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                                                       Like fossils the “House” and its contents are caught in time. 

Enormous investments have been made to realise the Master Plan. Chatsworth House shines like a golden jewel when the sun is out. Set this against the ruins of Paine’s Mill, on the south of the estate and a certain jarring occurs.  The mill has become a neglected folly instead of the “eye catcher” it was supposed to be. No bling for the millers or celebration of Paine’s and I guess Capability Brown’s  idea that a mill could also be beautiful as well as utilitarian. Some visitors, I discovered,  don’t recognise its function. I asked myself why more millers, who worked at Chatsworth’s  mills for over 400 years, were not recorded in the archives (this is as far as is known, their names could be hidden in there)  given the important function of a corn mill for the estate and the House. I expect the flour was gritty and grey from the millstone grit.  The millers seem to have left their marks (initials and dates) in the stone of the mill, but are largely forgotten. The House, Bess of Hardwick, the Earls and the Twelve Dukes are in contrast so very visible and celebrated.  Why is the mill and its heritage so neglected? It seems to be a sign of the times. Extreme wealth on one hand and on the other the neglect of those who have the least.  It is time for a change, but the focus on the EU will prevent it, it is a distraction, we need to look closer to home.

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Shoes hold a lot of history.

Shifted from the house to the mill. So little to find out in the archives but the mill itself reveals a long history, some of the millers left their mark in initials, names and dates but most are forgotten.

My interest in the marks people leave behind them grew. I decided to focus on this round mark left by the front door of the mill. What had been there and was it filled in with something? What gives it its colour? I am told it is metal but I’m still not sure. Stitching and fabrics lend themselves to the textures of the stone. Grey curtain fabric with texture covered in scrim, tacked into place and embroidery to begin building up the shape.

Visit to the Hepworth, Wakefield. So much to see but I’ll pick one artist out. Love Michael Dean’s work.

Then on to Alice Fox at SNAPArts, Wakefeld. I love her work. It is lovingly done and often so creative with the discarded stuff of life (vegetable, mineral or people made) rejuvenated.

Here she is in the gallery happy to explain her work, contribute ideas and share methods. She often uses rust to bring out the qualities of collected metal items such as bottle tops. In one piece she holds bottle tops in place by lots of tiny stitches. Underneath them are photos of my attempts to try her method of using rust, objects, fabric and stitch chemical reaction, to draw with.

Next post back to the mill!