Movement & Visual Artist
Inviting whole body self-expression, embracing personal wellbeing and connection to the wider world.
I am a multi-disciplinary artist with work rooted in experience and the natural environment. I have a background in dance, as a performer and teacher and a wide ranging, nearly thirty years of experience, working to initiate new projects in new places with every age group. I graduated a contemporary dance training, the BA(Hons)Dance Theatre course at the Laban Centre of Movement and Dance in 1993. I have developed professional, community, health and dance in education and performance projects. I’m an explorer, movement outdoors, improvisation and Somatic Practices including Klein Technique and more recently Mindfulness I share by developing projects and participation outdoors, especially Creative Walks to support health and wellbeing. I practice mark making with found materials, create textiles and installation work which has been exhibited.
Recent Work
2023 Devised a new course, Creative Mindfulness for Dementia, based on the Breathworks Mindfulness for Stress Course, especially for Carers and those diagnosed with Dementia with funding from the Breathworks Seed Fund, The Deal, Wigan and the Dementia United, Big Brain Health Fund.
Commissioned to develop a project with Archives, Wigan & Leigh ‘Enjoying the View’, supporting the wellbeing of people living with Dementia through inspiring engagement with Leigh Archives and local natural places, creativity and mindfulness.
2022 ‘The Mine Is Yours’ Healthy Arts Project at Lancashire Mining Museum, Healthy Arts | The Mine Is Yours , walking, movement and mindfulness with a community group in canal side woodland. Created the Astley Green Wood Wellbeing Resource.
Received an Arts Council England, Developing Your Creative Practice award for a summer of studio, The Bluecoat, Liverpool and Wainsgate Dance, Hebden Bridge and natural environment, West Yorkshire moors research into Movement and Mindfulness.
2020 Commissioned to create a film ‘Creative Walking’ for Healthy Arts, ACE funded 2020 Vision Project. Film featured on www.healthyarts.org.uk.
2019 Environmental movement and mark making project with Blue Room Artists, The Bluecoats Inclusive arts programme for learning disabled adults at Norton Priory.
Creative Walks at Pennington Flash Country Park and Borsdane Wood with Skills CIC learning disabled adults, Chapter One Tea Room, Hindley for Healthy Arts.
2017-2018 Piloted new community movement sessions, Moving Meditation and outdoor Pennington Park Relaxation sessions. Creative Walks for families and adults on Pennington Flash Country Park and Pennington Park.
“Nice to take time out with the children and do something fun”
Family Creative Walk Evaluations
“Enjoyed closing my eyes and listening to the sounds of nature, gave me a sense of tranquillity and well-being”
Just to say, thanks for an inspiring activity on Saturday. From it I’ve created a list of impressions to work into my writing and, who knows a poem may be forthcoming.”
“First time we have joined anything like this, enjoyed how casual the walk was, how little pressure to ‘perform’ or finish anything.”
Creative Walk for Adults Evaluations
2014-15 Moving Marks Project, environmental moving, mark making and participation in a one-year Grants for the Arts, Arts Council England and Wigan Leisure & Culture Trust funded project centered on Pennington Flash Country Park, Leigh. This included the development of a gallery-based installation, a participatory outdoor installation and four creative walks for adults and families.
“The variety of work in the boxes is really good, photographs, writing and painting and this project has created a community spirit on Pennington Flash”
“I have been impressed with the project. It adds a dimension to my daily walk to see the work displayed in the boxes. It has inspired me to be creative and contribute work to be displayed and I’ve enjoyed seeing my things on display. It’s also been great to get complimentary comments about my work from other walkers. “
“We were so excited when we first saw the boxes located on Pennington Flash!”
“My family and I like how there are different sized boxes and enjoy placing our drawings in them and can even put interesting finds in them during our walks such as unusual stones or pieces of wood”
Moving Marks Outdoor Display Evaluation.
2009-2013 Attending all of Helen Poynor’s, Walk of Life training programme in non-stylised and environmental movement in the Southwest of England (www.walkoflife.co.uk) supported Arts Council England, Grants for the Arts.
2009-2013 Associate Tutor, Dance, Edge Hill University.
2002-2016 Small Things Dance Collective.
From Here to There and From Where You Are Dance & Health projects at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, Liverpool. Began developing participatory arts on acute wards in 2008 as part of the Alder Hey Arts Team. Small Things won the NHS Excellence in Participation Award for this work in 2014.
Since founding Small Things in 2002 projects have included multidisciplinary public performance and participant engagement in a variety of settings including dancers, film makers, visual artists, reception class children, refugees and asylum seekers, learning disabled adults, The Lowry, Salford, Victoria Baths, Manchester and the Walk the Plank Ship, Liverpool, (www.smallthingsdance.co.uk).
Exhibitions & Performance
2020 Online exhibitions; Outdoors Inside, World of Glass, St Helens.
Newlyn Art Gallery, Cornwall, Extraordinary Postcards for Extraordinary Times, Newlyn Art Gallery, Cornwall.
2019 Textile work ‘Gift’ accepted for Warrington Contemporary Arts festival Open at Warrington Museum and Art Gallery.
2018 Became New Art Spaces Leigh Artist Facilitator for Castlefield Gallery, organized and exhibited in New Art Spaces exhibition at Spinning Gate Shopping Centre, Leigh.
2017 Movement collaborator with visual artists and exhibition at Florence Mine Arts Centre, Egremont, Cumbria.
2016 Moved into New Art Spaces Leigh project space in February, (www.castlefieldgallery.co.uk)
‘Making a body’ textile installation in VS, New Art Spaces Leigh and Cross Street Arts (www.crossstreetarts.co.uk) group exhibition in New Art Spaces Bolton Completed two-week artists residency at Stiwidio Maelor, Corris, Wales, October (stiwdiomaelor.wordpress.com)
‘Around Corris’ exhibition in small Moving Marks display boxes, Pennington Flash Country Park and local retailer, Flower Shop by Gill, Atherton.
“Fab being able to talk to the children about each piece, getting them to see different things keeps them occupied, makes use of their brains creatively, expanding them. Wonderful, thank you.”
Moving Marks Exhibition Evaluations
2015 Moving Marks Installation, live performance at Neo: gallery27, Bolton.
Textile work, ‘2 Spines’ selected for Warrington Contemporary Open exhibition at Warrington Museum and Art Gallery.
20:20 Hot Bed Press Print exchange tour, (www.hotbedpress.org) while studio holder at Neo: Artists.
Created outdoor performance installation for Starlings Art & Nature Festival, (jayneseddonart.com/).
“An art piece that truly describes the vibrant nature of the human body.”
Moving Marks Exhibition Evaluations.
2011 Temporary Shelter Installation in the Liverpool Improvisation Collective Studio at the Bluecoat Arts Centre, an intimate sharing, open to visitors on two evenings, developing environmental movement and mark making with found, natural materials supported by ACE, GFTA .