A Mural for WWT Steart Marshes
Imagine my joy when I was invited to paint a mural at WWT Steart Marshes. Steart is just my favourite place to be, I lived there for 10 years and saw the building of the new nature reserve. I painted and walked the peninsula everyday so knew it intimatley and of course since moving away miss it dreadfully.
WWT Steart is a complex site of ecological importance and is managed very carefully by the WWT. A rather mundane side of the day to day running of the site is maintenance of the land and walkways and tracks so a new addition to the site has been a rather boring but very functional concrete structure for storing various materials and waste matter. Not the prettiest addition to the reserve I was asked to beautify it with an ecological themed mural. I came up with a variety of illustrations using my iPad and in my loose, colourful, illustrative style and WWT was delighted to choose a scene of wildflowers and insects from an insect eye view with the reserve and visitors walking through in the distance.
I researched the paints carefully, they had to be waterbased, breathable and waterproof when dry and also I wanted my signature bright colours. All were tested and left out in all weathers on a concrete paving slab a very kind soul carried up to my studio for me some weeks previously.
Chosen design printed out and in hand with my little car packed with paints and kit for volunteers to use I set off last Wednesday on what can only be described as the sunniest, calmest day this year. Anyone who knows Steart will know its notoriously windy so I was very pleased with myself that I had been lucky with the conditions. I was lucky too with my merry band of volunteers who did a splendid job. Big thanks to Jenny McGubbin the Health and Wellbeing volunteer who organised for the Nelson Trust to join us from Bridgwater it was super to meet them and I’m so chuffed everyone had such a good time.
I was also treated to a quick tour of some other new projects in developement at the reserve (not sure if I should spoil the surprise but they are building something pretty special) and I was overwhelmed by the emerging wildflowers and flocks of avocets who were making themselves known. I was so thrilled that I changed my illustration and added a trio of Cowslips to the floral lineup. They looked fab.
Alison Jacobs 