REWILD YOURSELF – sound and movement workshop

Enjoy feeling connected to nature? Join us in this unique FREE workshop, exploring creative ways to connect with each other and nature up here at The Sheds: strolling, moving, listening, rhythm-making.

New date to be announced!

10.30-3.30pm

Location: SMARTsheds, Devils Dyke Rd BN1 8YJ, 50.86904° N, 0.19561° W

Sound artist Hazel Reeves and natural art and music-maker Pat McKenna will take you on a journey – indoors and outdoors – responding to the sights and sounds of the Sussex countryside, with birdsong at the core.

Our day will be shaped by what joys the landscape holds on the day. Perhaps in the morning, after some gentle movement, we will walk out onto the Sheds site, listening-out for birdsong motifs and other recurring sounds in the landscape, to inspire movement in the afternoon. We may find and collect some interesting nature artifacts for rhythm-making, from this former pig farm that’s rewilding nicely.

In the barn in the afternoon we will focus-in on movement and rhythm-making, drawing on soundscapes of nature recorded by Hazel on the site and beyond, as well as her sounds of fantastical birds created for her Bird Hide installation on the site. Pat will weave in rhythm-making with nature for a truly unique experience.

No prior experience required. This is a safe space to explore something new.

Wear comfortable clothing and shoes that enable you to move. If we get the chance, weather permitting, to explore The Sheds’ small woodland and scrubland, you will need suitable shoes and long clothing as the ground is uneven and nettles are in abundance!

This workshop is part of SMART Sheds, part of Brighton Fringe this May (weekends only). It’s been so much fun to be one of the artists selected to shake-up The Sheds nestled on the beautiful birdsong filled South Downs.

This former pig farm – its sheds and land – is being taken over by artists under the banner of SMART Sheds. It’s a unique fusion of art, nature, and mental wellbeing, inviting visitors to explore an immersive outdoor experience.

Artists this year are me, Amy Macmillan, Alexi Marshall, Carrie Stanley, Danny Manning, Katy Bienart, Figments Arts & BPOC photography collective.

In collaboration with my artist sister Sandra Reeves, I’ve turned my assigned shed into a bird hide, complete with bird sound installation, with views over the emerging scrubland as the site rewilds and across to the agricultural fields beyond.SMART Sheds is a place where nature, creativity, and mental wellbeing come together, and we can’t wait for you to experience it.

SMART is a mental health charity based in London that promotes mental wellbeing through purposeful activity. With their recent purchase of this special site at Devil’s Dyke, they aim to create a nature-based ecotherapy resource for clients, while working closely with the local community to expand its reach and benefit.