Linda Johns Workshop in Salcey Forest 2009

I was lucky enough to go to a workshop run by Linda Johns in Salcey Forest during the summer. After a quick tour of her artworks (see previous post), we spent the morning creating our own wire wrapped sculptures, using wire and wood we found in the forest.  It was really good despite the rain. Linda and the other attendees were lovely and the morning passed really quickly. I've included pictures of my sculpture, I was really pleased with what I'd made, someone even asked me if I'd bought it :).

Linda Johns Salcey Forest 2009

Photo's taken by me during Linda's tour of the Salcey Forest exhibition 2009. What a grey old day! There were some other lovely sculptures up in the trees, unfortunately the pics for these didn't come out at all, the sculptures melded into the grey sky. Linda took us on this tour before the workshop (next post), she noted how the public interacted with the sculptures adding bits. The larger spider web sculpture looked like a North American Indian dream catcher.

Linda Johns Open University Sculpture Walk 2009

Body Weave IV

You can view more images from the sculpture walk at my flickr account.

Linda Johns Northampton Open Studio

During the summer I was lucky enough to see some of artist Linda Johns work exhibited around Bucks, Beds and Northampton. Despite some pretty absymal weather I enjoyed exhibitions in Salcey Forest, at Canons Ashby for Northampton Open Studio's and at Milton Keynes shopping centre. I was also lucky enough to attend one of Linda's workshops in Salcey Forest.

Linda is currently taking part in 'In the Loop', a project that enables members of the public to get involved, sharing images, thoughts etc. Linda is looking at the ways people communicate using the web, and what interactions they might have if they came to see sculptures in a gallery (text taken from the 'In the loop' website). You can keep up to date with her blog and see sculptures at Salcey Forest, Delapre Abbey Walled Garden Northamptonshire and Barnwell Country Park, Oundle. There is an event on 03 April 2010 at Woburn ARTBEAT. For more details go the 'In the Loop' website found here.

Images taken by me at Canons Ashby, part of Northampton Open Studios 2010

More on Dungeness

Below are a few of my pictures taken in Dungeness in 2009. Go here for some great pictures of the Open Studios in Dungeness.

And Deal at night from the pier, beautiful!

I love this photographer and other Kentish things

Photographer Sarah Smith takes photos around Kent near where we took many family holidays. I've found the different landscapes of South Kent inspiring for many years: from the cliffs of Dover and St Margarets, to the flat expanse of shingle beach and beautiful conservation area houses and shops at Deal, out to the flat open landscape of Romney Marsh and the emptiness of Dungeness.

These are the photo's that I would have liked to take if only I'd been capable! 

I'm signed up for an Open University digital photography course T189 Digital photography: creating and sharing better images, which starts in May 2010, so I hope to be able to add some of my own 'better images' to this blog over the summer. 

above: St Margaret's Bay captured as I've never seen it before.

above: Deal beach towards Kingsdown

above: Deal Pier at sunset

above: Langdon Cliffs

For more details please visit Sarah's website Sarah Smith.

On the subject of photography and Kent, I really like this book about Derek Jarman's garden in Dungness. I've previously taken some pretty amature pictures of his garden as it is now, but I'm hoping to go back with my dad in the spring/early summer to take some more.

While we're there, I'm sure after we've refreshed ourselves at the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch railway cafe we'll pop into the tiny Dungeness Gallery, which is housed in a small wing next to the kitchen of one of the old fisherman's houses which dot the landscape of Dungeness. Every time we've been there we've been greeted not only by the friendly hospitality of the photographer Chris Shore and his artist partner Helen Taylor, but by the smell of freshly baking cake, which has only added to the appeal!

Some more snow pictures...

...because they're so lovely. For full size images please go to my flickr page.

Snow pictures