This exhibition was earlier this year, please bear with me as I work through updating and improving my website. Thank you, Karen.
‘Nurture’
An Exhibition by East Anglian based Design Nation Members
Nurture (verb) – care for and protect (someone or something) while they are growing
4th July to 27 th July, designermakers21, Diss, South Norfolk.
Open Thursday-Saturday 10am to 5pm.
Design Nation is the leading membership portfolio for contemporary craft and design in the UK. The East Anglian group hub was formed in 2020, and connects makers working from their studios in Suffolk, Essex and Norfolk. Having met frequently over zoom for the past four years, six members have come together to exhibit their work. ‘Nurture’ encapsulates an exploration of each maker’s connections with their local environment.
Working across disciplines including Weave, Embroidery, Ceramics, French Beading and Mixed Media, the conversations, and connections, between makers’ practices centre around becoming increasingly environmentally conscious.
Makers draw upon a variety of backgrounds and experiences, from working in the fashion and textile industry, to an increasing awareness of the amount of plastic in everyday life. The impact of human activity and climate change on the East Anglian landscape, serve as a catalyst for all six makers to strive to reduce the environmental impact of their work. Many utilise waste materials; transforming single use plastic, paper pulp and nylon offcuts into highly tactile, contemporary art works, and repurposing textile industry surplus yarns to create handwoven interior pieces.
Where materials cannot be repurposed, artists make conscious decisions about sourcing sustainable materials, minimising waste and energy consumption. All seek to achieve balance and harmony with the natural environment.
Featuring Work by:
Caroline Hyde-Brown
Holly Parr
Pamela Print
Lucie Summers
Kate Welton
Karen Whiterod
Events
Planted-Country, June 2023
Balanced-Earth took part in Planted Country at National Trust Stourhead. Three days of nature-based sustainable design. I needed to remain on my stand, so was unable to attend the talks. However they are available on the Planted website. Click here.
My space at Craft in Focus RHS Garden Hyde Hall in August 2022. Displaying the suspended, wall-mounted and free-standing sculptural forms with plants.
Balanced-Earth’s Hawfinch and Linnet, two of the wall-mounted sculptural plant-mobiles were part of “Curated by Dan Goode” at Chelsea Old Town Hall for Handmade Chelsea the Contemporary Craft and Design Fair in November 2021.
Other News
Balanced-Earth is a member of Blue Patch
I visited the Blue Patch stand at the London Design Fair in October 2023. The “Homes with a Heart” theme of the stand was designed by interior design journalist, Roddy Clark. Every item was made by a small business with the ethos of being sustainable and ethical, while being good design. I met the founder and CEO of Blue Patch, Jane Langley and came away from our conversation convinced that I would like Balanced-Earth to become a member.
Here we are now, a member of Blue Patch! If you would like to visit Blue Patch, please click on the logo.
The Balanced-Earth Starling kinetic sculpture and three Curlews were included in the Rising Stars exhibition at the New Ashgate Gallery in Farnham, Surrey, in 2022.
Rising Stars is a platform to champion the most exciting new craft, design and applied arts.
Twenty makers of diverse backgrounds were selected for the exhibition by a panel of craft professionals, focusing on potential and talent
In 2017 I made a sculpture, Nest of Hope, it was exhibited in the Raveningham Sculpture Trail (later that year, the idea for Balanced-Earth began). During the grimness of shielding I was contacted by the publisher, Amber Lotus, as they wished to include this image in their calendar for 2022. 
A great boost to be included with eleven fabulous sculptures from artists around the world!
The sculpture was part of a socially-engaged community project I had devised, called, “Hope Calling”, about climate change. You can find out more about this and my other sculptures before Balanced-Earth on Axisweb.
