Fleetwood residents' lockdown sewing work in new exhibition

Artist Gill Wood is working on a project based in Fleetwood

Curated by artist in residence Gillian Wood, the Inside Out Exhibition will be staged on the top floor of the building from Tuesday June 22 to Saturday July 17.

The exhibition, will feature creative offerings from Fleetwood residents created during lockdown.

Gillian is working as artist in residence in the town in a project set up by LeftCoast, the programme of arts and culture across Blackpool and Wyre.

When the world came to a standstill in March last year Gillian, a filmmaker and textile artist, was just finding her place in the

community.

Keen to connect with fellow Fleetwood residents Gillian, who previously worked on Hollywood film costumes, launched the Flyde Coast Scrub Hub.

With the support of local sewing enthusiasts, the hub produced over 400 sets of scrubs for local hospitals.

Gillian said: “Through my involvement with the sewing work, I realised that there were lots of Fleetwood residents with creative flare who were busy making behind closed doors.

“This led to the creation of a network of makers; from crochet to cakes there are makers with an amazing array of skills based right across Fleetwood.”

There will be an eclectic display of skills on show during in the three week exhibition which will be free to attend.

The exhibition is open to the public from June 22 to July 17 on Tuesdays (10am - 4pm), Thursdays (1pm - 7pm) and Saturdays (10am - 4pm).

It will be held on the top floor of the old Fleetwood Hospital building on Pharos Street.

Entry is through the atrium entrance to the side of the building. Unfortunately this is a construction site with steps so is not fully accessible.

The former NHS building, on the corner of Pharos Street and North Albert Street, was bought by charity the Fleetwood Trust for £575,000 in November 2018 and has already been extensively renovated.

Since then it has been turned into a community hub, with Fleetwood Food Bank and The Mustard Seed group now housed there in The Pantry.

Another part of the building is also home to a new Regenda housing group office