Bad weather provides good material for art

Bad weather provides good material for art

But for one Jersey artist the last few weeks have not only been inspiring, they have also provided a haul of material for her creations.

Since the start of the new year ceramics designer Jane James has collected hundreds of pieces of driftwood from Jersey’s beaches – sometimes in the pitch black or while full of flu in the knowledge that she needed to make the most of the bad weather to keep her business running throughout 2018.

‘We hadn’t really appreciated how much there would be,’ said Mrs James, who is known for her ceramic fish creations.

‘But this is the perfect time of year for us. I have to get as much wood as I can. I know everybody else is fed up with the weather but I am very happy.’

Having been collected by Mrs James and her family, including husband Mark, who is Jersey’s chief fire officer, all of the wood has been washed, sorted and stacked at their home, where it now needs some sunshine to dry it out.

‘It is like three massive piles of jenga,’ she said. ‘We have collected it all and there are a few really nice pieces I am looking forward to making. I am putting together a new range using really unusual pieces of driftwood and there are a few from the last few weeks.’

She added that other pieces took longer to plan.

‘Sometimes I have to sit pieces on my desk and look at them for a while to decide how to use them.’ And Mrs James said that the experience of collecting had also created its own memories for the family, including the occasion they massively underestimated how much driftwood there would be and ended up with her car – a Mini – packed to the roof.

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