Rubbish at the seaside

If you're looking for something to do this weekend and can get along to Felixstowe, pop over to Landguard Fort where there is a unique exhibition of local artists, including Fran Crowe's Walking to save some sea.

Fran's work focuses on the problem of litter at the seaside and more information can be found at her website. There will also be some free drop-in workshops, with rubbish available for junk modelling, which will keep the kids entertained for sure.

Twizzles and Straight Lines

Taken while visiting the ArtWorks exhibition at Blackthorpe Barn in Rougham today.

Arty Facts

We've had a bit of an arty day today, so art is on my mind. I'm afraid I can't take credit for these creatures though. We found them lurking in the Bury St Edmunds Art Gallery when we visited this morning.

We went to see the Picasso exhibition, which features beautiful prints from the Histoire Naturelle series. From a five year old's perspective we saw spiders, toads, frogs, dragonfiles, butterflies, horses, cows, birds and about ten other animals\insects that I can't now remember. From my perspective it was a real treat to see an element of Picasso's work that I had never come across.


There was the added interest of seeing the beautiful pottery exhibits in the Animal Fantasies exhibition, which was featured alongside.



Art Galleries are great for children and we are lucky to have one that welcomes them (and I mean, REALLY welcomes them) . My five year old has been used to visiting our local gallery ever since he was two years old and he loves it. The trick I find is to crouch down at their height and ask them what they can see. Behind the fun that you can have spotting new things is the more serious element of of the communication process. Engaging in conversation about the colours, shapes, sizes, content and materials used helps to develop a wide ranging vocabulary.

The Bury St Edmunds Art Gallery is a real gem. Not only does it have regular exhibitions that are accessible to children at a level which they can interpret, but it also has an art lounge which has a drawing table and lots of wooden toys and books to keep their interest. There is currently an extra creative corner, which focuses on the exhibition and encourages children to create animal drawings or to have a go at creating a plasticine model.


Having the opportunity to engage in art & craft activities helps children in many ways including sensory experiences, communication skills and even developing their sense-of-self, not to mention the importance of developing their fine and gross motor skills. Of course, these kind of things are a key feature of early years and primary school experiences but providing extra opportunities outside an educational setting is always beneficial.


The Bury St Edmunds Art Gallery certainly provides such opportunities and with an entrance fee of just £1 per adult (children go free), it is an excellent experience all round. It also has a comprehensive range of reference books and magazines available in the Art Lounge, where you can even relax with a tea or coffee.

My only regret is that having spent time enjoying the exhibition and taking a few snaps, I completely forgot to take a photo of the stripy cat that we made out of plasticine (It's the purple blob to the right of my little one's arm). Never mind, it gives us another great excuse to go along again. If you live near Bury and fancy a trip along to the exhibition, you'll be pleased to know that it is on until 9th September. If you have a buggy in tow, don't be put off as there is a lift.

At the start of the post, I said that we'd had a bit of an arty day. Being inspired by the gallery as ever, on the way home we popped into the local art shop to buy a new watercolour set...so I'm now off to have a dabble with the paints...wish me luck...as I am certainly no Picasso...

Lots of paint and one toddler

Today I realised that after about 6 weeks of blogging, I've not really featured my children. Although I have no intention of turning this into a "mumsy"blog, I felt it was missing the child-oriented element of my life.

So to prove that my children are not just a figment of my imagination, here is a photo of this afternoon's really fun painting session at the dining table with my (now nappy-free) toddler.

He had a great time slapping loads of paint over the many cardboard tubes that we have collected from expired kitchen rolls. However the best fun he had was when he spread the gooey paint over his hand and then grabbed the long tube which came from a roll of wrapping paper. The squeals and giggles will last in my memory for many years to come.

I am surprised that I escaped paint free. I am also pleased that we had very warm weather which meant the works of art dried very quickly outside. Here you can see the lovely painted tubes hanging out to dry on our washing line, along with the printed pictures (made from pressing paper against paint blobs on kitchen roll).

Now all I've got to do is to just work out what we do with them. Suggestions are welcome.

Summer Poppies & Corn by Claire Turner

Yippee, this morning I bought the gorgeous bowl that I saw at yesterday's Open Studios exhibition. However, I had to negotiate hard with he who controls the purse-strings. I have vowed to buy no wine and no chocolate for a whole month. It'll be tough, but it's worth it. I brought the bowl home today. It is made of felted silk and Angelina fibres, with silk poppies ~ it's stunning.

Open Studios at Blackthorpe Barn

Today I took a break from a rainy Moreton Hall, to venture out of town to the beautiful environment of Blackthorpe Barn. It was the last weekend of the Open Studios exhibition which showcases works by talented artists throughout Suffolk.

The barn is a welcoming venue and it is always a delight to wander around and browse the paintings, sculptures, ceramics and accessories during the Open Studios exhibition. I obtained permission to take photos from the exhibition stewards, and despite a wide range of subjects, I found myself being drawn to beautiful paintings of poppies, of which I have included a few images below.

(Please note that these are my own photos and not the official images from the show. Some photos have been enlarged to show the relevant sections of the works. The copyright within these works remains with the artists).

Artist: Teresa Bavington-Barber (on left) Artist: Theronda Hoffman (on right)

Artist: Jill Hodgson (on left) Artist: Jennifer Freeman (on right)

Artist: Katie Walker (on left) Artist: Greta Hansen (on right)

Artist: David Elliott.





Artist: Claire Turner

All these items are available to buy. For more information or to contact the artists directly, visit the Suffolk Open Studios Website at http://www.suffolkopenstudios.co.uk/ . If you get a chance to get out and about during June, you also can visit the individual artists' studios.

Interestingly, while chatting to Jill Hodgson, an artist and exhibition co-ordinator, about the images of poppies, she showed me a copy of a cutting from yesterday's EADT. I hadn't been the only person to pick up on the use of poppies in this year's exhibition.

Sonia Carvill of the EADT has also mentioned it in her excellent review entitled "Fabulous, eclectic exhibition of art is not to be missed". Jill Hodgson has also used poppies very subtly in her media, which uses plaster and paint. As she said, poppies are beautiful and are always remembered.

I think that is why I was drawn to this striking flower today. Having recently walked around Moreton Hall with Ruby, author of Living in Bury St Edmunds, she remarked on the beautiful poppies which lined the pathways and fields and how appropriate that this was on land that was once occupied by the British and US Air Force during World War II.

With that thought, I picked up my umbrella and left the exhibition to head back to the poppies of Moreton Hall, while thinking about treating myself to the fabulous textile bowl featured above.

Addendum: I returned the following day to buy the textile bowl.