5eb9918b2b4846a9abe232bd23562246

Slow Making, Taking Stock

Mon, 24 Feb 2025 13:19:22 GMT

Sketch book studio and seasonal working

My studio is currently a sketch book , with notes, samples and pieces of work in progress displayed on the walls, this includes the notes for a book that is, of course slowly, taking shape.

A new 12 metre linen warp installed on the rug loom has helped to clear space and remove the dross, because the studio had become a storage space when not in regular use.

Community projects and commissions have to take precedence, so keeping the studio space with tools and materials in good order makes a huge difference to efficient and creative activity.

I am currently aiming for shelves and cupboards with a lot less clutter – it takes time to select what to keep and the value of all the ‘treasure’ I have collected over 30+ years of making. Now I am refining the collection to only include what I know I will be able to make use of.

My work life is seasonal and I am currently preparing for Cambridge Open Studios in July, when visitors will see the studio and materials involved, and work for sale.

This year the items available for sale are likely include materials and tools I no longer want to use, so if you are a maker come and check out my sales tables!

With variable weather, this month I also have been working indoors, with my very patient tech support team, to update and refine the website for 'Fair Trade: Material Matters' . If you haven't seen it before please take some time and feel free to give feedback, it is always a work in progress! This international project has been shown in a wide variety of venues and includes people of all ages.

Slow Art Day, this Saturday

Wed, 12 Apr 2023 10:53:07 GMT

This year Slow Art Day is April 15th

I choose found or adapted materials in preference to new, for works that are placed in the landscape, galleries or domestic settings.

Old, discarded materials and tools are often in my studio or workshop for months or years before I start to work with them.

My work is made in collaboration, and brings together studio-work, mentoring, teaching, writing and occasionally curating. I aim to express an understanding of people and their surroundings through woven, stitched, sculptural forms and actions, in installations and exhbitions. Also workshops to suit the places and people involved.

I developed my Slow Making approach in 2005, with a paper published in Journal 42 of Landscape and Arts network in 2007, after completing my MA in Textile and Culture at Norwich School of Art and Design (Norwich University of Arts)

At the same time Carl Honore published his book 'In Praise of Slow' . Clair Bown, curator of The Thinking Museum recently interviewed Carl Honore in her podcast, his influential work is one of the most referenced in the Slow Movement which has become increasingly relevant and important to all aspects of life, including good mental health and a wide variety of research programmes.

Claire's own work is all about slow, since 2011 she has been curating and presenting the slow approach in galleries and museums. There are valuable resources for Slow Looking on her website and Claire and has kindly allowed me to share some here.

I highly recommend the 'Slow Art Guide' , How to look at Art Slowly and 12 Reasons to get started with Slow Looking . There are many more, and the Art Engager podcast is one that I will definitely be listening to regularly.

I look forward to sharing Slow Art Day this week and will be returning with insights shared on the day.

Remember to take time and Slow Down, it's good for you!

For more information see https://www.frostart.co.uk/

For Slow Art Day info see https://www.slowartday.com/

For Babylon Gallery exhibition https://www.babylonarts.org.uk/gallery/exhibitions.htm

#SlowArtDay2023

#SlowMaking

#MindfulMaking

#MakingMatters

Thinking about Slow Art Day 2023

Mon, 03 Apr 2023 12:05:46 GMT

This year Slow Art Day is April 15th

I recently repaired a basket handle, a very traditional shopping basket that may have been made in the 1940s. I selected and prepared the willow, which means cut lengths, soaked, split and thicknessed it to sizes required for each part. I began to understand how much skill the person had who made the original, it was almost as if I had shared a conversation and had some tuition from him, and it was most likely a man as baskets were traditionally made by men.

I slowly took apart the damaged pieces to make sure I followed the maker’s process; the original willow has marks from tools and shows the hand strength and force used to fix each part neatly in place. This guided and taught me that the maker was probably left-handed because I could not cut some pieces the same angle with my right hand.

The small pins used to secure 2 parts of the handle in place while wrapping are also hard to source, either too small, too long or not enough head so the willow slips over and is not held in place.

After two days there are already faults appearing, maybe the split willow was too wet because it has shrunk and is now loose in places. I might have to re-do it but that’s an opportunity to understand the preparation process better and improve the making technique. I don’t intend to repair many of these baskets, but understanding the techniques will definitely help make my own work better.

In addition, and most interesting to me, the willow used in the original showed that it grew in a slightly different way to the willow I had available. It had more body to it, less pith in the core and was probably stronger to work with. I wonder if the region where it grew, climate or growing techniques may have changed the habit of willow growth, there is always more to learn so I am asking growers and makers for advice.

Slow Art Day is a way of sharing conversations with makers and artists, an opportunity to take time to look at the materials and techniques they use. Slow looking means we become more attentive and helps our understanding of the art and world around us, which in turn helps with wellbeing. Focussing attention means we are not thinking about the uncertainties of the world around us, the parts we have no control over.

Have you ever looked at one piece of artwork for longer than 1 minute, 5 minutes or even maybe an hour?

Have you ever thought about how much time you could spend in a gallery, not including the gift shop or café?

If you haven’t allowed yourself time to pause in a gallery before a good place to start would be the exhibition ‘Colour’ at Babylon Gallery, Ely perfect for Slow Art Day. There will be treasures to take time looking at work from fifteen selected members of Anglian Potters .

Earth and fire combined provide such an amazing range of colours, textures and forms in the hand of skilled potters, who use the oldest and most basic materials to create their work,

Share your gallery visit with friends and go for a meal afterwards to continue the conversation to extend this experience of Slow Art.

One day each year – April 15th in 2023 - people all over the world are invited to visit local museums and galleries to look at art slowly. Participants look at five works of art for 10 minutes, or more, then meet to talk about their experience. That’s it. Simple by design, the goal is to focus on the art and the art of seeing.

It’s when you pass the 28.63-second mark that things really start to happen. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts 2017

‘Taking time to look at art is good for us’ J Watts 2019

Taking the time to look slowly, we can avoid hasty interpretations and hurried conclusions. If your local gallery is free to visit you could look at one piece each day of the week. I guarantee your world view will have changed by the end of the week!

‘Slow Art Day and the act of slow looking are radically inclusive experiences where participants include themselves.’ (Washington Post 2021)

For Slow Art Day info see https://www.slowartday.com/

#SlowArtDay2023

#SlowMaking

#MindfulMaking

#MakingMatters

Slow Art Day 2023

Tue, 28 Mar 2023 12:04:41 GMT

This year Slow Art Day is April 15th

As a result, I choose found or adapted materials in preference to new, for works that are

placed in the landscape, galleries or domestic settings. The old and discarded materials and tools are often in my studio or workshop for months or years before I start to work with them.

I developed my Slow Making approach in 2005, with a paper published in Journal 42 of

Landscape and Arts Network in 2007, after completing my MA in Textile and Culture at

Norwich School of Art and Design (Norwich University of Arts).

My work is made in collaboration, and brings together studio-work, mentoring, teaching,

writing and occasionally curating. I aim to express knowledge and understanding of people

and their surroundings, through woven, stitched, sculptural forms and actions, in

installations and exhibitions as well as running workshops to suit the places and people

involved.

For more information see https://www.frostart.co.uk/

For Slow Art Day info see https://www.slowartday.com/

For Babylon Gallery exhibition https://www.babylonarts.org.uk/gallery/exhibitions.htm

Learning from the collection at Adams Heritage Centre, Littleport

Wed, 14 Sep 2022 13:11:32 GMT

Weaving from the past

The top of the orginal basket had to be cut off, which told me it was made round the bottle, not separately. This is harder than making an ordinary basket as you can’t get inside to trim or hold the work in progress.

The border of the basket holds the flagon tight and goes onto the angled edge, so it cannot slip out. Ask any basketmaker and they will tell you borders are tricky, so making one that fits so well takes a bit of time to learn. I had three attempts before it worked well enough for me to show anyone the finished piece.

I couldn’t tell whether there had been a carrying handle for the basket, but it is likely there was one. Handles break sooner than any other part of a basket because of everyday use.

The story behind the flagon and it’s basket is still not told, it has the name The Bell Hotel, Ely and number 25 stamped on the top. Maybe it was part of a farmer’s regular order for field workers or used by a coachmen who used the Bell Hotel, we will probably never know. At some time it came to Adams and Sons, in Littleport, and has been there a long time.

Before I started to make the replacements basket I cleaned the flagon, as I washed it out there was what looked like fluff and cobwebs floating to the top. It turned out that there were the bodies of 10 mice, desiccated and long dead! Perhaps they went in to get the dregs of beer, or maybe it was a set trap with grain or poison in.

Adams sold chicken food and grain, there were mice and rats in the shop taking advantage of the food source and there are still signs of them in the floorboards, which have been carefully restored to show more than a hundred years of the building’s history.

https://www.adamsheritagecentre.co.uk/cutlacks-and-the-jh-adams-timeline

The restored flagon and basket is now back in Adams Heritage Centre, sharing it’s story along with all the other items in the collection.

I took three attempts and 1.5 hours to make the finished one, so I would not be able to make 8 in a day. I would not earn enough to feed a family, basket makers have never been rich!

I have learned from experience it takes a lot of energy, time and the right skills to have enough willow to make baskets and sculpture throughout the year.

Preparation of willow includes maintaining and growing willow, grading into the right size for the jobs in hand and soaking to make it pliable for working with as each order or commission comes in.

Each basketmaker working full time needs approximately 2 acres of willow a year, it is harvested in winter. This would have been part of the seasonal life of basketmakers and would need two or three families working together.

In the past willow copses were a familiar and essential part of most farms, providing material for baskets and hurdle fencing used as temporary fencing for cattle and sheep on the farm and in markets.

Since the 1970’s growers have developed into large farms providing willow for makers, who can have their order of willow delivered or go to the farms to collect their supplies.

The farms also grow willow for wonderful drawing charcoal, made by baking in large ovens and supplied to schools, colleges and artists round the world.

I continue to learn and listen to the stories of makers I can never meet, they tell me their stories through the pieces they made.

See more from Adams: https://www.adamsheritagecentre.co.uk/

Slowing Down, taking time

Mon, 06 Apr 2020 17:37:34 GMT

I started writing about Slow Making in 2006, for several years I have not had time or been in the right place to concentrate on ideas or writing. Now seems the right time to revisit and refine the thinking. On Slow Art Day I have been looking at some of my studio stock in a different light.

Slowing down, again to revisit and review what matters in the world just now, I spent about two hours just sitting and looking at the work of Bernat Klein.
I do not own any of his art work or have any of his clothes, textiles or printed material so most of the time was spent online.
What I do own are prototype yarns developed in the workshops of The Scottish College of Textiles. I have memories of lecturers and technicians at the college being somewhat surprised and dismissive of the yarn developed because they were unstable or had complex mixes of fibres. Bernat was not really interested in the traditional techniques and machinery used to produce yarns, he was far more focussed on fibres for their texture than useful properties. Where technicians like to make sure things work and will be long lasting, his priority was always the appearance and effect on the garment. The yarns were sometimes fragile and unstable as a result, but were fabulous colours and combinations of fibre and textures.
Bernat Klein had also worked with The Dovecot studios, with amazingly skillful weavers who collaborated on his designs for tapestries. A result of doing this little bit of research into the work has highlighted a lot of wonderful reference material, including panel discussions at the Dovecot in 2015, when a retrospective "A Life in Colour" was staged there.

I met him and visited 'High Sunderland', the wonderful commissioned house and studio in the 1970's as a post graduate student at the Scottish College of Textiles. I wanted to understand more about the development processes and techniques of making, much more interested in that than selling work or being famous.
He was a delightful man, but even then I realised he could be somewhat annoying to those who had to live with him. Passionate and prolific about his work, he had become very successful working with famous fashion and textile designers and architects.
When I met him he had become a skilful painter, using colour in ways others did not seem to achieve. He did not seem limited by the need to portray realism, his passion was purely about colour and atmosphere.

In Eye for Colour he says 'I visualised colours in their multitudes to remain an amorphous, cloudy hint of tints, of softened and endless possibilities...I dreamt of cloth vibrant with colour. I wanted reds that were redder and blues that were bluer than anything I had ever seen before'

I have memories of lecturers and technicians at the college being somewhat surprised and dismissive of his yarns designed and developed in the workshops. Bernat was not really interested in the traditional techniques and machinery used to produce yarns. He was far more focussed on fibres for their texture than useful properties. Technicians like to make sure things work, their priority was how will it be for the weaver or knitter or how long lasting in the garment. His was always appearance, how the colours were enhanced and effect on handling and wearing the garment. The yarns were frequently fragile and unstable as a result, but always looked stunning!

In looking into Bernat Kleins work I happened upon references to my own work as a post graduate student at the Scottish College of Textiles, Slow Making indeed! I developed a range of 40 colours in the dye workshops, for a range of weaving and knitting yarns. I was 22 years old and wanted to learn everything and experience all that the textile world had to offer. I loved Scotland and the potential life had for me. Only now do I realise how much I achieved and how much I still make use of what I learned there.

For a few weeks my weaving was very influenced by Bernat Klein. amples from upholstery cloth, Donegal yarn. Woven in 1978.

If I should have acknowledged anyone and have failed to I apologise

Here are some references you may like to follow
https://thevintagetraveler.wordpress.com/2014/04/29/bernat-klein-1922-2014/

Dovecot studios

https://dovecotstudios.com/tapestry-studio/artists-weavers-tufters/bernat-klein/
http://hippystitch.blogspot.com/2015/08/bernat-klein-life-in-colour-dovecot.html
http://staging.nms.ac.uk/explore-our-collections/stories/art-and-design/bernat-klein-collection/

Slow Art Day

Wed, 01 Apr 2020 17:39:09 GMT

Saturday April 4th is Slow Art Day.

T ake time to slow down, this is the perfect opportunity. This is a day for galleries, museums and individuals all over the world to invite others to share the art that is precious to them. Spend time contemplating and appreciating skills, materials and techniques.

This year is different, we can’t meet up and share the art in the same physical place, or enjoy a chat with coffee and cake afterwards. But we can share in different ways. Maybe send an image of your favourite piece, or one you would love to see again and share it via a phone message, have a conversation and share time thinking about that piece. You could of course have a chat with coffee, or the drink of choice, and cake as well!

This does not have to be looking at old pieces, it can be any art of your choice. Make sure you spend at least 5 minutes to appreciate the work, think about how long it might have taken to make, who made it, where the ideas may have come from

.You could follow up time spent looking with researching your chosen artist, maybe there is something about the person and the way they live that would encourage you to develop a different life style. We have the unusual experience of having time to think

I still haven't decided what my Slow Art choice will be, I seem to take longer to make decisions, but that's ok too!

Here is the website for Slow Art Day

Life has changed, the world feels different

Tue, 31 Mar 2020 17:41:44 GMT

With all that is going on just now I can say I am truly grateful for many things. Including family, friends and clients and of course my health.

Even in this season of uncertainty I am thankful for creativity and the ability to escape into the the unlimited possibilities of imagination and creativity. I hope you are finding time and opportunities to do the things that really bring you joy.

I seem to move from pure joy in the unexpected extra time to slow down, really connect with what matters, to times of light anxiety about what the future holds and wondering when we will be able to meet family and enjoy their company, digital communication is fine but you don't get the hugs!

These are such uncertain times, I think we need to be kind to ourselves and others. I can't remember when we last had time to think and just be, so try to take advantage of this time. Allow yourself to feel whatever it is you feel, do whatever you feel like doing or not doing. Just sit and watch the natural world, trust that all will be well, all is well, and hard as it is at this moment, I am sure there will be good and creative times ahead.

We are making good use of extra time working from home, which for us is not unusual but we are restricted from visiting family, going to galleries and out for meals with friends. Performances, presentations, meetings and all workshops have been postponed or cancelled until further notice.

So far I have cleared my little allotment copse, keeping it clear of some weeds and making good use of the early nettles to make salads, soups and pesto, with the wild garlic growing alongside it makes a wonderful early salad! I have also been cutting the holes in the plastic bigger for the plants that were planted several years ago. Over time, as the willow stems grow bigger, the plastic does not expand any further, so they need cutting to enable future growth. I am also pulling all the briars from the older willow beds, they are just budding at the moment and I hope will produce better harvest for being cared for.
I am really thankful for the community of makers, student s and colleagues, it is always a pleasure to run workshops and collaborate. I will be holding everyone in mind, if there is anything I can help do get in touch. I am here.

I have also had spent some time to refine skills in the workshop and studio, developing some new pieces of work and reading all the books that are either left half read, or unread because of other demands on my time. I trust the results of this will be seen in the work that you see or the workshops you take part in future.

To see what is happening in my world of making, with recycled materials, willow and planned online workshops and sales go to the news page on the workshops website.

Stay safe and well, keep on making, weaving and being creative!

Making to brighten dark days

Mon, 02 Dec 2019 18:48:34 GMT

Making decorations is always a combination of the very familiar and a little bit new.

It seems that I am one of several basketmakers this year who have been enjoying new ways to make the familiar shapes, stars, trees and angels. The benefits of being able to communicate through internet has changed the traditional craft techniques. In the past it was possible to tell which village or area an item was made by technique, material or character. Maybe in future it will become almost impossible to tell where items are made, that could be interesting for archaeologists of the future.

My regular workshops at WWT Welney are always a pleasure to run, this year the visitor centre has been updated and it is great to be in a refreshed setting.

Daylight in winter is very precious, we have short hours of daylight and dark afternoons and when cloudy the whole day can be very grey in the fens so making items that brighten up the day, or the mind, is always good to do.

New shapes for this season

Wed, 06 Nov 2019 18:51:10 GMT

With all that is going on just now I can say I am truly grateful for many things. Including family, friends and clients and of course my health.

I have been making frame baskets, they are a bit more flexible and less structured than traditional round or oval ones but of course there is still a need to make neat and pleasing shapes. I have been realising, a bit late I know, the benefits of batch making, repeating the stages of making with about 6 baskets on the go at one time. The making becomes more refined and I remember the technique better, or learn to adapt it better. Each element is prepared in advance, with the handles and frame set so they are easier to work with when weaving.

The value of learning specific and repeatable techniques means I am able to make more elegant shapes when making a sculpture and improvise better to create new pieces.

If you have plans for a special event or a gift for someone either for Christmas or any other celebration I can provide gift tokens, they will be available on the FrostArt website soon.

Looking forward to sharing stories

Mon, 30 Sep 2019 17:55:18 GMT

The Fenland and Ouse Washes Story Quilt has been in use recently, it's great to hear how people are making use of this resource.

It was made in a series of workshops as part of the OuseLife exhibition ' Secret Life of Ely Cathedral' in 2016. To find details about hiring, links to people and organisations involved and suggestions for how to make good use of it the link is here for this Story Quilt details .

I am always happy to discuss with people how to make a Story Quilt for their community. If you know of an organisation who needs something like this let's make it happen!

The topics and drawings are made by communities involved and the host organisation will decide where and when workshops can be run. Looking forward to sharing stories soon!

New and familiar people, places and seasons

Fri, 30 Aug 2019 17:58:12 GMT

Sometimes life just goes in a direction I could not have anticipated. This week I am really happy to say it's the right direction and to announce that I have been selected for Artillery Arts 'Grandad's Island' project.
The theme Grandad's Island comes from a lovely children book by Benji Davies , its about a journey and sharing memories.
I will be making alongside students and volunteers. Participants in workshops will learn how to weave and make sculptures with willow so if you are reading this and think it's something you want to do email volunteer@artillery.org.uk

My design is like an upturned boat, that may have landed recently or a long time ago - depending on the story you tell.

The other installation I am working on this week is for Angelsey Abbey's Dazzling Dahlias events, it's one of my favourite National Trust gardens locally so to work there is a real bonus!

More images and details when the work is ready to be revealed!

Summer busy-ness

Wed, 07 Aug 2019 18:00:28 GMT

The last few months have been busy with planning and making work for exhibition and commissions.

Riverside Arts are a group of eight artists working together provide a good variety of work to visit as part of Cambridge Open Studios. We have worked together for several years and developed a welcoming atmosphere for visitors of all ages. Thank you everyone for your support
Some of the visitor comments this year were really encouraging
'What a find! A wonderful combination'
'Wonderful space and exhibition'
'Wonderful experience to see so much inspirational art'
'We loved our now annual visit to your studio...favourite is the Antler Moth (Kimberley Allens work)...Very inspiring and a lovely range of work'
'It was lovely to see a variety of talent in one exhibition'

Riverside Arts artists have work in our local, and exceptionally good, Spanish restaurant Habis . The work is for sale and you can enjoy refreshments, great coffee or tea and fabulous cakes while you make a choice from which artists work you like. The artists will work to commission, always a pleasure to make work for a particular setting or special occasion.

News, updates and information

Sun, 23 Jun 2019 18:02:35 GMT

FrostArt workshops now has online booking and payments available. I am so excited about this and you may have been waiting a while for it to happen!

Workshop dates at WWT Welney are currently available on the events page
Make a choice from the survey for the workshop selection I look forward to working with you very soon.
Hosting workshops - if you or your organisation would like to host workshops please go to Host page
If you have any queries or there are problems with your bookings please contact me
Invite friends and family to come to a workshop with you, include the link in the invitation so they have the details in front of them.

With thanks to writer and critic Ian Collins for encouraging me to use, adapt and share artist's warning signs!

A new viewpoint

Tue, 18 Jun 2019 18:05:28 GMT

The exhibition process and setting for Tracks and Traces provided new ways of seeing work, both my own and others involved. Lots of conversations with visitors over the weekend, probably about two thousand people, maybe more have seen our work for the first time.

T he architecture of The Crystal Palace invites people to explore their surroundings and engage with really seeing their surroundings.

Open Garden conversations

Mon, 10 Jun 2019 18:09:30 GMT

It was Ely Open Gardens on Sunday June 9th, always good opportunity for conversations and sharing of ideas, to meet friends and make new ones. This year I had good conversations with older residents, who remembered the greenhouse in The Bishops Garden being used to raise seeds for the formal garden and the vegetable garden. I hadn't really thought about the Corn Exchange in Ely in this context before, but apparently all good gardeners and farmers would go there to buy or sell their seeds, especially if they were prize winners.

I met people who came on the train from Cambridge, some taking time to visit Ely from London, Manchester, Sheffield and Australia. Very varied life experiences, but so many links, shared hopes and dreams for the lives of people, wildlife and the planet.
This was also the last day of the Moon exhibition in Ely Cathedral so the conversations extended to the further still.

Prickwillow work in progress

Mon, 03 Jun 2019 18:13:30 GMT

Evidence of work in progress in the Prickwillow phone box, the signs are part of a series started by author and art critic Ian Collins when he curated Salthouse '08.

More to follow and work will be developed during the month, which is promising to be a busy one.

I will be 'in residence' in the greenhouse of The Bishops Garden preparing for Sunday 9th, Open Gardens in Ely This will be a preview of the planning and making of work for several exhibitions this year, some work will be available for sale.

The following weekend I will be in Bury St Edmunds, again linked to an open gardens trails , for 'Tracks and Traces' exhibition where work will be available for sale.

Background work

Thu, 09 May 2019 18:16:55 GMT

Over the last few months with a lot of patient tech support I have been working on the background of FrostArt workshops site. Lots of new workshops both in new and familiar places coming up over the next few months, admin time is both precious and tedious. Successful results are almost always invisible to others.

This update should mean I work more efficiently for teaching and really enjoy more focussed and productive studio time. Now to go and handle more natural stuff.

Familiar work, different setting

Wed, 08 May 2019 18:19:56 GMT

I have just installed a small preview show of Cambridge Open Studios work by Riverside Arts group into Habis . Our local, fabulous Spanish restaurant, the best place to meet and have coffee, breakfast, tapas or paella in Littleport over the last few years.

Now also to show small, selective artwork.

There are enough local artists to keep the shows interesting and really professional. Keep visiting to see what's available, the work is for sale.

New venue

Mon, 06 May 2019 18:22:16 GMT

I recently visited the lovely Olivia Shave who has set up 'The Studio' near West Harling in Norfolk. Hidden away in the Thetford forest, it is an exceptional place which I am sure will become hugely popular for special gifts. All the suppliers, like myself, are makers, artists and artisan food specialists in Norfolk.

When visiting you are likely to meet the lates additions to their growing flock of sheep, these supply both wool and meat products to the shop.

I have provided Olivia with a small selection of willow work to have in the shop, with the aim of encouraging customers to commission pieces to suit their special occasions and events.

Their face book page is The Studio

Exploring Trails - Making Marks

Mon, 29 Apr 2019 18:26:49 GMT

I am currently making new work for 'Tracks and Traces' an exhibition showing journeys of five women artists. June 14th - 16th. The setting is a contemporary house in the centre of medieval Bury St Edmunds. Perfect for viewing the artwork and the garden. This exhibition is part of Hidden Gardens of Bury

My work will include expressive baskets, a collection made in response to solving recent personal problems and reaction to community disturbances that climate change protests have brought.

The title 'I can't contain myself' enables making to include a wide variety of materials and forms.

In the nature of Slow Making these pieces include materials collected over many years and techniques learned and adapted from weaving or stitching fibres and yarns from different contexts and sometimes in very unexpected ways. I am enjoying going back to basics, handling familiar materials in different contexts.

I have again spent time making in the beautiful setting of the Bishops of Ely's greenhouse and some of these pieces will be previewed in the The Bishops Garden when it is open for Open Gardens in Ely, June 9th

There will be a small preview of Riverside Arts Open Studios work at Habi's in Littleport from May 7th, go in for the best coffee, tapas and paella in the district. All work will be for sale.

Cambridge Open Studios 2019

Tue, 29 Jan 2019 19:29:48 GMT

This is the time of year when planning for Cambridge Open Studios starts.

I will be taking part again with Riverside Arts in Little Ouse, it always seems so far away when we get together and it is hard to imagine what July hot summer weather will feel like but I am sure the next few months will go very quickly.

T he new website for Riverside Arts is here