Half Term at Church Farm

We had a busy half term at the end of February with many visitors taking part in our creative workshops.

For our 'Clay Day' workshops we visited the ancient clay pits of Church farm. Residents have been using clay from these pits for that last 400 years to make tiles and bricks for local buildings. We then visited some modern sculptures made by artist Valentin Manz situated next to the clay pits. His creations used wet bricks made with the local clay, moulded together to form hollow structures resembling termite mounds that are big enough to crawl inside!

We used this same clay to make small sculptures that young artists took home. First we had to warm the clay up by squishing it in our hands. Once warm it also became more compact and supple. Using the clay straight from the ground means it is not as refined as what you might find in an art shop, so we had to keep an eye out for small stones in the clay! The material was used to make a huge variety of pieces, including sheep, hedgehogs, elephants and funny faces. Materials collected from around the farm like twigs, berries, leaves and pebbles were used to decorate the creations. These sculptures were then covered in cress seeds which were watered to grow and become living sculptures!

We also had a fun day making new homes for all the spring nesting birds that are appearing at the moment. Bird boxes were made and recycled from old Church Farm veg and meat boxes! We flattened the boxes and made a template to cut around. This was then refolded and assembled as a closed and cosy box. We then cut different shaped holes in to each box, depending on which type of bird we wanted to attract! Boxes were then given a luxury makeover for 5 star bird accommodation, using twigs and leaves from the farm, crafty bits and a healthy splash of paint. The birds are in for a treat this spring!

Thanks to everyone that took part.... more creative fun coming up over the Easter Holidays!


Written by Lucy Ball who ran the half term workshops.