Seeing Nethergill with Fresh Eyes

'How easy it is to stride across a squidgy peat bog thinking of nothing but keeping your feet dry. How wonderful it is then to be taken gently down to ground level to experience the intricacy of a beautiful green world in the making, a world of moss and moisture, of intoxicating life. Step by careful step, artist Ali Foxon led our group of hesitant sketchers deep into the pleasure of drawing, not for art’s sake, but for the joy of seeing this precious plantscape, hardy and fragile in equal measure, with fresh eyes and clear, relaxed minds. Here we can delve into dreams modernity crowds out. Dreams that salve our febrile beings. How lucky we are to be able to share our lives with so many, so different others'.

Rob Muddhouse (Workshop participant)

Boggy doodling in the sunshine! I ran a wonderful green sketching workshop at Nethergill in the Yorkshire Dales, in collaboration with Lucy Lee and Millie German (Yorkshire Peat Partnership) to support and inspire members of Sustainable Swaledale, a local sustainability group.

‘This was a hugely positive experience where the arts met the science of peat bogs in a stunning location. I am hugely inspired to do more green sketching.'’ Charlotte Roberts

A collection of the participants’ observations are being exhibited in the wonderful nature barn at Nethergill Farm as part of the Yorkshire Peat Partnership’s event ‘Slow Storytelling: communities, art and peat’.

I was one of six artists (along with Adrian Riley, Sian Atkinson, Charlotte Wilkinson, Charlie Whinney and Juliet Gutch) selected to help engage local communities in the fantastic peatland restoration work that’s taking place at Nethergill, part of the Yorkshire Dales I’d never been to before.

Do pop in and have a look at the other collaborative art works if you’re in the area — they’re fantastic and Nethergill is a joy spotter’s dream, so it’s well worth the visit. For more information, visit https://www.yppartnership.org.uk or www.nethergill.co.uk