I’ve been playing a small role in a big project that will see 500 bespoke naturally-dyed silk flags being walked 200 miles along the east coast of England this summer. The Beach of Dreams project is led by Kinetika, an Essex based arts charity. I’ve had the pleasure of working with Kinetika for the last few years on community flag making projects in Norwich and Great Yarmouth, and this year, the pandemic has meant the project has been led differently, but with no lack of vibrant ambition!
The flags have been designed by artists, including me, in each local area, inspired by drawings and writing submitted by community members captured on a walk on a 1 mile stretch of coastline. The coastline has been adopted by groups and individuals, with a commitment to walk with a flag during the project
The walking installation will start on Sunday 27th June from the First Light Longest Days of Summer event in Lowestoft at midday, and eventually end at Tilbury in Essex for a finale weekend on 31st July-1st August
First Light Festival is hosting Longest Days of Summer on the weekend of 26th-27th June, on Lowestoft Beach. Across the weekend from the dawn on Saturday, there will be live music, art and installations to enjoy at the most easterly point of the UK
I’ll be at the event on Saturday 26th June, from 1pm-3pm, starting off a participatory Mandala Making activity using natural found materials from the beach. The mandala will grow throughout the event with participation from the audience
Mandala is a spiritual and ritual symbol representing the universe. The circular designs symbolise the idea that life is never ending and everything is connected and creating a mandala on sand using found materials also represents the ephemeral nature of life
Following on from the successful summer Super Stitchers project, I’ll be working in partnership with Norfolk Museums Service and Kick the Dust to deliver an autumn online textiles project
Over 6 weeks, alongside museum educators and curators, I will be mentoring a group of young people with in the Kick the Dust project to create family-friendly learning resources for children to engage with, inspired by the Textile Treasures exhibition
The young people will learn participatory engagement skills, research collections and design their own resource for people to take part in at Norwich Castle and at home
The project is funded by the Costume and Textiles Association
On Friday 30th October, I remotely connected with two community groups based in Fenland and West Suffolk – Walk n’ Craft in Mildenhall and March Can’t Sign Choir in March – in small socially distanced groups or individuals. I guided them through a sensory art-making walk in a location of their choice, inspired by their immediate environment, through WhatsApp and Zoom
You can read more about the project in the reflective blog post that I wrote for the Market Place website
Market Place is part of the Creative People and Places programme, initiated and funded by Arts Council England through the National Lottery
All images and video copyright to artist/participant
As part of my on-going work at Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, I was commissioned by the Family Learning Manager to produce a resource which connected families to the Sculpture Park at the Sainsbury Centre and UEA site, and the surrounding wildlife and habitats
I designed a sensory art booklet for children aged 5-11 and their adults, which took inspiration from visiting birds around the UEA Broad, the Elizabeth Frink Mirage sculptures and the ancient oak tree. The activity booklet can be printed from the Sainsbury Centre website to take whilst on a walk around the Sculpture Park
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