For the past four or more years a group of creatively minded women, who attend adult learning classes at South Tyneside Early Excellence Children’s Centre, have got together every week to explore a range of different Art forms and activities funded through Adult and Community Learning. Overcoming their initial fears the group explored dance, performance, creative writing as well as arts and crafts.
As a consequence of their enthusiasm and motivation for working together, they now have a Performing Arts Group who produce pantomimes every winter, and an Arts and Crafts group who meet every week to paint, explore and create amazing pieces of work. More recently they have been giving their attention to using recycled materials to create pieces of artwork. With the help of resident Artist Kath Bedingfield they have approached local businesses for interesting materials to use in their work.

For the past three years Ford Component Manufacturing Ltd have supported the Centre offering fabulous materials they would normally reprocess, for the children and the Art Group to use. Director Geoff Ford introduced the Arts and Crafts group to Moira Shaftoe from South Tyneside Manufacturing Forum who in turn has supported the group in meeting other local businesses.

Harlow Printing LTD have offered paper and packaging materials, MH Southern’s and Company LTD have offered wood, and CTS Carparts wooden pallets.

The group have taken inspiration from the materials, interpreting them in different ways and  breathing new life into redundant objects that would otherwise be reprocessed.

“I no longer need to paint to express myself, I can sculpt using different materials to create the effects. I need. Re using materials in this way has expanded my view of how artworks can be made.”
Kelly Kennon