At the feet of my hare

This hare is bigger than me in so many ways. I have so far spent hours working on him yet I feel I still have a long way to go. I discovered today that although I thought my black paint liner was secure, it still rubs if I get it wet, so it will mean I will have to go over every black line with a tiny paint brush and black acrylic to seal it. Today I was back on my knees working on the hare's cuff and adding details to the bowls which is in honour of my dear Grampie, George Ham who discovered a talent for playing bowls after spending years watering the green. He did so well, he earned a place in the England team. The bowls on the hare's left hand paw has an England rose on it in his honour, but also because he was an expert in roses and was often a judge at horticultural shows (including Stroud Show). It is also my mum Jan's favourite flower and she too used to live in the Mansion House.

Adding the mills

The sounds heard in the Stroud valleys would have been very different centuries ago. The plethora of mills around Stroud turned out high quality woollen cloth, and with it came the immense and deafening sound of machinery. One by one the mills closed - apart from Cam Mills and Lodegmore Mills, the two sister mills which still produce the billiard, tennis and uniform cloth today - but they are far from forgotten. Many of the mill buildings no longer exist, yet the ones which do now have a different sound such as that of a restaurant, a manufacturing industry, council headquarters, fitness centre or accommodation. I have paid tribute to the mills on the hare's legs and also added in part of a very famous image of the scarlet cloth left out to dry in the Stroud fields.

The awkward parts!

Had to get help to tip the hare over in order to reach the unreachable aspects of his anatomy. He looked very sad lying on his side but it had to be done. A repeat performance will have to be carried out to ensure the other side is equally covered too. Not an easy shape by any means, a challenge indeed yet one I am determined to overcome!

Backwards in time

To highlight the fact that when we look at history we effectively go back in time, I wanted to create a clock that did just that on the back of the hare. It fitted well as within the Museum's collection there is a clock that is back to front, and does indeed go backwards. I also had the idea to make the hare's bob tail a tennis ball, celebrating the cloth in a fun way. Lodgemore Mills still make the tennis balls used at Wimbledon and by painting it yellow, it helped balance out the ears. I also decided to make the thread on the cotton reel, yellow too. I still have a long way to go, but I feel Scarlet Red Hare is growing in personality and character and it has been great to talk to visitors and explain a little bit more about Stroud's history.