Sculptures made from old Shropshire Stars keep Ludlow art project going after flood nightmare
A bit of creativity and some old Shropshire Star newspapers have allowed a community art project to keep running after its premises was flooded.
Loudwater Studio in Ludlow has been shut since June when a combination of a blocked drain and torrential downpour caused sewage to pour into the building.
Loudwater, on the Burway Trading Estate, is part of Vision Homes Association, a charity that supports people with visual impairments and other complex disabilities.
With the studio out of action but not wanting to let the service users down, the charity moved temporarily into the Helena Lane building.
But with most of the equipment and materials from the studio rendered unusable or moved into storage, managers had to think outside the box.
Kim Tanser from Vision Homes said: “We have been running some skeleton classes because we haven’t got all our resources.
“We thought, what can we do? All we had was some glue and some Shropshire Stars, and so we came up with this recycled art project.
“We have made some really lovely stuff – baskets, bowls, pigs, flamingoes.
“We have even been spinning it into a yarn with a view to knitting with it. Everyone has really enjoyed it.”
It is hoped that the studio will be ready to re-open in the new year.
Business development manager Nikki Hook said: “The studio is all starting to come together.
“The flooring is down and all our saved materials have been returned from storage, so we’re now in the process of getting new furniture and materials and defining our new creative zones.
“It’s all very exciting but there’s lots to sort.”
The studio is holding an open day on December 3 to coincide with Giving Tuesday.
Nikki said: “We thought it would be a perfect time to throw open our doors just for the day to give people the opportunity to come and see the new look studio, chat to us about what happened, all the plans we have for the future and take some time to relax and enjoy our space which many have been missing for nearly six months.
“We have a programme of workshops scheduled ready for the new opening and will be selling gift vouchers and memberships for our new ceramics zone, so we could be the perfect venue for those looking for original Christmas gifts.”
