Dapple Mobile and Summer Holiday Workshops

This week the amazing Summer Show at MAKE Southwest in Bovey Tracey opened, and I’m really proud to have the biggest piece of 3D work that I’ve ever made, right in the middle of the exhibition. I have to confess that when I saw it hanging in the public, it brought a tear to my eyes! 
It’s a statement kinetic mobile, measuring about 2  x 2 meters, based on that beautiful dappled light you get in the summer when sunlight filters through leaves. In Japan there is a specific word for this – komorebi. It’s been a real test of my engineering brain and skills; it took me a few months to develop and complete, using a technique of cutting, carefully arranging and melting coloured plastic shampoo and detergent bottles into small elements which graduate in colour through the mobile.
To link in with the exhibition, I’m running 2 family fun mobile making sessions in the education room there, both on Tuesday 18th August. One in the morning: CLICK HERE and one in the afternoon: CLICK HERE
This is a really lovely chance for adults and children to work together to create a collaborative work of art to hang in your home, I absolutely love doing the family sessions at MAKE Southwest with my daughter, and will definitely be attending some of them this year!

Also, coming up next week, Peter Lanyon and I are running another fabulous lampmaking workshop for children. A really great way for a child to create an actual working lamp complete with a watercolour and oil pastel decorated paper shade. CLICK HERE for more information and to book.

Grown-Up Art Club

We’ve just come to the end of a really enjoyable block of grown up art club. Participants learnt how to let go of expectations and treat art playfully. Some of the activities covered were gelli printing, collograph, journal making, creative drawing and more.

And what have I learnt? That adults are definitely better behaved than children at the end of a school day! Also, it’s good to push people gently out of their comfort zones. Also that sometimes the weather gets in the way and it’s ok to just wing it at times – I think most of us do winging our way through life!

In January I’m starting up an extra grown up art club – In addtition to Tuesday evenings 7 – 9 at the Rusty Tractor Cafe, I’ll also be at the Ermington Store and More Hub on Thursdays 11 – 1. For booking, go to the workshops section in my wesite shop.

Below are a few pictures of just some of the activites we’ve done this term…