St Barbe announces free half-term puppet making workshops as The Herds project comes to Lymington

FREE children’s puppet-making workshops will be taking place in Lymington and Sway during half-term as part of an international climate change initiative.

Led by St Barbe Museum and Gallery in Lymington, the workshops are inspired by the international public art project The Herds and supported by Art Fund.

Between April and August, ever-growing herds of life-sized puppet animals will stampede into cities across Africa and Europe to flee climate disaster. The Herds is a public artwork created to vividly dramatise the climate crisis.

With support from Art Fund, St Barbe has been selected to join The Herds alongside 43 museums, galleries and historic houses across the UK.

St Barbe learning and engagement officer Joanne Ainslie, said: “We are delighted to have been selected to be part of this groundbreaking climate initiative raising awareness of climate change and habitat loss worldwide.

“Locally oyster catchers and nightjars’ reliance on specific habitats for breeding, foraging and roosting makes them vulnerable to changes in these environments. We will be highlighting their plight with puppet-making workshops and our own puppet parade on the seawall and in the Forest.”

St Barbe spokesperson Penny Curry added: “We would also love to encourage the public to join in the puppet parades at the end of the workshops.”

Elsewhere The Herds will engage with audiences along the 20,000km route with special UK performances in London 27th to 29th June, and Greater Manchester 3rd to 5th July. All events are free.

The free workshops will run at the St Barbe Museum on Tuesday 27th May and at SpudWorks in Sway on Friday 30th May. For more information visit stbarbe-museum.org.uk