LANDMARKS

Our Spring 2022 Project has been Land Marks

In Spring 2022 we brought together exciting artists with six partnered groups across Calderdale working with participants to creatively explore the environment, culminating in a public sharing of work at Gibson Mill, Hardcastle Crags from 22 - 24 April 2022.

Making and embedding new connections, this project celebrates culture made by people who do not self-identify as currently engaged with a formal ‘arts’ offer.

We are elated to be have been working with:
Calderdale Community Cares
Time Out (part of Healthy Minds Calderdale)
The Walkers Are Welcome Group of Hebden Royd
St Augustine’s Centre
Halifax Opportunities Trust - Todmorden's Children Centre
Years 9 and 10 at Rastrick High School

Thanks for visiting our Land Marks exhibition

We were thrilled that almost 700 people came to see the fabulous work of the community groups & artists who've been involved in our Land Marks project, which was on display at Gibson Mill, a 19th-century cotton mill at National Trust Hardcastle Crags on 22-24 April 2022.

The weather was kind, and the exhibition looked stunning on display inside Gibson Mill and outdoors, past the mill, further up the track in the clearing.

Sanctuary seekers and volunteers at St. Augustine’s Halifax presented outdoor artwork having worked with artist Louisa Clarkson and photographer Chris Lord.

Year 10 Art GCSE pupils at Rastrick High School made relief collagraph prints on Connections to Nature with artist Rach Red.

New parents, babies, toddlers and nursery children at Todmorden Children’s Centre and Halifax Opportunities Trust 'Stay & Play' sessions with artist Danielle Lovett explored Forest School outdoor art activities.

Supported community members and volunteers of Calder Community Cares worked on ceramics incorporating plants with ceramicist Emily Ellwood, and called their project 'Spring Go Outside'.

Young people aged 10 to 14 with Time Out, part of Healthy Minds Calderdale 'Underlands' project involved fungi workshops and the creation of large-scale pieces of visual and word-based digital art.

Hebden Bridge & Mytholmroyd Walkers Action groups as part of our Crossings project - showed a taster of the 'Crossings' collaboration, a giant outdoor photo adventure, showcasing YOUR submitted photos in a digital slideshow exhibition touring Hebden Royd in June. Click here to find out more about Crossings as this project continued beyond April and saw us touring a special exhibition in June.

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Calder Community Cares partnered with us for the ‘Land Marks’ project to connect and engage with some of the elderly and isolated within the Upper Calder Valley.

The creative focus for the project was looking at our relationship with the environment and the landscape around us, evoking memories, concerns or delights. Following 1:1's, a group workshop in ceramics was offered to produce unique artwork.

In additon, local artist Amy Mellis and writer Amanda Dalton created ‘Todmorden Treasures - Let’s Create’ activity sheet for their It’s a Wrap campaign. The campaign distributed hundreds of donated gifts to those in the Calder Valley who found Christmas a difficult time.

WEBSITE

Calder Community Cares are a volunteer organisation set up in reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic. Their work supports elders, families, isolated or vulnerable people living in Calderdale. They offer services including ‘check in & chat’, signposting to professional agencies, socials, & Food Share scheme.

Artist: Emily Ellwood

worked with Calder Community Cares

background

I am a hand-built ceramicist. I create hand-built ceramics playing with texture and size exploring the human figure. My figurative work are built using a variety of techniques including slab-building, using both soft and firm slabs, modelling and painting with slips. The main focuses of my work is sculpture whilst teaching. For the past twenty years I have worked in the creative industries across a mixture of disciplines from picture framing to millinery. My career in education began in special needs

current work

I teach ceramics in a large high school in North Manchester. I also teach ceramics classes at Northlight Art Studios in Hebden Bridge. In the past I have worked for a number of voluntary creative projects across the North West.

website

https://missellwood.cargo.site/

https://www.instagram.com/emilyjaneellwood/

Artist: Amy Mellis

creator of Calder Community Cares activity sheet & Land Marks project designer

BACKGROUnD

After gaining a degree in Printed Textiles from Loughborough University, Amy returned to her hometown of Hebden bridge and set up a small studio with several other creatives. In 2014 the team founded The Egg Factory, a creative co-working space that serves the town’s writers, artists and home workers.

As part of running this creative business Amy has developed her style along the way and honed her skills in digital and print design and illustration. Amy also prints merchandise for local businesses, bespoke wedding invitations and art prints for artists.

CURRENT WORK

Still a screen printer at heart, Amy’s love for the handmade and her passion for colour and pattern is reflected in her own range of stencil screen printed quilts, bags and homewares that are full of love and come from her creative heart.

Amy’s work is simple, playful and full of colour and she always aims to raise a smile when dreaming up the next project.

WEBSITE

www.amymellis.com

TIME OUT partnered with us through the ‘Land Marks Project’ to creatively collaborate and explore the subject of ‘environment’.

Underlands was aimed at young people aged 11-14.

During an outdoor adventure into the fascinating world of fungi at Hardcastle Crags, they explored the invisible plant-communications network (the 'Wood-Wide Web’) that exists beneath our feet. Photographing and recording their experiences, they created large-scale pieces of visual and word-based digital art for exhibition, delving under the surface of everyday life and exploring the deep connections that bind us to the natural world, each other and our communities.

WEBSITE

Run by Calderdale's independent, user-led mental health charity Healthy Minds, TIME OUT is for all 10-19 year olds in Calderdale. With a focus on emotional wellbeing, they connect young people with activities, opportunities, learning & support. The service has been co-designed by young people, who said that ‘finding your thing’ - something you love to do or connect with – helps them feel good and stay well.

Alex Abel

Artist at TIME OUT

background

Alex Abel is an artist and charity worker - she likes to combine both as she trained in Communication Media - so is interested in how we learn effectively through creativity and how it supports good mental health. She started a company called Animania! which traded for nearly 20 years creating interactive art in libraries, museums, charities, schools, hospitals and colleges. She has also delivered training on how to design for effective learning to university students at Leeds and Manchester Universities. She has 25 years of experience in national community arts programmes, both paid and as a volunteer. She has delivered workshops for children and young adults in schools and colleges, as well as pupil referral units and charities working with young people ‘at-risk’ of offending, diverting energies into creative activity.

current work

Alex loves social media for spreading visual arts and community activity and helps Time Out reach many contacts on blogs, websites, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for their partner network. She creates web content and artwork using Photoshop and is currently learning drawing skills on Procreate for the i-Pad.
she has done other jobs to pay the bills but always returns to art and photography for fun and inspiration.

Kate Edwards

Artist at TIME OUT

background

For over ten years, Kate was one-fifth of all female theatre company, Jammy Voo, who met at the Jacques Lecoq Theatre School in Paris and went on to create and tour shows in the UK and Europe. She also writes things - her poetry has been published in various poetry journals and magazines and, with a Highly Commended (Forward Prize) poem recently published in the Forward Arts, Poems of the Decade, 2011 - 2020.

current work

Kate Edwards is an arts and wellbeing practitioner. As well as working as a project worker for Time Out, she is also an associate artist at a magical apothecary run by Grimm & Co. Last year, she founded The Medini Project CIC, which will see 2 acres of marginal land in Calderdale transformed into a medicinal forest garden; connecting people to plants through arts and creativity. Kate believes strongly in the magical powers of nature and the imagination to transform lives.

Tara Guha

Artist at TIME OUT

background

After winning the Luke Bitmead Bursary in 2014 her first novel, Untouchable Things, was published in 2015. Her second novel won a Northern Writers’ Award for work in progress in 2019.

current work

Tara Guha is an author and mental health practitioner.

She loves to bring together her twin passions for writing and emotional wellbeing in fun, supportive and thought-provoking workshops. Tara is the team leader at Time Out.

Zeke Clough

Artist / Illustrator

BACKGROUND

Zeke Clough is a professional cartoonist based in Todmorden.
He facilitates cartooning workshops, assisting participants to explore their creativity. He uses live drawing in wellbeing workshops, situations where language is a barrier and does one to one art sessions.
As an illustrator, he works on comic strips, books, record covers and produces slides for professional speakers. In his spare time he works on an ongoing comic book series, scribbles in sketchbooks and produces pencil crayon drawings and acrylic paintings.

CURRENT WORK

Lately Zeke has been learning more about 3D graphics programs to bring his own and other people's characters into this exciting realm.
He can be contacted via: www.zekeclough.co.uk or on twitter @protomurk

Walkers Are Welcome Hebden Royd partnered with us through ‘Land Marks’ to spotlight our local area and invite EVERYBODY of all ages, novices and professionals alike, to take part in a giant outdoor photo project for Spring 2022 CROSSINGS LAUNCHED ON 1ST MARCH.

We invited and encouraged you to be part of this exciting project - to get out walking, explore the local landscape and take PHOTOS of some of the many accessible crossings you see along the way.

Your photos formed part of an exhibition and digital slideshow that was shown in venues across Hebden Royd, and helped us to map our local landscape, celebrating its unique features and the people who are part of it.

To inspire and enable as many people as possible to take part, we offered FREE GUIDED WALKS AND WORKSHOPS during March and April.

The Walkers Are Welcome Hebden Royd group are a community organisation, set up in 2006. As well as encouraging everyone to go for a walk, in 2007 they launched a ‘Stepping Out’ photomosaic scheme made up of over 500 photos of local flights of stone steps.

WEBSITE

Artist: Lizzie Lockhart

worked with Walkers Are Welcome

background

Lizzie has taught in the arts for over 40 years, helping students to achieve results they didn’t think were possible. Passionate about textiles and using materials in unexpected ways, she has worked with children to create a flock of sheep wearing Aran jumpers in situ in Hardcastle Craggs, made a shoal of goldfish made from recycled tomato puree tubes and co-worked on the Hebden Bridge Steps project with over 750 photos sent in by the public.

current work

Lizzie Lockhart is a local artist who has been involved in many projects with the community and works with people of all ages and abilities.

She is a magpie and a passionate collector, seeing the beauty in things that other people may discard. A real enthusiast and passionate artist, Lizzie has exhibited both locally and internationally, bringing joy to all who see her humorous and delightful creations.

Poet/Playwright: Amanda Dalton

worked with Walkers Are Welcome

BACKGROUND

Amanda is a poet and playwright. Her poetry collections
How To Disappear and Stray are published by Bloodaxe and her recent pamphlets include Notes on Water (smith|doorstop 2022) and 30 Poems In Thirty Days (Arc Publications 2021), an experimental ‘sketchbook.’

She writes extensively for BBC Radio 4 and 3 including original plays, drama documentary and adaptations of novels and film, most recently The Ventriloquist’s Dummy and Cov for Radio 4 and as lead writer on Middlemarch (BBC Radio 3).

Her work for theatre includes commissions with Manchester’s Royal Exchange and Sheffield Theatres.Her work for theatre includes commissions with Manchester’s Royal Exchange and Sheffield Theatres.

CURRENT WORK

She features in a forthcoming episode of Northern Drift recorded at Hebden Bridge Trades Club, and a version of her Notes on Water will be broadcast as an episode of Radio 3s Between The Ears in March.

She is currently writing a Christmas show for Theatre by The Lake in Keswick, a series of short film texts for Manchester Camerata, and completing a new poetry collection to be published by Bloodaxe.

www.amandadalton.co.uk

Our partnership with St Augustine's Centre continues in 2022 and we looked forward to our continuing creative co-working and collaboration in the arts.

Back in Spring 2021, St Augustine’s Centre were one of the first groups to work with us as part of the project, to set up a Creative Group during lockdown. The participants, many of whom speak little English, explored ideas of community and creativity for wellbeing during the extraordinary pandemic restrictions. They came together every fortnight for online sessions and shared updates with each other via Whatsapp.

This year, the Creative Group enjoyed some trips to Tate Liverpool, Crosby Beach and Yorkshire Sculpture Park to take inspiration for weekly art sessions. The themes included the use of maps, landmarks, places and moments that resonate with us and who we are. Photography featured as part of the project, and the group made long lasting work for outdoor exhibition.

WEBSITE

St Augustine’s Centre in Halifax is Calderdale’s specialist charity working with people seeking asylum and refugees, as well as local people. They offer advice on immigration, asylum support, and 1:2:1 help with welfare, housing, health and access to wider services. They run English classes, a ‘free shop’, bike & tech repair lab, Welcome Café, sports, arts activities, trips, events, & volunteer/befriending programme. Together with the Valley of Sanctuary, they run awareness raising sessions for schools & organisations.

Photographer: Chris Lord

worked with St Augustine's Centre

BACKGROUND

Studied design and creative arts including photography, moving on to higher education studying commercial photography. Created a working portfolio in computer engineering, park ranger, rugby but to name a few!!, but through it all keeping a semiprofessional interest in Photography and Art. In 2002 Julie and I embarked on a full-time commitment to photography. The contemporary mill studio was setup in Halifax and was our creative hub until a fire in 2018 forced a move to the wonderful world of Hebden Bridge where the new warehouse studio is situated in our friend's business premises at Print Bureau on Valley Rd.

CURRENT WORK

As a business we have had to diversities over the years as the photography industry changed, as technology moved forward. Mainely concentrating on commercial and the private business sector. Always striving to stay close to my creative ideals and to push creativity in my work where possible.

Artist Louisa Clarkson

worked with St Augustine's Centre

background

A self-governed creative individual, who has been involved in many community artistic projects over the years.

Louisa has enabled diversity and creativity to individuals, that have channelled a creative process, through the use of diversional strategies and focus on empowering individuals through progress, achievements and success.

CURRENT WORK

Louisa worked with St Augustine's Centre on the Creative Neighbourhoods project with us in 2020.

We continue co-working with Halifax Opportunities Trust in 2022, with creative nursery sessions based on book character themes, and ‘Stay and Play’ community sessions taking place in Todmorden.

Artist Dannielle Lovett hosted fun foraging workshops and outdoor art get-togethers.

Back in Spring ’21, Halifax Opportunities Trust were one of the first groups to partner with HBAF as part of our ‘Engaging Neighbourhoods’ project. The Upper Valley Friends group were brought together with photographer Rebecca Lupton of ‘The Mothers’ project to build their confidence in using mobile phones to capture images of everyday parenthood.

As part of their Children & Families work, Halifax Opportunities Trust recognise the additional support some families need, and as a result they facilitate groups and sessions within the community as well as providing nursery places for children aged 0-5 years. The groups/nursery sessions enable parents and children to come together, play, learn new skills, be school ready and access additional support

WEBSITE

Artist: Danielle Lovett

worked with Halifax Opportunities Trust

background

Danielle Lovett is a local artist living in Hebden Bridge with her family including her two young children. She mostly works with Children and the Early years, in an arts and crafts based setting.

current work

She is currently progressing her work into forest schools to engage children into the wonders of nature, whilst still using the arts to explore this. Danielle also works with community outreach projects and organisations as far as greater Manchester teaching the arts, screen-printing, mark making and more.

Our group partnership with Rastrick High School continues in 2022.

This initiative was focussed on inspiring the next generation of their pupils aged 14-16. A series of video interviews were programmed from people working in the creative industries showcasing what it’s really like having a career in the arts. We are also arranged for local artist Rachel Red to work with the students to print make and create posters to add to their creative portfolios.

Back in Spring ’21, Rastrick High School were one of the first groups to work with HBAF as part of the project. We wanted to reach out to more young people who live in Calderdale and talk with them about the arts. Some of the pupils participated in a collection of audio interviews and doodle note artwork to share their voices, views, and opinions.

Artist: Rachel Red

worked with Rastrick High School

background

Rachel Red is a printmaker, designer and print teacher living in Hebden Bridge and working at Northlight Art Studios. Her work is a celebration of the natural world and of special places. She makes lino prints of wild creatures in their natural habitats and screen prints to represent the character of different places. Her style is bold and simplified with limited colour palettes.

current work

Inspirations range from mid-century design to nature tables, travel posters to fairy tales. Most images come from personal experience and wildlife sightings, which seems to key into other people’s connections to places and to the natural world.

She designs a range of homeware and stationery from these original prints. Rachel is also available for design commissions such as posters, leaflets, branding, labels, exhibition boards or other interesting challenges.

website

www.rachreddesigns.co.uk