On Monday June 28th 2010 we opened the third Culture of the Countryside exhibition at Wingfield Barns, beautiful rural arts venue near Eye in Suffolk. On display for a three weeks duration was a wide range of art work from six local primary and two high schools. Over 100 people came to celebrate the work and to enjoy the programme of accompanying events.

 

During the evening, we premiered two films, launched the Culture of the Countryside website, staged the Wilby School brass band, and listened to Crownstreet folk band's live performance of three songs based on local language, specially composed for the project.  Alongside the pupils' art work, we also showed the work of three artists, two of whom had worked directly with pupils on the school visits. The pupils' creative responses to world art handling sessions included: mixed media dioramas, textile hangings, various photographic practices, models and plaster casts, large painted panels, mixed-media sculptures, and installation work including dens. Also on show were: documentary photographs of the ploughing, planting and harvesting of potatoes in Stradbroke; a specially commissioned film by film maker Matthew Robinson called 'Farmland'; the first showing of Digital Screen East 'Pastures Olde'; and handmade bricks embellished with symbols and local and rural words during an artist-led brick making weekend at Wingfield Barns in June.