Town Jewels
Town Jewels was a participatory arts programme led by Scott House Day Centre in partnership with Transported, to create a “necklace of jewels”: crafted, bespoke interventions around Boston co-curated with centre users, local residents and students, environment and community groups working with experienced professional artists.
Scott House is a Lincolnshire County Council managed day centre for people with additional needs. They offer an ongoing programme of arts activity led by an in-house team, with a dedicated arts and craft workshop.
The Town Jewels project aimed to
- Help the centre to contribute to the creative enhancement of the town’s smaller, often unseen, public spaces.
- Offer opportunities to create crafted, bespoke interventions, using a range of artforms, materials and techniques that add beauty and interest.
- Encourage people to engage and enjoy public spaces, our natural “gems”, around the town.
- Bring together a range of partners to work collaboratively (Transported, centre users, neighbourhood action, health, and community groups).
- Link and recruit local residents, the Wildlife Trust and RSPB to bring specialist knowledge and professional artists’ creative innovation and expertise in teaching and empowering participants.
Transported commissioned local Boston talent Jane Kay as lead artist
Jane has been involved in several collaborative art productions in the town, including the Fisherman’s Memorial with the Boston and South Holland Woodcarvers and the Dolphin Lane Heritage Mosaic with the Boston School of Mosaic.
She, and the cohort of Town Jewels artists and project partners, created the artwork with the Scott House centre users through a mix of mediums such as carving, ceramics and mosaic, using recycled material as much as possible, across multiple events, workshops and activity days.
One of the key artworks created with Jane is the ‘Mosaic Butterfly’, which is installed in the Scott House garden. The artwork is also one of the pieces of the Flyway Trail.
“I managed to do something completely different and learn a new thing”
During the town jewels project, we worked with a variety of artists and partners to deliver multiple activities:
Lincolnshire Community & Voluntary Service (LCVS)’s Naturehood programme partnered on the Town Jewels project to enhance Boston Central Park’s biodiversity and share nature knowledge. A key outcome was the community-built bug hotel, a collaborative effort during a public event. After an unexpected ‘redesign,’ the team later rebuilt the structure and named it BUGSY MAHOME, thanks to public suggestions.
The Naturehood team organised free nature activities such as creating bird feeders & seed bombs, and invited partners such as Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust to enhance events with their garden mapping game and bug catchers.
Boston-based writer and baker Sonya Hundal facilitated creative writing sessions at Scott House. Using prompts, objects, and group discussions, participants explored their memories and creativity, contributing to a community display of written and visual artwork.
Town Jewels extended beyond Boston, with the team and Scott House participants delivering creative activities at the Inclusive Community Event (ICE) at Butlins, Skegness. Over two days, attendees engaged in stone painting, circus skills (delivered by Lauren Williams from our Transported Aerial and Circus Programme), and willow weaving, bringing an interactive element of the project to a wider audience.
Peter led a series of free woodcarving workshops at Methodist Centenary and in Central Park. A master chairmaker born in Boston, Peter played a crucial role in establishing and training the Boston and South Holland Woodcarving Group, which Jane Kay became a member of and began her journey with Transported.
Peter also led several sessions with those that access Scott House to create bird and bat boxes.
Lauren Sharpe, the reserve’s Community Engagement Officer joined at several of the public activity days, enhancing the offer to the public by sharing information about the reserve and our local wildlife.
Lauren also visited Scott House during the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch initiative and shared bird spotting tips and taught those that access the centre how to use binoculars and other equipment.
A Lincolnshire-based willow-weaving artist, Alison worked with participants at Scott House to create woven sculptures, including fish stakes and a large installation for the Town Jewels trail. She also led public workshops in Boston’s Central Park, where participants planted a willow arch and crafted woven artworks.
South Holland-based potters Jo and Mark joined the Skirbeck Road Carpentry and Ceramic event, teaching participants to create a heraldic shield from, in an activity inspired by the nearby landmark of Boston’s Hussey Tower.
Installed Public Artworks
Public Events
Various green spaces in Boston have been enhanced with community-created artworks, including woven fish sculptures at Pilgrim’s Patch, made in artist residencies with Alison Walling and Scott House participants.
Central Park features the Bugsy Mahome bug house and several of the mosaic artworks, created with the Boston School of Mosaics under Jane’s guidance.
The Scott House garden was enhanced with several of the willow creations and the Flyway Trail’s Mosaic Butterfly.
Throughout 2023 and into 2024, a series of public workshops and activities took place across Boston as part of the project:
May 1st – Carpentry at Centenary Methodist
May 2nd – Mosaic-making beside the Salvation Army
May 8th – Ceramics and carpentry at Skerbeck Road
May 9th – Willow weaving at Scott House
July 19th – Willow weaving and art installation at Scott House
March 30th – Willow arch planting and weaving in Central Park
The Town Jewels project was possible thanks to contributions from the project deliverers; Transported and Lincolnshire County Council, and received an Arts Council England grant and funding support from Boston Borough Council via the Boston Town Area Committee.