Category: Residencies
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Nature connection and colour
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Exploring green in the garden During my first nature-based residency in 2023, I read that humans can see more variations of green than of any other colour. That’s because we evolved to live in green places, needing to identify plants and food. I developed a lovely activity to explore this, using threads in many shades…
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Garden retreats for artists – new dates
Creative reflection days for artists in a tranquil, (almost) secret garden in Leicestershire. Over a year from summer 2024 to summer 2025, I was artist in residence at Mill Field Forest Garden, Leicestershire. Over that time, I hosted some open days for artists to come along and experience immersion in nature and chance to breathe…
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Stitching The Garden
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Nature-inspired embroidery workshop in Mill Field Forest Garden on 8th August I keep saying I am going to stop running workshops but I can’t resist one more in the wonderful community garden I help to run. I was artist in residence here 2024-2025 and I still find it endlessly inspiring and I want to share…
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Community artist residency
On Monday I joined Peace of Green‘s Wellness in Nature group at Belgrave Hall gardens in Leicester. I’m artist in residence with the group over the next year as part of my Cultures of Care project. Once a month I’ll spend a few hours with the group, observing and chatting to people, running activities and…
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Libraries Live Artist Residency
I’m almost at the end of my two-month library artist residency. For the last few weeks I’ve been in the village library / community hub of Newbold Verdon in rural West Leicestershire. I’ve been talking to volunteers, running workshops for over 50s and getting a feel for why so many people volunteer and why they…
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Criminal Quilts Work in Progress Showcase
Over the last 6 months I have been working with Wolverhampton University Fashion and Textiles Department as creative partners in Criminal Quilts. I will be showing a small display of new work in progress during the University Degree Show 9th-20th June. Monday to Saturday 10-4. Find the display on the first floor within Fashion and…
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Criminal Quilts : Creative Residency
Alongside my research and workshops at Staffordshire Record Office, my Criminal Quilts project also includes a creative residency in the Fashion and Textile Department of Wolverhampton University. I included this in the project so I could work with students and staff to help develop the creative work and have access to their amazing studio facilities.…
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Criminal Quilts : Sketchbooks
In between archive visits I have begun working on a sketchbook to gather my thoughts and ideas for the new work I intended to make for the Criminal Quilts exhibitions starting in summer 2018 – which is suddenly really quite soon! I’ve created a sketchbook for sharing with people when I do talks about the…
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Criminal Quilts: Cataloguing the photo albums
During November I went through all eight photograph albums from Stafford Prison to record all the women featured in the photographs. The photographs begin in 1877 and continue until early 1916. The style of photography changes dramatically during this period as does the clothing worn by the women. The first set of images 1877-81 are…
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Criminal Quilts research blog : photo albums.
The photographs which have formed the source material for Criminal Quilts are held in bound albums in Staffordshire Record Office. The albums are part of a large collection of archives from Stafford Prison and I’ve been working my way through each one in the last couple of weeks. The images I am working with date…