PECT GREEN FESTIVAL 2016 – FEATURED ARTIST: VIKKI HAROLD
PECT Green Festival 2016 – Featured Artist
Seven artists have been commissioned to transform Peterborough city centre into a showcase for environmental art at this year’s PECT Green Festival, which returns with a Launch Day on Saturday 13th August and Fringe Events through till 21st August.
From a three-metre long papier-mâché stag beetle to an origami boat-walking trail, the artworks promise to spark debate about sustainable living and encourage residents to take positive action for the local and global environment.
Organised by the charity Peterborough Environment City Trust (PECT), the Festival brings together community groups, charities and businesses in an annual celebration of ‘green’ initiatives in the city. The Festival aims to encourage local people to live sustainably and develop long-term behaviour change, by exploring themes such as sustainable transport, recycling, local and sustainable food and biodiversity.
For the second year running PECT have commissioned artists to support and create new artwork specifically for the festival. They will exhibit their works and run interactive activities at the 2016 event.
In lead up to the Peterborough Green Festival Idea1 will release an interview with each of the 7 artists. A chance to get a taster of what to expect at this years Green Fest and get to know the artists. Introducing the third Green Festival artist, Vikki Harold
Artist: Vikki Harold
Art Work: Cross Pollination – a collaboration between Phillippa Phillips and Vikki Harold
Local artists Phillippa Phillips and Vikki Harold will come together to create an interactive, recycled artwork at the Festival launch, as well as recycled flower and seed bomb workshops. Using reclaimed materials, Vikki will create ‘Bee & Bee’- an urban, bee-friendly environment to show how we can all help pollinators. Phillippa will explore attitudes to waste and litter by working with local Rainbow, Brownie and Guide groups to create a meadow of flowers made from collected rubbish
Tell us a little bit about yourself?
My name’s Vikki, I’m a heavy metal hippy that does her best to help anyone she can. I also cannot stand the colour red. I have a penchant for Power Metal, Mermaids, anything shiny and opalescent as well as a love for Scifi and all things geek.
Could you describe your art practice?
I’m a multi discipline artist and practitioner, Ideally I work directly with people and like to pass on knowledge and confidence through art. Combining arts and crafts with the social element is really important to me, I thrive on a creative challenge so one months work usually looks nothing like the last. I also produce murals, mixed media art pieces, face and body art, polymer clay bead making, felting, prop making, wedding décor and even planning and decoration.
What will you be creating as part of your Green Festival Commission?
Alongside Pippa, we’ll be creating a meadow of recycled flowers to show how much litter clogs up our streets and a Bee&Bee, a bee friendly habitat to highlight how easy it could be for people to make a space like this in their gardens, helping to support our bees.
How can the public get involved with your artwork?
On the day I’ll be running workshop sessions to create seed bombs from mulched paper, decorating biodegradable planters and generally having a chat about our bees and what we can do to help them. Places will be limited on the day so be sure to come and check out running times.
How does your commission tie in with the themes of Green Festival?
My main aim is to highlight bees people might not know about locally, show how easy it is to help them and what a big impact a small gesture will have for them. With the loss of habitat, hive collapse and the effect of pesticides on our bee populations it’s truly worrying to see the effect this has had and will have on our future crops and food diversity.
What has been your favourite part about this commission?
Planning the Bee&Bee has been the most fun so far, i’ve had great support from UK Bee organisations and the support of locals in collecting materials for it has been huge. I’m now looking forward to setting up home at The Green Backyard to construct it and finalise it’s look. Plus I get to create tiny dioramas with bees, so cute!
Are there any specific ways that you would like the public to interact with your piece?
On the day, I would love for people to get right in there and inspect all of the elements of the Bee&Bee, it will be labelled up and demonstrate how all of these reused and found objects can come together and create a safe haven for bees, pollinators and bugs alike. Getting stuck in and creating a seed bomb, taking a leaflet or having a chat with me are all options too, if you do all four I’s be a very happy gal!
The Green Festival is getting bigger and better each year, with the integration of artists in last year only being an added element, how would you like to see The Green Festival progress?
Hopefully over time larger scale activities, a longer programme and more fringe events will mean that PECT can offer more opportunities for people to learn about how they can make a difference.
Do you think it is important that art is integrated into The Green Festival and what benefit do you think it has?
A diverse arts programme within the festival itself will really help to reach another audience and bring a new element of education and fun to the proceedings, not everyone can be reached with facts and figures but art, workshops, the weird and the wonderful will give another dimension to it all, in the long run it will help to create a legacy beyond the festival itself and help to keep it growing.
When and where can we see your piece at Green Festival?
Pippa and myself will be pitched up behind St Johns church in Cathedral square on the 13th August, on part of the green space. Look for the bees and flowers
Find out more about the festival here.
