Spinning a Yarn
Telling the Story of Wool in Somerset 

Somerset Art Works in partnership with the South West Heritage Trust – 2024

Spinning A Yarn focused on the celebration of British wool, the farmers who produce it, and the artisans who use the material to create beautifully sustainable textiles. The project included a large-scale statuesque installation by Nicola Turner, film Installation by Trevor Pitt, and a community exhibition at the Somerset Rural Life Museum.

A programme of ‘Take Part’ workshops and events took place, with artists Luan MacDonald, Jade Ogden, Lydia Needle, Nina Gronw-Lewis, Gary Mills, Sue Green and Sally Light, inspiring a wide range of participants to engage with and learn about the rich heritage of wool in Somerset. Workshops took place with migrant and refugee women learning English as an additional language, with schools, families and library visitors around the county. Trevor Pitt’s Somerset Yarning film (filmed by Hannah Earl) will be touring Somerset throughout 2025.

Over the centuries Somerset has been noted for the production of different cloths – wool, linen, and silk, benefiting from natural resources of water, soils and animals, combined with the skills needed to turn the raw materials into fabric.

Exploring the heritage of the landscape, skills and identity helps us to not lose touch with just how connected we are to other lifeforms, and to consider how we nurture our future relationship with the countryside. 

A Somerset Art Works project in partnership with South West Heritage Trust in 2024.
Supported by Arts Council England and the Medlock Charitable Trust

#wildforwool #countyofwool