My first (unasked for) Public Art Installation

Every time Autumn comes around, it is hard not to be inspired by nature and the glorious colours and sensations that it brings. That descending fresh chill in the air, misty sunshine breaking through crowns of flame coloured leaves. I wanted, no, needed to do something with those beautiful jewelled coloured leaves lying in great abundance everywhere I walked. So I decided to make a leaf tapestry that I would hang in my local woods. A piece to make us all look anew and to give a second life to those fallen leaves.

I collected bags of beautiful leaves all yummy golden yellow, russet red and fiery orange. I then began stitching them together by hand (I still harbour a fear of sewing machines from early teen home economics trauma) only to realise that they would start to turn colour and fade to dull browns within days. I was making an impermanent ephemeral piece that needed to be completed quickly! After about a week of intense sewing - I had my leaf tapestry and I took it along to a local wood where I regularly walked my dog. I had to decide where I would display it. I was a little furtive, not wanting to be caught and asked questions; after some initial experiments draping the tapestry over large fallen branches, I decided it looked best hanging off a tree.

I had a privilege of one lovely lady stopping to take a photo before turning to me (hanging around trying not to look like I was spying on her) and commenting how lovely it was and wondering who had put it there -to which I shyly took credit for. It was a special moment for me. I wandered around the woods a little more to try and observe the morning walkers to see if they would notice the tapestry - but it was a quiet morning and the dog got bored. But over the months as I watched it slowly deteriorate and fall to pieces, I noticed it had fallen and been re-hung once or twice which made me feel that there had been some people who had looked at it and appreciated it enough to want to hang it back up. It was very gratifying and a really satisfying expereince.

So that is the story of my first piece of public art which no one asked for but hopefully some did enjoy!