Lasting Impressions update

Lasting Impressions: Cloth Taxonomies, 2017. Hannah Lamb & Claire Wellesley-Smith (photo Hannah Lamb)

Over the last two years I have been working with friend and fellow artist Claire Wellesley-Smith on Lasting Impressions, an artwork commissioned by Saltaire Inspired. During Saltaire Arts Trail in May 2016 and 2017 we created a performative and participatory work in the spinning room at Salts Mill, which aimed to capture a record of the clothes worn by visitors, start discussions about cloth and archive these responses through making.

Given the wealth of responses and the discussions provoked by the work it seemed fitting to capture all of this in a publication. Our Lasting Impressions artists' book will be launched at this years' Saltaire Arts Trail, 5th - 7th May at my Open Studio. Join us at the Butterfly Rooms, Gordon Terrace as we present elements of the project.

If you can't make it along we will be announcing how you can buy a copy after the event.

Thinking on...

Catching my breath after an incredibly busy week, now seems a good time to pause briefly and reflect on Lasting Impressions. If anything I feel like the experience was slightly unreal. Both the fact that we were given this incredible opportunity and that it happened at all seem like some strange fantasy; did that really just happen? The chance to make a work in the incredible top floor, Spinning Room at Salts Mill was just wonderful and, I expect, once in a lifetime.

©Carolyn Mendelsohn 2016

©Carolyn Mendelsohn 2016

 We had no way of knowing what response we would get from visitors and participants. We were so pleased that people seemed to not only 'get it', but that they really engaged with the work. From the 300+ people of all ages, genders and backgrounds who took part, we had some really thoughtful responses and generous comments. It was also great to see so many of our friends and supporters, thank you!

©Carolyn Mendelsohn 2016

©Carolyn Mendelsohn 2016

©Carolyn Mendelsohn 2016

©Carolyn Mendelsohn 2016

Claire and I have some work to do towards the next stage of the project, and in the short term a lot of porcelain tiles to fire. Keep a look out here and on my other social media for details about what happens next to Lasting Impressions.

Some people to thank for their help and support for Lasting Impressions:

Saltaire Inspired

Arts Council England

Salts Mill

Bradford School of Art

Carolyn Mendelsohn - photographer

Phil Jackson - photographer

and my dear friend Claire Wellesley-Smith xx

Not making it

It is a very strange thing to be building up for a big project and to have nothing much to show for it. The Lasting Impressions project I am currently working on with Claire Wellesley-Smith is something very different for me. As a performative work, it will take place and grow in situ at Salts Mill. It is such an exciting opportunity and  I feel really honoured to be able to work on this.

It took me by complete surprise (although it probably shouldn't have) that I have missed the slow build-up of making that I usually associate with a project. I miss the making and I miss the reassurance of a physical object taking shape. It makes me nervous to have nothing in my studio and just lists and invoices in my notebook.

I keep telling myself that the magic will happen in the moment... Fingers crossed!

The Spinning Room

It's a long time since I wrote a post here, mainly because I have been busy planning projects and writing proposals. That doesn't always make for fascinating reading but today one if those projects started to feel much more real.

I am really lucky this year to be creating a new work called 'Lasting Impressions' in partnership with my friend Claire Wellesley-Smith for Saltaire Arts Trail. With the support of Saltaire Inspired and Arts Council England we have been commissioned to make a performative work for the duration of the event (28-30 May 2016). We are very fortunate to be using the wonderful Spinning Room at Salts Mill and today we had our first planning visit.

At 168 metres long it is a truly amazing space with an atmosphere all of it's own. It makes it all the more special that it isn't usually open to the public. This will be an exciting, if slightly daunting project. I will be sharing more here and on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook over the coming weeks.

While I rest

A few photos from the weekend, from which I am gradually recovering. Thank you to everyone who visited the Butterfly Rooms during Saltaire Arts Trail, we had the most amazing feedback from visitors.

The last image is of the little artist editions I made to go with the Linear Mapping installation. I have a few left at £8.50 plus P&P so please leave a comment if you are interested.

Linear Mapping - take two

I am really pleased to have another chance to show Linear Mapping, this time in my own studio during Saltaire Arts Trail. It's always an interesting challenge to reconfigure an installation of components. I have no fixed arrangement, so we shall see how it works in this new space.

My studio at the Butterfly Rooms will be open 10 - 5 on Saturday 23rd May, 10 - 4 Sunday 24th and Monday 25th. I hope you will pop by and have a look...

This time last year...

This time last year I was part way through my project called 'Linear Mapping'. The project involved recording or mapping a series of short walks in the local countryside and also some in my native Chilterns. I was reflecting on this yesterday while I was out walking. Since then my walking habits have changed a bit, with a dog to take with me on my journeys. We don't always want to stop and 'sniff around' in the same spots but are learning some give and take. Being out walking at different times has given me some wonderful encounters with nature. Yesterday while I was taking photos of bluebells we were both startled by a pair of deer thundering past us just a few feet away.

Linear Mapping is on my mind a lot at the moment as I will be showing the work during Saltaire Arts Trail in a few weeks. To accompany this I am currently in the process of putting together an artist's edition, that documents the project. I am enjoying the process of bringing all the different strands together and finishing the process of documentation. With any luck these editions should be ready in time for the trail... not long now!

A backward glance...

 ... for those of you who didn't make it to my studio, a few photos. You can also read a post about Saltaire Arts Trail by Hannah Nunn here.

Sun and stitches at the studio

I really could not believe the beautiful sunshine today, which arrived right on cue for the start of Saltaire Arts Trail. It has been a glorious day and I have been fortunate to have some lovely folk along to the studio, both old friends and new acquaintances.

Some have been kind enough to join me in stitching an embroidered doodle 'map' of Saltaire, complete with chickens, cats and some very imaginative fairies! There is plenty of room on our cloth still if you would like to pop in and do a little bit of stitching with me.

You can also read a lovely post about community stitching by Clarabella here.

A window for Saltaire Arts Trail

If you are passing the Butterfly Rooms have a look and tell me what you think of my first ever window display.