Ceramicist Verity Howard ran a series of clay workshops relating to Meadow Arts recent exhibition Watermark (28 January – 3 June 2023), and to its theme of flooding. Read more about what Verity got up to during these workshops and what the children enjoyed the most.

In April and May, I ran two family clay workshops at The Hive, Worcester for Meadow Arts as part of the Watermark exhibition. When creating these workshops I was particularly inspired by Deluge, a new temporary artwork commissioned by Meadow Arts especially for Watermark by artist Hilary Jack. Deluge was installed on Story Island, an outdoor space at The Hive, which rises out of one of the flood basins incorporated into the landscaping to hold flood water from the River Severn. Deluge comprised of two lines of LED text that mimicked the relentless scroll of news found on busy urban landmarks and on our screens. While one line matter-of-factly announced flooding events in Worcester, the UK and around the globe in 2022, the other relayed age-old flood narratives and myths from various cultures and distant civilisations. I was intrigued by these age-old flood narratives, myths and the imagery and ideas conjured up when reading these stories.  

At the start of the workshops everyone enjoyed a walk outside to visit Deluge which sparked their imaginations ready to get making with clay. I then invited the children and adults to create their own island sculpture using terracotta clay inspired by Story Island. I encouraged participants to make plants, creatures and buildings for their islands and to think of a short story about their imagined place. These stories became myths of their own much like the narratives told on Deluge.  

Some people had never used clay before and some had, but everyone enjoyed getting messy! Everyone got to take their island home where they could choose to keep it or submerge their clay island in water and watch it sink before their eyes! We talked about how when the clay islands were submerged in water, they could then be recycled back into clay to be used again to create something new in the future. Both children and adults had a fantastic time using their imaginations to create brilliant clay islands with castles, volcanos, dragons, mermaids, tree houses, forests, cities and caves.  

In total 57 children and 44 grown-ups took part in the workshops at The Hive. Here are some of the things they said about taking part: 

“I enjoyed making my island, I liked the feeling of the clay.” 
“It made me think how important water is.” 
“Super activity and very creative.” 
“I liked making trees and I really liked getting messy!” 
“I liked learning about the sculptures.” 
“I enjoyed making my town, I’ve learnt how to work with clay.” 

Watermark is a contemporary art exhibition exploring water, flooding and the climate crisis that took place in venues across Worcester from 28 January – 3 June 2023.

These workshops were kindly supported by Arts Council England and the Elmley Foundation.