Country crafts come to the city
Try your hand at some old rural crafts at WWT London Wetland Centre’s Traditional Crafts Weekend, 21 -22 July 2012.
Visitors to WWT London Wetland Centre feel as though they have left the city and escaped to a tranquil patch of rural Britain. And during the Centre’s Traditional Crafts Weekend there will be even more of a countryside experience as shire horses and morris dancers join a range of skilled craftspeople demonstrating ancient crafts at this award winning nature reserve.
Many of the craft demonstrations and talks focus on wetlands and how they provide people with food, building materials and tools. You’ll be able to find out how wood from a wetland tree, the willow, can be used to create a range of structures, and how striking duck decoy carvings are created and painted. Try casting for fish in the fly fishing demonstration, or explore your creative side with silk painting, drawing, and ceramics.
There’s even a traditional method of wetland transport, the coracle: watch one of these unusual boats being constructed and see how it is used to travel on water. See a fascinating eel display and enjoy a talk on how these amazing fish were traditionally caught in wetlands, why they’re now under threat, and how conservationists are now working to save them.
Artist Judith Gordon said “The Traditional Crafts Weekend demonstrates the strong link between wetlands and the needs of people, and it also allows visitors to learn about or try out something new. I’m really looking forward to introducing people to the pleasure of drawing and painting wetland wildlife. London Wetland Centre is a perfect place to encounter wildlife and wild landscapes and this weekend is a real celebration of our connection with wetlands and other natural habitats.”
Find out more about London Wetland Centre's Traditional Crafts Weekend
