A summaryJoin us at Chantry Library for a variety of creative workshops this summer holidays for 10-16 year olds! Workshops are 9:45am - 3:30pm and include lunch, drinks and snacks.
Free places are available for those eligible for benefit related free school meals. Unsure if you’re eligible? For guidance visit www.gov.uk/apply-free-school-meals
For more information on each workshop and our amazing artists, please visit our website:
suffolkcommunitylibraries.co.uk/blank-page
If your booking is made within 72 hours of the workshop, we may not be able to accommodate specific dietary requirements. Please get in touch with the library location for the workshop to discuss options.
Workshop details:
Library: Chantry Library, Hawthorn Drive, Ipswich, IP2 0QY
27 July- Ben Brown and Catalina Carvajal- Songwriting and Album Art Creation
3 August- Laura Fisk- Painted Landscapes
10 August- Joanna Pink- Experimental Printmaking with gelli plates
17 August- Michelle Brace- Collage and Digital World Building
24 August- Amanda Abrey- Paper design and zine making
27 July- Ben Brown and Catalina Carvajal
Join musician Ben Brown and visual artist Catalina Carvajal for this creative workshop for 10-16 year olds at your local library. Explore your innate creativity to spontaneously create exciting and unique works or audio and visual art.
Ben is a songwriter and community musician from Manningtree in East Anglia.
Catalina is a visual artist from Bogotá in Colombia.
3 August- Laura Fisk
Spend the day creating your very own abstract floral, field or forest landscape, painted canvas - let’s create a piece of art full of texture, shape, pattern and life, that’s fun and unique to you. You will have the opportunity to explore a variety of paint techniques using acrylics and apply these to your very own abstract floral, field or forest canvas. Think layers of your favourite colours, flowers, trees, trunks and grasses set on the back drop of your choice, dark and moody, bright and breezy, the choice is yours. Together we will create something very special and ultimately something you’re really proud of.
Suffolk based artist Laura Jayne Fisk, has worked as a professional artist for over 10 years. She specialises in illustrative studies of animals using graphite and is also known for creating large scale abstract floral paintings, these original pieces have run alongside her own successful homeware range. Having worked for a number of years as an art teacher and also as a wig dresser & make-up artist in the West End, Laura brings a wealth of knowledge of artistic techniques, experience and passion to her workshops and beyond.
10 August- Joanna Pink
Look Closer: Print Studio invites you to discover the hidden details of the world around you, using handheld digital microscopes and projectors. We’ll look closely at everyday objects and natural materials to find unexpected textures, patterns and shapes.
These discoveries will be the starting point for drawing and experimental printmaking using gelli plates. Turn what you see into bold, colourful prints and images, experimenting with layering, mark-making and composition. This workshop is all about noticing more, trying new things and building confidence through making. Everyone will leave with a set of prints or a handmade zine.
Joanna Pink is an artist educator and participatory artist from Suffolk working across print, textiles and mixed media. Her practice is rooted in play, process art and DIY culture, and focuses on creating accessible creative experiences that encourage making, curiosity and exploration. She spent the past decade in Mexico City founding and directing an art school, and now works across the UK and internationally leading workshops in schools, libraries, museums and community spaces.
17 August- Michelle Brace
Collage & Digital World Building Workshop
Use collaged colours and textures to create an imagined landscape across the pages of your own zig zag book. Remix, add effects, characters and other images into your world digitally using Procreate on the iPad and print out to build into a simple story by adding a title, your own illustrations, speech bubbles or text.
Michelle Brace is a digital and mixed media artist who also has a community based creative health practice. She works with collage, text and photographic textures and builds her work into colourful layered digitally mixed visual compositions for projection, live performance or print.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mich_unlocked/
Website: https://www.unlockedcreative.net/
24 August- Amanda Abrey
In this full-day creative workshop, young people will begin by painting their own papers using a range of expressive techniques focusing on colour, texture, and mark-making. These handmade papers will form the starting point for both collage and zine-making, giving each student a completely unique visual resource to work from.
Students will then explore mixed media collage and zine-making, combining paint, paper, drawing, and text to create their own personal pieces of visual work.
Using their painted papers, they will experiment with layering, cutting, tearing, and composition to build a finished collage piece. Alongside this, they will develop a small folded zine inspired by ideas such as identity, interests, memory, imagination, or storytelling, incorporating their own artwork, writing, and imagery.
The workshop encourages freedom within structure, allowing students to develop individual ideas while being supported with techniques, guidance, and inspiration throughout the day. The emphasis is on experimentation, creative confidence, and self-expression rather than perfection.
By the end of the session, each participant will leave with a completed mixed media collage piece and a handmade zine, both reflecting their own ideas and creative style.
Amanda is the founder behind Little MADE Studio, a Suffolk-based creative space offering art workshops for children, young people, and adults. Her practice is rooted in mixed media, collage, painting, and process-led creativity, with a passion for making art accessible, enjoyable, and free from the pressure of perfection.
Inspired by nature, storytelling, and the uninhibited creativity of children, Amanda enjoys working with colour, texture, and layered materials to create expressive artworks and engaging workshop experiences. Through her workshops, she encourages participants to experiment, build confidence, and discover the joy of creating in a relaxed and supportive environment.
