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Tag: baskets

  • Alice Fox’s Allotment Plot 105: A Visit to the Artists’s Garden and Studio

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    At first sight, there’s nothing extraordinary about Alice Fox’s allotment in West Yorkshire, England. In fact, her garden community neighbors are “mostly oblivious” to the magic she weaves there. The addition of a flax crop may have been a novelty when she first rented the plot, but the size and layout of the land, sheds, and greenhouse seem pretty standard—until you look closer.

    Peek through the window of the main shed and your eyes will be drawn to a wonderful organized jumble of plant pots, trays, tools, jars of homemade botanical inks, sketches, scribbles, samples, fragments of ceramics, wire, plastic, and other unearthed objects, as well as an ever-changing assortment of plant fibers in various stages of drying and hand-processing. This is where Fox’s uniquely beautiful and thought-provoking textile art begins to take form.

    Alice took on Plot 105 in Autumn 2017 when she started her practice-based master’s program to explore ways to achieve greater self-sufficiency in her art. Although she’d had a share in an allotment previously, with a young family, she never really had the time to give to it: “The only way I could justify it was to make it part of my work,” she says.

    In 2020, Alice self-published the story of her relationship with her allotment Plot 105 and how her engagement with the site has unfolded since taking it on. Today, her book sits in a shed, alongside the encyclopedia of gardening left by the previous tenant. Looking back, she acknowledges that her year of research “marked a fundamental shift in how I source my materials. It allowed me to grow as a gardener, giving a particular focus. It provides a space to be amongst nature, get my hands in the soil, and think while working there.”

    We met Alice in West Yorkshire this summer to learn more about her allotment, her garden, and home studio, and the evolution of her sustainable creative practice that’s deeply embedded in land and place. Let’s dig deeper:

    Photography courtesy of Alice Fox. Featured image (above) by Carolyn Mendelsohn.

    In keeping with Alice’s local approach and quest for self-sufficiency, Plot 105 is a working garden providing fresh home-grown, seasonal produce. Few changes have been made to the overall structure of the plot, except for planting a couple of trees and some fruit bushes. Most of the growing beds are used for vegetables, and there are about 12 fruit trees, taking up approximately one quarter of the space. Photograph by Carolyn Mendelsohn.
    Above: In keeping with Alice’s local approach and quest for self-sufficiency, Plot 105 is a working garden providing fresh home-grown, seasonal produce. Few changes have been made to the overall structure of the plot, except for planting a couple of trees and some fruit bushes. Most of the growing beds are used for vegetables, and there are about 12 fruit trees, taking up approximately one quarter of the space. Photograph by Carolyn Mendelsohn.
    Alice introduced a flax crop in 2017 and, since then, has learned a lot about this wonderful plant through growing and processing. Recently, she applied her knowledge to projects in new places, such as Kestle Barton in Cornwall. This experience culminated in her flax-focused exhibit Flaxen, shown at Northern Ireland Linen Biennale. Photograph by Carolyn Mendelsohn.
    Above: Alice introduced a flax crop in 2017 and, since then, has learned a lot about this wonderful plant through growing and processing. Recently, she applied her knowledge to projects in new places, such as Kestle Barton in Cornwall. This experience culminated in her flax-focused exhibit Flaxen, shown at Northern Ireland Linen Biennale. Photograph by Carolyn Mendelsohn.

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  • Martha Stewart Put a New Roof on the House Where She Keeps Her Baskets

    Martha Stewart Put a New Roof on the House Where She Keeps Her Baskets

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    Martha Stewart reroofed the hut where she keeps her baskets. This isn’t euphemism or metaphor. The doyen of domesticity has put a new roof on the inviolable domain built to accommodate her large collection of woven containers. 

    Stewart wrote about the process on her must-read blog, Up Close & Personal. “Many of these baskets I hadn’t seen in awhile,” she said. “They always bring back fond memories.”

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    One could lose an afternoon just imagining Stewart greeting her old friends, the baskets, one by one, as she places them on newly swept shelves. There’s the melon basket, also known as a “buttocks basket” due to its shape. “Hello, you,” she says. And the hearty garden baskets known as “trugs.” “How are you holding up, old boys?” The berry baskets. “Well, I suppose some congratulations are in order,” she tells them. The baskets for gathering eggs. “I trust the family is well,” etc.

    I love the basket house and its remodel, and also feel generally better just knowing that Stewart owns a house for her baskets, But one can’t think too hard about it. The goal posts for happiness in a modern world keep moving, don’t they? First, we needed to own a home. Now, it’s absolutely imperative that we have a hut on the property that keeps all of our antique and precious baskets. I, for one, simply won’t know happiness without my basket house.

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    So what does one look for in a basket house? From Stewart’s photos and descriptions, a high and dry area sounds right. A generous space. Windows on three sides for “good cross ventilation.” Placement is important. If it is not “located across from my long clematis pergola,” as Martha’s is, then reconsider the location. These are all good things to keep in mind while planning your own basket hut, a fresh addendum to the American dream. Because what is a dream if not something to look forward to, and what’s better to look forward to than a house for one’s baskets? 

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    Kenzie Bryant

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