Continuing on from my previous artist in residence blog with renewed vigour and some actual cash, the next phase of the Butterfly Park art project will endeavour to take over an empty shop for 6 months.
Can’t believe I haven’t been blogging, just told our artist this month Iain Broadley on facebook that he should be blogging and realised I haven’t either haha. Pot/Kettle/Black
Anyway……………..
This month has been mad. Work is crazy busy and I have to fit in the things I do for the Comma Project when I can, haven’t been near my studio in weeks and the kids aren’t getting the best out of me.
Juggling is so hard.
However, the Comma Project just gets better and better, I wish I had more time to spend working on it. Fortunately, Iain has looked after himself and my trusty team of volunteers are fabulous and can manage without me, the shop had to be closed 2 days last week but a lot of shops in New Ferry are only open 5 days a week so I have to not feel guilty.
Iains project is fantastic fun, it’s all about bugs and habitats! Bug liberation. He’s made masses of different bug models from all kinds of recycled materials. We have a real wormery and an ant city too. Giant underpants claiming ‘ants in yer pants’ in the window got people in through the door or just laughing outside.
We had a workshop last week where Iain showed people how to make seed bombs and it was great, loads turned up, got very messy and had lots of fun.
This coming Sunday we have a moss graffiti workshop. Starting out in the shop preparing the recipe, then we’ll paint on the tiny wall under the windows of the shop. We’ve put a call out to see if anyone in New Ferry wants some moss painting on their walls, I hope so but we’re also going up to the local farm and painting on their walls then going strawberry picking after – praying for good weather!!
its great to see so many people enjoying the space now, cant believe how quickly the project has gone. Only 2 more projects after this :( will be sad to see it end. Who knows what might pop up in the meantime though hey?
Andrea’s PV went off really well.
The sun shone and so we laid the stones in the Butterfly Park and stayed there for the whole PV.
Lots of people came, people who had been in during the month watching Andrea paint and people who had attended the workshop.
Lovely atmosphere, tea and strawberry scones and good company.
The stones fit in really well within the park. I’m sure visiting children are going to love looking at them and identifying the different creatures and plants.
Andrea is making identification sheets that will be handed out allowing the children to see how many things they can match on the stones and then see how many things they can then identify in real life within the park.
She also has plans for a domino style game around the park that she is going to put a proposal in for that we can then possibly try to fundraise for.
Spent the day in the shop with Andrea today.
She’s painted 2 bee orchids and 2 more common blue butterflies and I imagine she’ll be there late tonight as she is determined to get as much finished as she can.
We had a few visitors today, not many but the rain was tipping it down all day so I suppose most people would be sensible and stay indoors.
I’ll be back in tomorrow, hope we get a few more visitors.
Roy, one of our volunteers popped in too, he’ll be back with us next week after a bad eye infection has stopped him getting out, great news.
We also had a student in, she’s studying on a combined sciences degree, has 4 months off and is volunteering with Cheshire Council on an eco-community programme but still has spare time and hates being bored, love people like that, so we’re signing her up as a new volunteer too.
I need to contact a whole load more people to come and do talks and workshops as we received another small grant last week. Great news for the project. Means we get another interactive artwork, new flyers for the park and more summer workshops.
Also need to do way more in the way of publicity. Wondering whether its worth actually advertising?
Will be looking into that :)
Where does the time go?
I’ve been ridiculously busy with work and the butterfly park project and haven’t had time to blog.
Andrea’s residency ends in a week…madness!!
She’s been back home to Cambridge all week looking after a poorly Mum and is very stressed about finishing her work here. She’s not coping with talking to the public and working at the same time under the pressure of finishing so is only going to have 3 of the stones done for Wednesdays stone laying and finish the 4th at home and bring it back up.
I’d offered to paint some butterflies in while she was away but was terrified at the prospect of actually doing it when she said yes. It’s so nerve wracking painting onto someone elses work. Especially as I’m not a painter!!
As it happens I have been too busy, mad week at work my 3 day week has been 5 already this week. crazy.
This afternoon I got the chance to tidy up some edges, make some Burnet moths redder and painted a male and a female Common Blue Butterfly. The volunteers this morning said only one person had been in all day. I arrived at 2pm to take over, set up the paints and sods law, lots of visitors came in to chat haha.
Great though, met lots of lovely people, had a great chat about being ‘scouse and proud’ to a woman who lives in Knowsley but was visiting her ‘woolyback’ mate. Its so funny the way Liverpool/Wirral has the big divide.
Hoping her friend comes with her next time, we decided she’d really enjoy the workshops.
Anyway I didn’t get as much painted as I hoped but thats the way it goes.
Andrea’s back in the studio tommorrow so I hope she thinks they’re ok.
The workshop she held was great, pity the drawing one was rained off but Painting on stones went really well and was enjoyed by everyone who came. Such a laid back, chilled out event. Supposed to finish at 4pm but everyone was having a great time so we opened a bottle of wine and painted til 5.30 :)
