Fleece: Flow, Sian Hughes

Sian Hughes, Fleece: Flow
Bridewell Studios & Gallery, 22-28 June

‘Fragments in Time: Flow’ was inspired by my realisation that the tidal estuary of Traeth Mawr behind Porthmadog, was lost when the cob was built by William Maddock in 1811 to drain the land.

I used scores of tiny porcelain boats to re-create the flow of water and currents that would have existed before the cob was built.

It is gratifying to have this legacy opportunity from my initial installation.  The Bridewell space enables me  to re-visit my original idea and to nuance and re-focus it to fit a new space and location.

Here, in ‘Fleece:Flow’,  the coracle I made for ‘Fragments …‘ is the central focus, with the flow of water across the Gallery space being represented by sheep fleeces rather than porcelain boats.  In this metaphorical flow,  black and white porcelain bowls,  patterned to echo the ash lathes of a traditional coracle frame, become smaller vessels,  caught in the current.

The fleeces were left behind from an installation at the Bridewell last year where Irene Rogan burned sheep fleeces to highlight what farmers are now forced to do, due to the loss of a profitable wool market in the UK and the subsequent lack  of value and sales.

I have rescued four of these fleeces to use in my installation.

Both Fragments in Time: Flow and Fleece: Flow, reflect loss. The first being the loss of the tidal estuary.

Fleece: Flow reflects on the loss of old ways …from the traditional use of coracles to cross rivers and bodies of water, to their use in guiding sheep across rivers to wash the fleeces prior to shearing –  and the disappearing traditional skills and materials in the art of coracle making itself.

These installations have been made possible by grants from the Arts Council of Wales in 2019 and 2022

About the artists: Sian Hughes

Accessibility: No disabled access

Toilets: Yes

Website: www.bridewellstudiosliverpool.org