Turn the Page Artist Book Fair

Chris Ruston and Gwen Simpson will be joining a host of other book artists at Turn the Page Artist Book Fair 0n 17th & 18th May. Chris will be showing her new work 'The Ark", which consists of eighty pages of drawings. The work was inspired by a news report in which the Global Seed Bank on Svarlbard had experienced a small flood. The vault was set up to preserve biodiversity and houses seeds from around the world.

Chris responded to the article by exploring the idea of the Seed Bank as a 'modern ark'  and linking this with the 'modern 'flood story presently unfolding as we hear more and more concerns re sea level rise and melting glaciers. The work references the traditional flood story and brings together aspects of our shared human histories.

​more info here

Gwen Simpson will be showing Connecting Threads, a community project which she has been coordinating over the past year or so. The work seeks to highlight issues around the real cost of cheap clothing and directly relates to the Rana Plaza tragedy in 2013. Participants eagerly responded by making a small textile 'page' which has been beautifully sewn into one large piece - demonstrating what small actions can achieve when everyone comes together on the same page.

​more info here