Like a pentathlon with paintbrushes, or a sprint on stilts, or perhaps a pole vault of poetry, comes Artists Taking Part, a major arts project, part of Waltham Forest’s Olympic cultural celebrations.

A team of world-class local artists has been assembled for the project, which began last month, to deliver a dynamic range of activities and pass their skills on to volunteers from the community.

A total of eight artists and artist groups have been commissioned to add flair and flourish to the borough’s Olympic events, and make a record of its proud participation.

There will be photography, film, parkour, parades, exhibitions, installations, singing, drumming, dancing and stilt-walking, which can be seen at a series of events through the summer including the Olympic Torch Relay, which passes by on July 21.

The stunning Godiva Awakes, a six-metre puppet procession, comes through on August 5, and the Olympics will shown on the Big Screen in Walthamstow Town Square.

Each commission is completed with the help of the community with many volunteers turning their hand to something new.

Mark Burton, whose photographs of Waltham Forest’s cultural events are featured here, is creating a Visual Time Capsule, documenting behind-the-scenes preparations by schools and community groups as they prepare artwork for the events, as well as taking photographs of Olympic athletes training for their big day.

A group, aged from 14 to 74, armed with professional equipment, are being tutored by Mark and joining him on shoots to make their own record of the events.

“I really like the idea of putting cameras in the hands of people who are often overlooked or misrepresented in the media and saying to them – show me what you see,“ says Mark.

Freetime will be following the progress of the Artists Taking Part project as it continues through the summer – so watch this space.

For the latest pictures from the Artists Taking Part project visit http://mburtonphoto.com/artiststakingpart/