Open Art Box, Autumn 2023
Great to be working with Open Art Box for a few weeks. We’ll be inspired by plants and flowers to explore many different media and ideas. This week we arranged plants and flowers and made paintings inspired by the shapes and colours.
Our Community, Our Environment, Harlow, Summer 2023:
Delighted to be part of this project and exhibition. Over 20 schools and community organisations worked with 14 artists and cultural organisations over the summer term 2023. I worked with St Lukes and St Albans Catholic Academies responding to shapes and colours we found in the school grounds, working together to create large and small circles using wax resist techniques. Other artists helped children work with a huge range of inspirations and skills including: collage, modelling, pin-hole cameras, poetry and performance and there were workshops for families in the gallery, including paper boat making with the wonderful Suman Gujral. All the work was brought together in the form of an exhibition beautifully curated by Elaine Tribley at the Gibberd Gallery (until Saturday 15th July).
Walk Talk Do: Parndon Mill, Harlow, May 2023:
Was wonderful to work with Matipo Arts on this gentle exploration of the beautiful surroundings of Parndon Mill through walking, chatting and creating. The walk was led by wonderful Tara from Roots to Wellbeing and she also shared her knowledge about local plants and wildlife including hawthorn. First time I’ve ever had hawthorn tea made from the leaves and flowers – but been drinking it at home ever since and have a cup next to me as I type. Really enjoyed meeting so many new creative people. We explored local leaves through wax rubbings and then made collages of imaginary plants and creatures.
Photographs below by Tara Whittle
April Beautiful Creatures, 2023
Here are some pictures of some of the beautiful work from our April session in Datchworth. Thanks so much to everybody who came – hope you enjoyed it as much as me!
Sunday 26th March 2023: Make and Draw on Zoom:
Loved this session – we met on zoom to create and draw imaginary insects from leaves and flowers. Participants from France, London and Herts explored flowers and foliage from their own gardens.
24th Feb 2023: Art with Natural Materials
We met in the beautiful All Saints Church Hall in Datchworth on Friday 24th February to play with February plants and flowers: cutting, sewing and pressing to create new patterns.
This is the second one-off session this year, sharing my fascination for the daily changes in the colours and shapes that I find outside as the year goes by. Thanks so much to those that were able to join us.
Photographs below by Lise Bosher
12th Feb 2023: dance/art workshop:
This dance workshop, with Beee Creative, was led by dancer Maga Judd and artists Elizabeth Murton and myself. The sessions include visual art activities and improvised movement. The venue was YMC Woodlands Community Hub, Abbots Langley WD5 OGU. Funded by TNL Community Fund.
18th Feb: Changing Circles at All About Us, 2023:
All About Us exhibition at St Albans Museum and Gallery celebrated the creativity and resilience of the learning disabled community in St Albans. All About Us is an Arts Council of England funded project run by Trestle Theatre Company. Delighted to run some art sessions for this wonderful project, including a session open to all at St Albans Museum and Gallery on the 18th February.
Art with Natural Materials:
In 2023 I’ll be working on a year long project using found materials, including things that I find growing outside. Will be making daily work along with running some sessions for other people who’d like to have a go at playing with what we find. Very much enjoyed my first session at Parndon Mill. We explored winter leaf colour combinations and juxtapositions using materials gathered outside on a rainy day. I find sewing comforting and love the way it slows me down enough to become completely immersed in what I’m doing – it’s especially pleasurable working with other people and seems to create the perfect atmosphere for conversation. For more about my time based sewing project, ‘New Arrangements 2023’ please look here. And if you’d like to join me for the next leaf and flower sewing session (taking place in various venues throughout the year) please watch this space or email me and I’ll put you on the mailing list. (jane@janeglynn.co.uk)
