Leading artists take a leisurely journey through Yorkshire
Art, like love, can’t be hurried. At least not the sort of carefully hand-crafted art that’s currently making a snail’s pace tour of the county.
Make it Slow, which brings together the work of six of the UK’s leading crafters, is taking a leisurely stroll around North and East Yorkshire before heading off to East Lancashire and North East Lincolnshire in a mammoth 11-month tour. The exhibition is being hosted by a network of small-scale venues until the end of October.
The artists, who all embrace the intrinsic values of the Slow Movement through their use of breathtakingly intricate techniques, sustainable materials and connection with traditional skills, include Aimee Betts, a mixed media embroiderer who combines traditional skills with contemporary design practice, and Fenella Elms, a ceramic artist whose wall hung porcelain work is painstakingly created from hundreds of individually made porcelain beads.
They are being joined by Lizzie Farey, who uses traditional basketry techniques to create sculptural forms from locally grown woods; Chris Keenan, who trained under Edmund de Waal and creates porcelain bowls, cups, jars and vases; Misun Won, whose intricate handcrafted silver jewellery is inspired by Korean patchwork techniques; and Sharon Adams, who creates functionless utensils inspired by the mysterious objects found in obscure museum collections.
‘The exhibition as a whole highlights how slow processes – thinking, researching, experimenting – are vital to all makers and their practice,’ said curator Grace Whowell. ‘It also highlights broader issues such as sustainability and consumerism.
‘The works featured in this show are an antidote to quickly-made, mass-produced objects and help us to reconnect with the very human act of making things with our hands.’
Each object in this inspiring show has its own story to tell, encouraging visitors to think about how they can apply slow principles to their hectic modern lives.
Make it Slow will be at Woodend Gallery, Scarborough, until January 31st, then on to Pocklington Arts Centre from March 6th to April 5th; The Folly, Settle, from April 15th to June 29th; No 6 Gallery in Pateley Bridge from July 9th to August 6th; and Rural Arts in Thirsk from August 9th to September 6th.
The exhibition is the first from Art Unpacked, a series of touring art exhibitions created by Chrysalis Arts, a North Yorkshire-based organisation which aims to bring the very best contemporary art and craft to small, unique venues.
