Lydia Needle
Scrap paper and card, soaking
Paper pulp formed in the mold and deckle
The Perpetual Papermaker with paper pulp: reclaimed timber, oil drum, hosepipe, vinegar bottles, old blankets, sand, charcoal, gravel, waters, water carrier.
Scrap paper and card, soaking
I am Lydia Needle, an ecological artist working in Somerset. In my work, I contemplate what we bring to the planet and our communities - what we can add, what we support. I also examine waste, erosion, weathering – what we leave behind. I am the Lead Artist and Curator of the ongoing collaborative creative project called ‘FIFTY BEES: The Interconnectedness of All Things’.
Website: www.lydianeedle.com
Instagram: @lydianeedle
Email: lydianeedle@gmail.com
Artist Statement
I am an art eco-activist, a maker of gentle protest works.
My MA project is concerned with soil crucial ability to lock in carbon, its role in tackling climate change.
I walk, I collect soil, I produce paper on my Perpetual Papermaking Machine. The machine is the vehicle that brings me and the collected soil data together in a collaborative process.
Each component of the machine, every component of the paper forms a closed-loop system:
waste paper and card are soaked in water
paper pulp is created
sheets of Soiled Paper are formed
water is drained, filtered, collected, and reused.
Finally, I feed the paper to my worms who lock carbon into the compost.
The cycle continues.
This work is the physical manifestation of my engagement with the climate crisis, my impotence embodied in paper, a partial answer to the question “What can I do?”.