice and St. Chad’s church.

“There were lots to choose from; Winsford has a rich history. As a papercutter, I work on a very small scale. Each building you see in the animation is made from tiny pieces of paper, with details measuring smaller than a millimetre – all cut by hand with a scalpel.  So, it is a whole new experience for me to have it cleverly animated and viewed on a much larger scale.”  

Also on display is ‘The Longest Night,’ a message of hope for the shortest of days, made by artist Angie Pickman, who is based in the USA and also specialises in paper cut artworks.

Artist Cath Campbell, creative producer of Cine Window Winsford, said: “The Cine Window is delighted to be open again. We have a fantastic space in the shopping centre to showcase a wealth of local talent and activity, and we are really pleased to be sharing the space with the artists of Crosshatch Studios as we continue to support and promote cultural activity in Winsford.

“This new programme has been made possible through the Reopening and Recovery Programme, funded by Cheshire West and Chester Council.”

Cine Window Winsford is always keen to hear from individuals and organisations who would like their work showcased on the screen, and people can contact us directly on cinewindowwinsford@gmail.com

The films and images of the exhibitions will be available to view onhttp://cinewindowwinsford.wordpress.com