Rural life from an urban perspecitive.
Combine: Rural Life from an Urban Perspective is an exciting project delivered by Junction Arts to connect urban and rural communities to explore and interpret farming and contemporary rural life and to share their experiences with others.
The participants were a group of young people from Shirebrook Academy who made a series of visits to Hill Top Farm in Ashover over the winter. They also went to Bakewell Cattle Market to see the cattle sales and saw a fascinating collection of historic farming machinery at Langwith and Whaley Thorns Heritage Centre.
During their visits to Hill Top Farm the boys spent time with the farmers, Ed, Paul and Michelle Willmot who talked to them about their lives and explained how farming has changed over the years. They also learned about the livestock and landscape and carried out soil testing and landscape evaluations.
Throughout the project the young people worked with a professional photographer, Helen Saunders, to record their experiences. They learned simple photography and editing skills then selected the images they felt reflected what they had seen. A creative writing workshop supported the group to put their experience into words. These photographs will now be exhibited around the local area and across the County for the wider public to see. The first exhibition venue is Ashover Parish Hall, from Friday 18th February for two weeks. Check the website for the updated project exhibition programme. The project has been supported by a wide range of partners including: Natural England, F.A.C.E, Bagshaws, Langwith Heritage Centre, Rural Action Derbyshire and Derbyshire County Council Youth Service. F.A.C.E (Farming and Countryside Education) were very supportive of the project and Bobbie Harvey delivered a fantastic Environmental Art workshop on the farm that was a key ingredient in engaging the young people. The advice from Natural England was also invaluable in identifying Hill Top Farm. The farmers were a significant factor of the projects success.
Click combine online[1]to download the exhibition leaflet in its pdf format.
