A Thousand Sheep

Published on  23 Jul 2013 A Conversation with the Landscape Our relationship with the land, throughout human history, has been governed by two vital needs; finding food and defending ourselves. The response through farming and the military defence has progressively reshaped the British landscape and its ecology. I created an art residency at the River Bourne Community Farm, Salisbury, UK, and was awarded an Arts Council England Grant to develop a large installation made from sheep fleece dyed with madder plants. "A Thousand Sheep" was an open invitation to the public to get involved in making a large piece of contemporary artwork from natural resources. The process was to provide the trigger for conversations and reflection on our impact on the environment and shape of the landscape. Through a commitment to using traditional processes and materials, the piece challenged the limits of sustainable living in a contemporary context. The project has seen over 15000 visitors

Food For Thoughts; For a full week, I have transformed my studio space at the farm into a Thought Kitchen. I am inviting you to come and feed in your ideas, thoughts, aspirations, envies... Why do we do Art? Why is it important? How can it transform our daily lives? Could our answers help reshape the future of our relationship with the environment, with nature and the wild, with our needs, with each others? You can feed your thoughts on this blog, by email or by coming to the farm and interact with the mind map and the rest of the kitchen. Also discover the progress of my next project as I am foraging colours! Keep an eye on progress during the week! See you soon.

T ime to tell us what you want! Following on from the success of  A Thousand Sheep... The River Bourne Community would love to offer more opportunities for all to engage with Art. In order to do so, we need to know what you want; Is there any skills you have always wanted to learn, anything you know and would like to share, ideas for an art/carft project that you have but don't know how to start? whether you like quilting,dyeing, spinning,  knitting, painting, foraging, cooking, baking, bread making, sculpting, collecting, walking, running, talking or listening , you might not have thought of combining activities. Come and take part in this fun game and tell  us who you really are!,  I will be running a fun open public consultation for you at the farm during the opening times of the Salisbury Art trail from Saturday 5th to 13th of October. Please come and let us know what art activities you would like to see/take part in/learn... I will be on site

As a Follow up from 1000 Sheep, we have launched the Young Curator's group at Salisbury Arts Centre and will spend the summer gathering pieces of the local woollen industry history and create a full size display for the Salisbury and Wiltshire Museum. I will be working every Tuesday and Wednesday 11.00am to 3.30pm , at the Salisbury Arts Centre,with my colleague artist Suzie Gutridge. The display will involve Graffiti Art, gathering of historical facts, trips to local sites and much more. IT's all free and can lead you to an Arts Award certificate. For more Information, please call Ellie or Simon at Salisbury Arts Centre 01722 343 020 Bedwin St. Salisbury SP1 3UT The FREE creative workshop group producing REAL LIFE exhibitions and events with Salisbury Arts Centre and Salisbury Museum. Would you like to gain a GCSE-equivalent qualification simply by being creative? Running Tuesdays and Wednesdays throughout the summer period at Salisbury Arts Centre. To joi