Amy Pennington commissioned to produce artwork for hoarding

A local artist is inviting the community to help her create a new piece of art inspired by artefacts washed up from the River Thames.

Amy Pennington, pictured above, has been commissioned by Tideway, the company building London's new super sewer, to produce an artwork that will feature on hoardings around Tideway's construction site at Putney Bridge.

For fourteen days she will be hunting for items on the foreshore – also known as ‘mudlarking’ - at low tide and sharing her findings on Twitter. Alongside this there will be a series of four workshops to get people involved in mudlarking, drawing, sculpting, discussing and creating the work for the new hoardings.

The first workshop will take place on Sunday, 13 August, starting at Putney Pier at low tide, where members of the public will be able to try their hands at mudlarking with Steve Brooker, star of the History Channel show 'Mudmen'.


Recent exhibition of Amy's work

Amy said: “The river holds many stories and found objects allow us to peer into that past whilst making us think about our future. I am looking forward to working in Putney, meeting people, hearing their stories and working together on this new piece. There are many complex and compelling stories connected to the river in this part of London and I hope to make some of them visible.”

Further workshops will take place at St Mary’s Church and will involve a 'drawing the river' session with Amy, a hands on session exploring the Battersea Arts Centre's (BAC) Moving Museum, and a session dedicated to archiving all the finds and stories.

All workshops are free and there is no booking necessary, however places will be filled on first come first served basis.

To keep up with Amy's foreshore finds, follow the hashtag #14daysofwashingup on Twitter.

Workshop information:

WORKSHOP 1 : MUDLARKING AT PUTNEY BRIDGE with Steve Brooker aka ‘Mud man’
Sunday, 13 August 2017
13.00-16.00
Meet by Putney Pier, SW15 1JW and look out for #14 days of washing up signs
All participants must be over 7 and if under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
Please wear suitable footwear that you don't mind getting dirty such as boots, wellingtons etc. Sandals and flip flops are not permitted on the foreshore.

WORKSHOP 2 : DRAWING THE RIVER with Amy Pennington
Sunday, 20 August 2017
14.00-17.00
Meet at St Mary’s Church, Putney Bridge Approach, SW15 2JQ
Open to all but children must be accompanied by an adult. Part of the session will take place outdoors, please wear suitable clothing.

WORKSHOP 3 : COLLECTING PAST, EXPLORING FUTURE with BAC Moving Museum: Wandsworth Collection.
Wednesday, 23 August 2017
14.00-17.00
Meet at St Mary’s Church, Putney Bridge Approach, SW15 2JQ
Open to all but children must be accompanied by an adult. Wheelchair accessible.

WORKSHOP 4 : POTWASHERS’ FINDS with Amy Pennington
Sunday, 27 August 2017, 12.00- 16.00
Meet by Putney Pier, SW15 1JW Look out for #14 days of washing up signs
Open to all but children must be accompanied by an adult.

August 11, 2017