Folk Beasts packs getting ready for packaging.
In 2020 we teamed up with Hart Club London, an organisation that champions neurodiversity in the Arts, they work with a network of charities and supported studios that facilitate artists with disabilities, dementia, brain injury, autism and other neurological variations.
Together we created Folk Beasts! Aimed to help vulnerable people tackling isolation during the pandemic, offering creative stimulus and inspiration via 17 risograph printed activity packs with the help of 17 illustrious artists :
Adam (risograph wizard) - @octopress
Aidan - @print_wagon
Beau - @ninten_beau
Bette - @betteclanchard
Celine - @celinelkw
George - @georgefinlayramsay
Hannah - @hannahjdyson
Harriet - @harrietvine
Holly - @hollidaystclair
Jay - @jay_cover
Karolina - @jajonc
Lena - @lena_yokoyama
Michelle - @meeshi21
Naomie - @naomiandersonsubryan
Stephen - @steohenfowler_rubberstamping
Tommy - @piggybankshoe
Yuk Fun - @yukfunwow
Zeel - @mr_zeel
First we met together and dreamed about animal folklore, myth and legend, and of designing activities which are accessible and fun for everyone. Then! Thanks to the Arts Council, we could make it really happen! we printed 1700 packs and distributed them to people for free.
In 2021 Folk Beasts caught the eye of the Longwood Centre for the Visual Arts (LCVA) who hosted a Folk Beasts exhibition and distributed the activity packs to their surrounding area.
As soon as we were able we released the Folk Beasts into the wild! with their first outing on July 2nd 2022 at ‘the Hive’ Worcester.
We teamed up with the Worcester Illustration course to exhibit the Folk Beasts and also provide two Folk Beasts workshops, Stephen Fowlers ‘Sea Serpent’ and ZEEL’s ‘Birds in the tree’, with the flash of scissors, the scribbles of pens and the odd googily eye we assisted in the community lead creation of a tree filled with exotic beautiful birds and an attempt to make a never ending sea serpent.
