Five Hectares

This socially-engaged project, developed by Chrysalis Arts, aims to foster greater connections with the natural world and the mosaic of inter-relationships and habitats in our environment. We can learn from this and imagine new futures.

The outreach began by working with local schools in Airedale and Wharfedale. We explored biodiversity by making cyanotypes. Making origami maps showed how names link people and places across time.

Together with artist Alice Fox, we also created books featuring images, maps and stories for the schools to keep.

An anternative Atlas of the area was made, with contributions from each participating artist as well as local people

Atlas photographs courtesy of, and copyright, Alice Fox.
I also created activity packs for libraries, to stimulate interest in place name origins, mapping through imaginative play, and imagining a new future environment based on archival information.

Above: map from the Bursall manuscript, held in North yorkshire Archives.

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