Friends at the orchard tree planting. Photo: Colin Brewer.
Eye - 27 February 2015
From fruity ventures to artistic inspiration
Quaker orchard takes root
Apples, apricots, damsons, pears and plums are amongst the first fruits to feature in a new Quaker orchard.
The organic orchard has been established by Friends in Surrey as an active witness in support of the Canterbury Commitment.
A field belonging to Capel Local Meeting is the home for this fruity venture and the first trees were planted by a group of volunteers late last month. Among them were friends from Dorking and Capel. They were joined by the local Anglican minister, Liz Robertson, and some Capel villagers.
The seeds of the idea were sown during discussion with local groups. Capel Friends have long enjoyed a good relationship with the local Anglican church and ‘green’ activists. The orchard is a communal effort, supervised by local Quakers, to provide locally grown fruit for the groups, with any excess sold through the village shop.
Audrey Garnett, a member of Capel Meeting and a driving force behind the initiative, said: ‘Since the idea was first conceived, the enthusiasm and support from the local church and from Capel villagers has been very encouraging.’
Finding inspiration
Garden and kitchen waste was transformed into works of art at Woodbrooke earlier this month. Alex Goodman, the Leaveners’ first artist-in-residence (see news 30 January), completed her two-week stay at the Woodbrooke Quaker Study Centre in early February.
The Cornwall-based artist, printmaker and producer used the time as a platform for research and experimentation, with a strong focus on connecting with her materials: ‘Natural materials were sourced in the garden and kitchen waste. Dying natural silk and soaking handmade paper with these materials I created washes of colour and pattern using comfrey, rosemary, onion skins, ivy, rust and used tea and coffee grounds. These were then printed on with lino cut images inspired by my time spent in the gardens and the community at Woodbrooke…
‘By seeking a more direct experience when making art I aimed to explore and celebrate aspects of simplicity… Despite the time consuming processes of creating your own paints and dyes it is a beautiful, inspiring process in which you can learn much about the ecosystems and landscape that you live in.’
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