Fossil Festival 2012

I find it constantly amazing that I actually live in a town which has such a thriving arts community and that it has so many different arms to it.  Since moving here in late 2009 I have watched the local communities in and around Lyme put on so many arts and crafts exhibitions and shows that I feel privileged to have the opportunities to look at and study such a wide range of mediums and styles. 

Lyme Regis is taking part in the Jurassic Coast Earth Festival which runs from early May until late September throughout the county of Dorset.  This weekend there have been activities for adults and children on the local beach and walks along the coastal path.  

 There was also an exhibition, at a local venue, called Deep Time with material from four artists involved in the Jurassic Journey project including an extensive collection of sculptures by Lal Hitchcock, photographic images by Ben Osborne, slate panels inscribed with Matt Harvey's poems and a soundscape by Sammy Hurden.  Lal's characters "Tilly and Cliff" will be there in person, complete with deckchairs and a beach.

Ben Osborne's distinctive cliff phorography

Lal Hitchcock has spent her time recently walking the beaches of Dorset collecting detritus and debris on the shore line to make her distinctive sculptures.  She uses the bits and pieces that she finds to create the most interesting and creative works.  Her sculpture, Nefertiti has the centre piece of an old bicycle saddle whilst her other large pieces use all that rubbish that is left on the beach or washed overboard at sea.

'Nefertiti'

 Her imagination runs riot with the pieces of abandoned rubbish and gave much pleasure to those many people who visited the exhibition during its 4-day stay in Lyme.