£50
Limited to 4 participants per session
Workshop
Explore Yesenia's Argall Avenue studio for a unique workshop that blends craft, ecology, and storytelling. You'll discover the fascinating world of ruderal plants, those hardy species that thrive in human-disturbed landscapes around the Lea Valley. These resilient plants have stories to tell about survival and adaptation in our changing world.
The workshop begins with a gentle walk through our local area, where you'll learn to spot and collect these remarkable plants. Back in the studio, you'll preserve your specimens using traditional beeswax techniques, creating your own hanging waxed herbarium. Each piece becomes a unique artwork and a material reflection on the relationship between humans and nature.
Through Yesenia's Material Teller practice, craft becomes a way of understanding our environment. The Anthropocene refers to our current epoch, in which human activity significantly influences the planetary systems. This workshop celebrates the intersection of traditional craft skills and contemporary environmental awareness.
You'll work with molten beeswax, learning traditional preservation techniques while creating contemporary art. The process is meditative and engaging, suitable for participants aged 12 and above.
Located in the heart of Argall Industrial Area, Yesenia's studio represents the area's evolution from industrial past to creative present. Her research-led practice explores sustainable materials and slow processes, fostering new ways of thinking and creating.
Come away with your own waxed herbarium, new knowledge about local plants, and an understanding of how craft can deepen our connection to the natural world around us.
Additional information: Wear comfortable clothes and closed shoes for the outdoor walk and making, which you don't mind getting messy, as we will be working with molten wax. Children (12+) should be accompanied by an adult and supervised at all times
About Yesenia Thibault-Picazo
Yesenia Thibault-Picazo leads a research-led design studio exploring craft, ecology, and material culture on the edge of the Lea Valley. Blending experimentation, production, and critical practice, the studio engages with sustainable materials, slow processes, and collaborative making to foster new ways of thinking and creating in a changing world.
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