Sustainability in the Community
Join us for a live discussion between local artist Kitty Kaur, Foleshill Creates and Warwick researchers to explore how we can all try to create more sustainable living environments.
There will be a chance to ask questions and explore the future of sustainable communities.
About Foleshill Creates
Foleshill Creates is a community arts group which was established early in 2019 to open opportunities in the local area for arts and crafts activities. What do we do?
- We bring People Together to make friends
- We deliver weekly sessions in the community (Online)
- We encourage, support, create opportunities for local artists
- We create spaces for artists to showcase their work
Since then, we have delivered weekly sessions. Our membership continues to grow, 32 members to date over 75% South Asian heritage, men and women of all ages. We have been able to create a unique and valuable service for the local community, which is diverse, accessible, friendly, and welcoming.
To date we have delivered:
- 2019 lantern making workshops for the Carnival of Lights
- First exhibition for two FC members at the Belgrade Theatre
- Workshops for the Upcycled arts fair at the Belgrade and Tin Music and Arts for the Boudica festival
- Wall Art at Broad Street Hall with Michael Batchelor
- Zoom and Facebook live sessions throughout the pandemic
- Foleshill Creates at Home project with Orbit
- Peace Orchard – Art in the Orchard project
- Window Wanderland – 6 workshops and 80 materials packs
During the current crisis we have continued to meet as a group via Zoom and have delivered weekly Facebook live and Zoom sessions on still life to street art with an average viewing of 300 people. The videos are available on our page https://www.facebook.com/FoleshillCreates/
We are excited to be working with Warwick University during the City of Culture year, this project speaks to our principles which are:
- Collective decision making
- Care for our planet
- To be Open and welcoming to all
- To Create spaces where people are nurtured and cared for.
We are grateful in particular to be working on a sculpture project and we are very excited for our members to be able to develop their creative skills in working with clay.
About Kitty
I am Coventry artist with Autism. I do sculpture and other visual arts and accept commissions.
My artistic skills are mainly sculpting, painting, textiles, printing, drawing and I like to use a wide range of materials and methods to create art. I have a passion for using recycled materials, such as cardboard, bubble wrap, old paint, plastics, take away coffee cups.
You can see more of my work on my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/pg/The-autistic-artist-374147239876110/photos/?ref=page_internal
For Foleshill Creates I have had the opportunity to run face to face workshops on clay mask making, abstract painting on canvas, T shirt printing and lino cut printing. During lockdown I have continued to deliver workshops online using Facebook live and have covered introduction to water colours, cardboard clay model making and loo roll sculpture. I have recently been teaching one to one sessions on needle felting, including the creation of a kit.
I was a workshop facilitator for making Paper lanterns for the Carnival of Lights in 2019 for Coventry City of Culture. https://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/carnival-lights-coventry-you-need-17175786
I had a very successful joint exhibition at the Belgrade Theatre in 2019 in Coventry with my mum the artist Gurdip Jinjua. More information is available at https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=590870914992951
I continue to do commission work for individuals which includes sculpture, painting and crafts. I am currently developing my miniature painting practice.
Instagram - @theautisticartistx
Two Videos where Kitty shows how to create sculptures using Loo rolls tubes!
How Warwick researchers are reusing materials for future construction
Every year, landfills around Europe receive around 50m tonnes of waste that is too large for facilities to recycle or process. More than half of all this waste is from plastic, textiles, wood and composites. Ecobulk, a Pan-European project that was created in response to resolve the issue of large bulky waste are in partnership with our researchers from the Sustainable Materials and Manufacturing Group and the Innovative Manufacturing and Future Materials Global Research Priority, which aims to respond to complex global challenges that can only be tackled through research excellence.
Progress on building the shelter unit, coming soon.
You can find an example in the heart of campus, where we’ve used upcycled materials from wind turbine blades that have reached the end of their life to build a shelter unit near the Oculus building. This will become a resting area open for all communities visiting campus.
Another example is the set of modular furniture made with boards that used recycled wood and sustainable glues which will be installed in one of our meeting rooms at Scarman, one of our Warwick Conferences facilities.
The work of our researchers moves forward the principles of circular economy by studying the interface between materials, industry and society and supports our Climate Emergency Declaration of reaching Net Zero Carbon.
Professor Kerry Kirwan, Deputy Pro-Vice Chancellor (Research) and Head of Sustainable Materials and Manufacturing at Warwick Manufacturing Group said:
“Ecobulk is such an exciting programme – it strongly supports our travel towards Zero Carbon, it’s a truly Pan-European collaboration and allows us to involve the University and our local communities in developing and testing solutions that will make a real impact on the environment”.
We want to be world-renowned advocates for sustainability and carbon reduction, leading the way through purposeful action that will help to create a greener, cleaner, safer and better world for all.