The Artists

The Ribblehead Group

Pyramid artists

Izzy Stockton, Donna Lematy, Adrian Stansfield, Robin Lumb, Rebecca Morris, Georgia Calvert, Noami Kelleher, Daniel Fox, Stephen Harvey, Caz Gilbert, Dan Bennett, Kenneth Hendy, Scott Anderson, Joanne Hartley, Robin Stones, Elsa Guidon, Caz Stiff, Rosie McAndrew.

Favourite medium to work in – Everything!
What magic means to us – “Magic is everywhere.”

The Ribblehead group is made of thirteen Pyramid members who work collaboratively on creative projects. The group has shown work at exhibitions across Leeds for many years. More recently, the group worked with Northern Monk Brewery on a creative upcycling project to redesign old beer tap handles to be used and installed in Northern Monk’s Leeds-based bar venues.

Alexander

Pyramid artist

Favourite medium to work in – Acrylic markers

What magic means to me – “Making things become different and unusual!”

Alexander is a prolific illustrator who creates characters inspired by animated film and TV. He creates whole worlds based on these characters – usually a bad guy is trying to take over the world and inevitably ends up in jail! Don’t worry though, there is always a good guy or gal to save the day! He spends much of his time sharing these stories with others in the studio, and showing off his work. At Pyramid, Alexander loves to work on collections of characters based on themes, which have included fairy tales, pirates, superheroes and space. His work is spread across the corners of the Pyramid studio, making our shared space bright and colourful and inspiring everyone who passes through.

Whilst many of Alexanders characters have a magical energy to them, it was his collection of Monster Toys that manifested themselves at the beginning of this project.
“They are alive with the power of magic, but only when there’s no humans around.”

Through Alexander’s distinct style and bold use of acrylic markers, these illustrations piece together different toys in unusual ways to make new characters. They are inspired by one of his favourite films – can you guess which one?

This exhibition also inspired Alexander to develop how audiences interact with his characters, bringing them from the visual to the physical through sensory boxes. Place your hand in one of the three sensory boxes to feel what some of these characters look like. The boxes have their numbers in braille and wood relief.

Alfie

Pyramid artist

Favourite medium to work in –  Film, photography, painting and screenprinting
What magic means to me – “My dog lying on me after a seizure.”

Alfie is a multimedia artist, supported by Pyramid, who works primarily in paint, photography, film and screenprint. His artwork advocates and challenges people’s perspective of access for people with disabilities and incorporates the difficulties he has personally faced as a young man with multiple disabilities.

Dan

Pyramid artist

Favourite medium to work in – Drawing, painting, college, ceramics
What magic means to me – “Wands, Harry Potter, darkness, goodies and baddies, Draco Malfoy.”

Dan is Pyramid artist, he enjoys sketching, collage and making 3D sculptures. Recently he has been focusing on developing his ceramic, hand building skills. His work is often inspired by the things he loves, such as animals (particularly snakes and fish!), cars and spooky folk tales.

Inspired by his love for Harry Potter and magical creatures, Dan created a collection of ceramic wands, a hand drawn map and series of ceramic sculptures to feature in The Magic Show.

Daniel

Pyramid artist

Favourite medium to work in – felt tip pens, paint, collage and clay
What magic means to me – “Magic is excitement!”

Daniel enjoys experimenting with paint, collage and ceramics in the Pyramid Studio. Daniel has recently started to explore working on a large scale, exploring the layering of materials and other mixed media techniques! He loves spending time with his family and playing bowls.

Heather

Pyramid artist

Favourite medium to work in – Lots of different media but mostly doodles and crochet.
What magic means to me – “Since my base inspiration was ‘nostalgia’, I guess magic has meant a lot to me since I was a small child.”

Heather is a Pyramid artist who enjoys lots of art forms, with an interest in character design, textiles and cats. Heather’s characters span many queer, racial and disabled identities. This allows lots of people to make connections and be represented her work.

Crochet Fort

Heather approached the theme of ‘Magic ‘through the lens of childhood nostalgia, particularly the time spent building blanket forts or dens. For her and many other autistic children, they were safe spaces she could retreat to when the world was too much.

“Growing up I used to hide in little nooks and crannies, or behind furniture, to hide from the overstimulating noise, sneak away from the family gatherings, find somewhere safe and secluded to cry without people noticing, hang out with my teddies or to just chill and have some alone time. I was surprised that my mum still remembers all the teddys that were crammed inside, all the spare cardboard boxes that were used to make little tunnels, every giant pile of pillows and blankets, and most importantly, all the forts we used to create together.”

Following this thread of childhood nostalgia, she looked back at the media she enjoyed, which included the films like The Never Ending Story and The Dark Crystal, and shelves full of books about fairies, dragons and fairy tales (especially Disney ones). These provided influence for ‘The Little Guy Garden’.

The blanket fort itself, made of 275 crochet granny squares, is the combined efforts of many makers (see list below).

“The blanket fort’s size and timescale seemed nearly impossible – without all the help from the many artists who contributed to this project, I don’t think the fort would have been completed. This Magic project started off as “the magic of rose-tinted childhood nostalgia” but by the end shifted into “the magic of community coming together to create on massive blanket to achieve a ridiculous goal”.

Many of the squares arrived with letters, which can be found inside the fort as a token of appreciation to those involved. Heather and Pyramid want to say a huge thanks to everyone who sent in crochet squares for this project. In total, the piece features 345 squares across the fort, inside blankets and pillows. Special thanks to Andy Guy for his support in joining over 200 squares together.

Contributors: Lorna Johnstone (mendingmagic), Leigh Bowser (Leighlalovesyou), Kim Bowser, Rachael Bowser, Andy Guy, Sue Clayden, Carole Fox, Emma-Jane Siddall, Elizabeth Johnson, Jacquie Bowes (Durkar Diamonds WI), Dotty P, Kerrie, Christine Spencer, Rebecca Lehman, Henna Ravjibhai, Jan Ackroyd, Gemini-H, Jo Prinz, Knit and Glow Group at Compton Library, Gemma (HappyGoHooky), Pat Hartley, Sam Simister, Hannah Simister, Bil (Owl & Craft), Katie Ogden, Alayne Cowling, Joanne Cowling, Kerensa Liddle, Laura Downing Green, XandraViv, Neve, Charlotte Hallas (EcoHub), Louise Taylor (EcoHub), Brooklyn (Brklyn.stitches), Amal Abdulahi (LoveFromAmal), Mar, Jennie & John Hall, Donna Turner, Joanne Michael (HappyAsABean), Sikh Elders Service (Volunteers and clients, Manjit & Neelam), Cassy’s Mum, Julia Crouch.

The Little Guy Garden 

Welcome to our garden of very small, teeny tiny little guys!
They are usually pretty elusive, shy creatures that go about their daily life; growing, photosynthesising, learning and helping their own fruit and veggie community until eventually, they become food for our human bodies.
Speaking of which, sometimes on very rare occasions, they start to revolt against nature to fight for their community. Their protests and riots are never malicious or cruel, in fact they become rebellious tricksters!

Sully is a red onion, with purple, pink and grey layers. Their orange, yellow and green face has a determined smile. They have purple eyes and big purple eyebrows. They sprout two leafy wings out the top of their head to help them fly around, but can also walk on their two little feet.

Full to the brim of sulfuric compounds, this little guy is full of emotions and leads with their heart!
However, wearing your heart on your sleeve can be pretty draining, which is potentially why they have so many layers?

There are three main types of Sullys; Red Sullys (which can have a purple to maroon under tone), Yellow Sullys (the most well-known Sully) and white Sullys (which are commonly used in salads).
Even though they’re quite emotionally driven, they have a thick skin and strong bones making them a very strong onion!

The next little guy is called a Carrotim! They are a large orange carrot, waving in a casual manner. Their face starts with a green outer glow, turning more yellow in the centre, with a soft orange blush across the cheeks and nose. Their eyebrows are raised in a kind manner, with a gentle smile. They have the longest and knobbliest limbs of the vegetables, but they’re also very sturdy! They have a small crown of leaves on top of their head, with sprouting leaves coming from it’s centre as wings.

They are extremely wise and they can see in the dark. Naturally, being full of vitamins like vitamin A, vitamin B, Beta carotene and many antioxidants, this little wis guy can see through any kind of shenanigans! They are fast, agile, gangly, smart and they never EVER need to wear glasses!!

Ananna is a perfectly formed strawberry, with beautiful red skin and bright, bumpy yellow seeds. Their cheeky persona is recognisable by their expression, which is a scrunched smile. Their gentle green and yellow face is blushed with orange cheeks and a smattering of golden freckles. They wave at you with their little left hand. Their wings are a little different to the others, as instead of sprouting from the top of their head, they sprout from underneath! Behind on of their leaves, hides a tiny cheeky bottom!

Ananna, also known as Fragaria, Ananassa and as we all know as Strawberry, is not actually a ‘true berry’ like they would want you to believe…

They may be sly, cunning, mysterious and full of little lies, but they are also full of love and care for others. This could be due to their strange fascination with the Roman Goddess Venus and their heart shaped body!

TTT (The Tomato Triples) are three small ripe red tomatoes hanging on a vine together, with leafy green tops. They join together to form one large wing formation, meaning they go everywhere together! Whilst they are always as one, each has their own individual personality on their little green face. The first tilts to their right side, their little purple eyes happy, thin orange eyebrows and its red tongue sticking out. The middle has a soft smile, thick orange eyebrows and a button nose. The third tilts to their left eye’s crossed and brow’s furrowed.

These three space enthusiasts (thanks to their Martian tomato seedlings who have been grown in space!) are typically in the background from planning schemes to adding to tomato-esk flavour to your pizza. Despite their veggie exterior, they are actually very fruity!

While starch may have travelled far and wide, the Tomato Triples have over ten thousand siblings around the world!

Starchy is a round, brown, misshapen potato. Their long tendril roots create shapes you could swear are arms and legs! This potato has cool toned pale blue skin and muted hazel eyes, little stumps around their eyes create little starchy brown eyelashes with a familiar hazel hue.

As we move up, Starchy’s lopsided body their stem littered with small lumps and bumps sprout into large, rounded, leafy wings that contrast their gangly limbs.

One of, if not the most, popular little guys around the world, we see them everywhere!

From their original home of The Andes in South America, across the Atlantic Ocean, around Europe and eventually around the globe, this little guy is an explorer full of big dreams and even larger adventures!

This little guy appears in different shapes and sizes. They can also be sweet – starchy and their genetic modifications have helped in the research of genetic diseases!

Something feels unusual about this specific protest…Typically the Pump-King and Pump-Queen would be here to communicate a peaceful compromise between human, fruit and veggie, but they are nowhere to be seen?
Thankfully, Maple is on the case and she knows how to communicate with them. This Rosy Maple Moth has helped many creatures both big and small; from firefly friends little guys within the little guy garden and dust sprites, to even larger creatures like baby dragons, selkies and now humans!

Maple is the dictionary definition of “fluffy” with her soft pink and yellow face accompanied by her feathery antenna at the tippy top of her head. Her bright, brown mothy eyes shine with a golden centre and she wears a comfy set of clothes ready for her next adventure.

Her deep seafoam green, felt jacket is both cosy and adorned with tiny iridescent buttons. At the bottom of the jacket is a small embroidered pink and yellow flower that matches her fur and even smaller jingle bells are tied to her incredibly long hood strings.

Underneath she wears an adorable polka dot blouse combined with some flowery overall shorts and seafoam green, felt welly boots that match her jacket.

Mothy wings flow out gracefully behind her poofy blouse adorned with lacy ruffles along the collar and sleeves. Three teddy bear shaped buttons that run down front and centre of the blouse. In similar fashion, these ruffles and teddy bear buttons can be found on her overall shorts.

A pastel lime green lace trim can be spotted near her knees and along the edge of her shorts whilst her larger bear buttons help keep the staps of her overalls in place.

Maple is accompanied by her little lamp surrounded by fellow moths and fire flies that help light her way.
If your belonging, trinkets or your odd socks have been stolen by these little guys – DON’T PANIC! DON’T USE AGGRESSION!! The only thing you should do in this situation is to learn, empathise, understand and communicate to them in the best way you can!

James

Pyramid artist

Favourite medium to work in – Mixed media
What magic means to me – “It’s captivating your experience in awe inspiring way.”

James is a ‘tornado of change and hope’. He works across various medium and is an avid researcher. He is always on the quest for interesting facts about the world that he can incorporate into his creative practice.

Jem

Pyramid artist

Favourite medium to work in – Collage and multimedia

What magic means to me – “Possibility.”

Jem is a Pyramid artist and Studio Pyramid member. She is an aspiring dancer and visual artist based in Leeds working primarily in film and animation. Jem’s artwork was also part of Another Way of Seeing, a multi-sensory art exhibition at Leeds Art Gallery which took place in December 2025.

Laura

Pyramid artist

Favourite medium to work in – Mixed media
What magic means to me – “The Universe.”

Laura loves working with lots of different materials when she is making in the Pyramid Studio. Her art is often inspired by her love of colour, nature and traditional heritage crafts.

Ria

Pyramid artist

Favourite medium to work in – Screenprint, drawing, painting in acrylic

What magic means to me – “I see magic as anything that brings imagination, curiosity, and a temporary escape from daily anxieties. It’s about being transported to a different mental space in a world of creativity.”

Recovering Fuzziness – Screenprint on Calico, 2026

There’s red bodies everywhere, with black swirly abstract designs around each of them.

The piece shows someone in the recovery position after having a seizure. The black bit represents a monster coming out of them after they have had a seizure. Years ago people thought that seizures were because of evil magical spirits. It wasn’t until the 20th century that people understood science behind epilepsy better, but it’s still very misunderstood.

Brain is the Earth, Body is the Body – acrylic on canvas, 2026

This artwork shows the brain as the earth. The body is connected to the brain.

The work explores a connection between the brain and the body. It shows how the brain affects how we move, feel, think, and experience the world.

Sparks – mixed media on canvas, 2026

There are 2 black bodies lying next to each other, on an orange textured background. The orange has black marks on top. The bodies have red glitter heads. The red glitter represents sparks coming out of the bodies heads. They show the feeling of electricity in the brain.

HENSHAWS MAGIC SHOW WORKING GROUP

HENSHAWS artistS

Favourite mediums to work in – Music, words, lyrics, animation, jewellery, drawing, paper, mosaic, print

What magic means to us: “Believing something that isn’t there, stepping into the unknown, wands, spells.”

Debs, Danny, Karen, Linda, Grahaeme and Jenna were asked to be the working group for this collaboration and went on site visits to Sunny Bank Mills and Pyramid’s studio on the months leading up to the exhibition.

“We want you to know that we are a mixed group of disabled, visually impaired and neurodivergent artists. This is the best exhibition EVER. This collaboration has enabled us to discover other workplaces and artists and we’ve enjoyed sharing work and ideas with each other. This process has been about connection, and we have enjoyed working with Anna, Nat and the rest of the team at Sunny Bank. The tea and biscuits have been amazing. We also enjoyed hosting the pyramid artists at the Arts and Crafts Centre.

This show is about capability not disability.”

ABBEY

HENSHAWS artist

My favourite medium to work in – Paint

What means magic to me – “I think the seaside is magic.”

Abbey’s artwork has a personal and distinctive style and each piece starts with a line drawing. She adds bright hues and the use of ink and watercolour washes allows the colours to merge into one another.

Abbey’s drawings translate beautifully into print. She has worked with lino and carborundum and has used coloured slip to draw and paint her designs onto her ceramic pieces. Abbey has produced an impressive body of work and has had numerous commissions and featured in many local exhibitions.

ALEX

HENSHAWS artist

Favourite medium to work in – pens, clay and pencils.

Alex is practical, hardworking, and always ready to get stuck in. He works quickly and confidently, often finishing a piece and proudly announcing, “There, I’ve done it.”

There is a sense of freedom in the way Alex creates. He isn’t afraid of a blank page and approaches each new piece with enthusiasm. His drawings are full of personality and character, with bold use of colour that brings his subjects to life. He also approaches clay work in the same way. His clay pots and plates show strong use of line, shape and form.

ANDY

HENSHAWS artist

My favourite medium to work in – Papier mache

What magic means to me – “Jokes!”

“I really liked making my joke book. I enjoyed making the paper to then print the jokes onto. I am an expert papier mache wrapper! I also enjoy jewellery and working with wire. My other sessions are pottery, music, horticulture and nature connections.”

Andy’s work is beautiful; he draws with confidence and enjoys processes. His drawings are very fluid, as are his brushstrokes when painting or using ink. He loves working with bright colours.

BETH

HENSHAWS artist

Favourite medium to work in – Mosaic

What magic means to me – “Magic means special and unforgettable.”

At Henshaws, Beth mainly enjoys working in mosaic. Her favourite subjects to create are birds and trains. She has made a parrot, a bluetit and the flying scotsman train in mosaics.

Beth likes to visit the cinema and she regularly goes to the railway museum in York. She likes to take her dog Bonnie on walks and see which wildlife she can spot along the way.

THE CHANDELIER GROUP

HENSHAWS artistS

Alfie, Lauren, Jess, Sarh, Ollie, Andy and Nat.

Favourite Medium to work in – Found objects and materials

What magic means to us – “Working together as a team.”

“We enjoyed working together to make this GIANT chandelier. It took weeks and weeks and weeks but when one of us got frustrated someone else would say it looked amazing. We got everybody here to paint the beads and make birds and I (Jess) made them in the woods. We want to sell it to make 1 million pounds!” – Alfie, Jess and Lauren.

CLARE

HENSHAWS artist

Favourite medium to work in – Textiles

What magic means to me – “Watching shows with my mum and dad in Bradford. I wish I could fly like Mary Poppins.”

“I love Disney and musicals and one of my favourite stories and characters is Mary Poppins. I asked to draw the characters especially Michael and Jane and Mary and Bert! All my drawings started with permanent marker pen, and I then added colour using ink. I chose 3 colours to use for each study I did. I really enjoyed making the big sculpture of Mary in the paper workshop and Lizzie in Textiles helped me to make Mary’s umbrella.”

Clare enjoys working in a range of media. Clare loves using strong colours and shapes largely due to her visual impairment. You can see the generous brush strokes and blocks of colour that make up the compositions. Clare’s creative intentions have become clearer and more confident as she works with more materials and techniques.

DANNY

HENSHAWS artist

My favourite medium to work in – Dance

What magic means to me – “Music.”

Danny’s Lament

Danny starts with a single note, sung, echoing the keyboard. Its gentle, meandering melody is punctuated with Danny’s musings.

“The emerging, July, morning sun filters into the room

filling our hearts and minds with inspiring warmth.

Magically,

gratitude for this peaceful union in music

invites a reflective voice of gratitude from the clarinet.”

EMMA

HENSHAWS artist

Favourite medium to work in – Drawing with acrylic paint sticks.

What magic means to me – “Looking through books.”

Emma loves drawing and likes to collect all the materials from the cupboards she wants to use and sets up her desk meticulously every week. She has cautiously welcomed new materials like charcoal, pastels, inks and paint in recent weeks, and has begun to work at an easel at the Arts and Crafts Centre and at home.

Emma also enjoys processes like paper making and pulping, and has worked in 3D with paper and paste. Making and creating is a very physical and sensory process for Emma and she clearly enjoys playing with and exploring the materials.

THE FABRIC BANNER GROUP

HENSHAWS artistS

Kirsty, Linda , Beth, Lindsey, Stefi

Favourite Medium to work in – Textiles

What magic means to us – “Creating.”

The leaf printed banners layer printmaking, stitchwork, and mixed media techniques. The leaf print was created by Linda and Kirsty using monoprint foliage. To give the banners depth, Beth added refined machine embroidered detailing.

For the birch tree banner, Beth designed the banners from the start. She arranged sheer fabric panels and hand painted the distinctive black bark markings of the birch trees before cutting and assembling them into place. Stefi then created the hand designed leaves, and we appliqued them on top.

The final two banners are a combination of all these techniques, using fabrics we have screen printed, painted and drawn onto. The group then machine stitched more of Stefi’s leaves onto the banners.

GRAHAEME

HENSHAWS artist

Favourite medium to work in – Felt tip pen and drawing

What magic means to me – “Stories. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is one of my favourites.”

“I have recently come back to drawing and am slowly gaining confidence. I am colour blind and visually impaired so there are certain colours that I cannot see. I have enjoyed drawing the characters from the story, particularly the oompa loompas and Charlie and Willy Wonka.”

Grahaeme is enjoying drawing again and has recently produced some amazing self-portraits and landscape images. At Henshaws, he is beginning to experiment with paint and drawing ink. His bold use of colour and strong drawn lines lend themselves to printmaking, which Grahaeme is hoping to explore further as his confidence grows.

GRAHAM

HENSHAWS artist

My favourite medium to work in – Felt tip pen on canvas

What magic means to me – “It is all about surprises!”

“I have been told I’m funny and I love dancing, eating pizza, going out with my friends, going on holiday watching horror films – and, of course, Dr Who!”

Most of Graham’s paintings and prints represent figures from popular culture such as Dr Who, James Bond or Elvis. His unique drawing style incorporates sensitive cartoon-like mark-making, combined with graphic novel imagery.

Graham usually starts by drawing directly onto the canvas or lino with marker pen and then adds fields of colour using acrylics or drawing ink working onto canvas and paper. The drawn lines are fluid and using paint colour washes and ink allows layering. Printmaking has enabled Graham to see his drawings in solid block colour.

Graham also loves music and can often be caught out having a boogie in the art studio as he draws and paints.

JACOB

HENSHAWS artist

Favourite Medium to work in – Pencil

What magic means to me – “Every year I go to see the statue of our lady in Lourdes with my mum and sister who was in a wheelchair.”

“I am Jacob and I am 25. I am in the mosaic workshop on Wednesday mornings. I have made myself Dracula in mosaic. I dressed as Dracula for Halloween.”

Jacob’s work is full of bold colour, strong lines and shapes. He loves pattern and geometric shapes feature a lot in his work. This translates beautifully into his mosaic pieces. He works carefully and methodically – some of his larger pieces take many months to complete. He loves to draw people he knows and has drawn many staff members at the Arts and Crafts Centre. He also loves drawing the flowers and buildings around the Centre.

JAMES

HENSHAWS artist

Favourite medium to work in – Felt tip pens, pencils and paint

What magic means to me – “Going walking with my dad.”

“I like nature and I like trees and I was excited about the magical woodland. I enjoy drawing a lot and begin my pictures using a pencil. I add colour using felt tip pens or paint. I also like using pastels and charcoal. I like doing large paintings working on the easel.”

James begins every session by getting out all the materials he wants to use from the cupboard and setting up his workspace. He enjoys working on large pieces, using broad brush strokes and bold block colour neat from the bottle. Recently, James has been experimenting with different size brushes and different drawing materials to explore mark-making techniques that will help show detail, pattern and texture.

JAMES

HENSHAWS artist

Favourite Medium to work in – Pottery

What magic means to me – “Harry Potter.”

“This is Elton John, he is my favourite. He plays keyboard and I play the keyboard. Elton john is magic. James Bond and Harry Potter are magic but Elton John is the most magic.”

JANNICK

HENSHAWS artist

Favourite Medium to work in – Papier mache and pens

What magic means to me – “Characters in TV and Film”

Jannick likes to get lost in a world of wonder. He often assumes a character from one of his favourite TV programmes and acts out traits from the goodies and the baddies in each story or show. He loves to make props to help him become each character. He has an abundance of ideas when it comes to making and is never short of inspiration for his next performance.

JENNA

HENSHAWS artist

Favourite Medium to work in – Paper sculpture and mosaic

What magic means to me -DISNEY!

My party trick:

Bio: I love pattern and colour and I love building my paper mache sculptures. I like the Descendants and the character Mal. She is strong, I like that and she is also a dragon and they are very magical creatures.

I enjoy working with card and paper and lots of masking tape! I always think really carefully about the materials I use to gain the effect that I want. I am more confident of my drawing skills and use an IPad and also paper.

Jenna is a prolific artist works in a variety of materials showing a talent in a wide range of processes and techniques, 3-dimensional construction, ceramics, mosaic work and printmaking.

Her bold use of colour and pattern results in striking mosaic designs and prints. She has a clear eye for shape and form and has built the most stunning sculptures over the last 8 years. Jenna’s creative intentions are clear and the unrelenting quest for perfection culminates in some beautiful art.

Exhibited The Courthouse 2021, Sunnybank Mills 2022, Fountains Abbey 2022, 2025, Artmaker 2022, 2023, Rural Arts 2023, Harrogate Library 2026 and the annual Nidd Arts Trail and FEVA.9

KAREN

HENSHAWS artist

Making Magic  is a collaborative sound installation created with musicians and artists from the Music and More workshop at Henshaws Arts and Crafts Centre.

The work is composed from live recordings made over a series of music and more sessions. Cymbals, keyboards, drums, clarinets, percussion, spoken word and improvised performances from artmaker Karen were recorded before being layered into a single sound composition. Each contribution retains its own character while becoming part of a shared soundscape.

At the centre of the work is a simple spoken narration built from repeated invitations: to feel, to wish, to make, and to tell. As the words return, they shift from everyday language towards rhythm and sound. Repetition slows listening and gives familiar phrases new weight, allowing meaning to emerge through pattern as much as through language.

The installation brings together individual performances to create a collective composition. Sounds recorded at different moments are assembled into a single work, where voices, instruments and rhythm exist alongside one another rather than competing for attention. The result reflects a collaborative process in which listening is as important as performance.

The title refers both to the language of the narration and to the act of making itself. The work suggests that creativity does not appear fully formed. It grows through repetition, experimentation and the shared acts of imagining, making and storytelling.

LINDA

HENSHAWS artist

Favourite medium to work in – Drawing

What magic means to me – “Watching my Teddy bear drawing come to life as an animation!”

” I like watching YouTube videos to help me work out how to draw things. I know a lot of makaton signs and I am on the Artmaker’s Council at Henshaws.”

Linda’s individual sense of style is expressed in everything she does, whether through her flamboyant and colourful dress sense, her work in the performing arts workshop or in her artistic outcomes in the printmaking studio. She has a quiet, calm focus to her work and creates strong linear drawings which make great designs for linocut and silkscreen printing. Many of her designs appear on cards, tea towels and tote bags sold at the Arts and Crafts Centre shop.

MARK

HENSHAWS artist

Favourite medium to work in – Pencil drawing

What magic means to me – “Heroes like in the Marvel comics and films.”

“I love drawing, birds are my favourite. I like working big and my sculpture ideas always start with a drawing. The scarecrow is actually me, but I wanted to be a scarecrow character because I love Disney and the films and music. The sculpture has been built using cardboard, newspaper and paste and has taken me 7 months to build.

I also love Dr Who and I really enjoyed making the plates in pottery, and my mosaic Cyberman.”

Mark is a talented draughtsman and prolific artist. Mark enjoys working from reference images, carefully building intricate drawings full of character. Often working on a small scale, he creates detailed scenes inspired by popular culture, nature and animals. Every day, Mark arrives to the Arts and Crafts Centre with his own art supplies.

His illustrations are so detailed that they are often enlarged and transferred onto hand-rolled ceramic surfaces, allowing his drawings to be experienced in a completely different way.

MIKE, JAMES & JESS

HENSHAWS artist

Favourite medium to work in – Papier mache.

What magic means to me – “Witches and wizards, spells and potions.”

Mike, James and Jess share a work table in the papier mache workshop. They all wanted to make magic wands for The Magic Show so that they could cast spells on each other!

OLIVER

HENSHAWS artist

My favourite mediums to work in – Print, papier mache and mosaic.

What magic means to me – “I think birds flying is magic.”

“I really enjoy making artists books. I love print, nature, mosaic, drama and I like playing sport, especially football and cricket.”

Oliver has a talent for building bold and cheeky forms that grab your attention immediately. He is a good draughtsman with a keen eye for pattern and detail resulting in beautiful prints. His strong sense of colour and shape show in his paintings, mosaics and papier mache sculptures. Oliver loves sharing his making skills and has delivered several workshops to children and adults.

THE PAPER BANNER GROUP

HENSHAWS artistS

Debs, Andrew, Andy, Rebecca, Nat, Vicky, Grahaeme, Samuel, James, Rhuana, Oliver, Emma, Mark, Annabel.

What magic means to us – “To experience new things and new ways of making.”

The session began with a walk around the Arts and Crafts Centre garden, looking at and feeling plants and leaves and hugging the odd tree noticing the texture and patterns. The groups couldn’t believe the bright blue hue of the forget me nots. Returning to the room the group used pencils, pens, charcoal, brushes, rollers on long sticks and began with line drawings on the roll of paper on the floor whilst listening to music that reminded them of being outdoors, in the woods, in nature. They used ink and paint to add colour moving to the music in almost a meditative, rhythmical state feeling the physicality of drawing and painting onto a large expansive surface.

A few of the banners were worked into by James F once dry to add in finer details and shapes and we also collaborated with the print workshop to add in block prints by Linda and Tash.

RHUANA

HENSHAWS artist

Favourite mediums to work in – Papier mache, paint and pens.

What magic means to me – “Watching lots of soap stories on TV.”

Rhu is a very sociable individual, she always has a lot of questions and information to pass onto people with the utmost urgency. Rhu has been a prolific maker in the paper workshop and enjoys pasting, painting and generally chatting. She made the Green Man as she believes that being in nature is magical.

SARAH

HENSHAWS artist

My favourite medium to work in – Painting, ink and silkscreen

What magic means to me – “Using letters to write a magic book.”

“I enjoy doing a lot of workshops at Henshaws. Pottery, woodwork and drama are my favourites. I like my work to be seen and I had a solo exhibition in Knaresborough which was really nice. I am very proud of my work, my paintings and my prints. I am always busy!”

STEFI

HENSHAWS artist

My favourite medium to work in – “My favourite is pottery; it feels nice on your hands its soft and squishy.”

What magic means to me – “A magic wand, you dance and shake it, then magic happens. Is there a fairy in the garden, with wings, in Mummy and Daddy’s garden up in the sky.”

Stefi enjoys working with a variety of materials and media. She has worked with papier mache, paint, print, pottery and textiles. Stefi loves beautiful things and often buys items from the Arts and Crafts Centre shop. She loves hair ties and slides and bracelets and all things bright and colourful.

TASH

HENSHAWS artist

Favourite Medium to work in – Pens and papier mache

Tash loves animals and the relationships between people and pets. She created the magical rabbit jumping out of a magician’s hat in paper. She also created the beautiful red flower block prints that are on the print banners and on the bags and shop products. She enjoys adding embroidery into her print designs in the textile workshop.

Tash loves working on community art projects and likes creating and working with other people to help produce the end product. She is happy to experiment with new materials and new processes and to get stuck in and dirty!

THE SOUNDSCAPE GROUP

HENSHAWS artistS

SM (keys) JR (keys) SB (glockenspiel) MHz (piano, guitar, humming).

What magic means to us – “Having our own unique voices heard. Expressing ourselves originally, and independently through music. Hearing others and joining our thoughts to create a dialogue in music.”

This group are the earliest arrivals to the morning music session at Henshaws. One member makes a point of dropping in on her way before another workshop. They created the main soundtrack for the exhibition.

The keyboards provide the foundation for the music. This may be jaunty, contemplative, dramatic – a reflection of the group’s emotions on the day (consciously or subconsciously).

SM practises and records music on her keyboard at home. Her sound is the more conventional sounding, repeating short piano note melody.

Throughout the 10 minute composition Warm July Musings / Porcelain, humming and guitar, plucking and vocals weave in and out, creating a magical soundscape transporting you through the forest. The process was improvised and intuitive, with each musician reacting organically to each other’s movements and decisions.

WILLIAM

HENSHAWS artist

Favourite medium to work in – Drawing

When asked why he creates art, William simply replied, “I don’t know.” His answer reflects the instinctive and immediate way he approaches making. William is very much in the moment when he works, focusing on the process itself.

Working from reference images, William likes his drawings to be exact to the picture he is copying from, while still bringing his own style to each piece. His work is full of colour and built through layers of different materials, including oil pastels, markers, pencils and pens. These materials create rich textures and surfaces. Making art is also a sensory experience for William. He enjoys the feeling of the paper and the textures created through drawing and layering.

Zine Library

Here are the artists featured in our Magic Show Zine Library!

Kat Arnold / Sian Ellis / Salma Gittings / Sam Pallen / Henshaws artists / Pyramid artists