Highcross Shopping Centre has announced the winner of its ‘Spotlight LE1’ initiative, which will see the chosen talented artist deliver a unique one-day-only, free workshop on tapestry crafting.
Shoppers who attended the launch event of Spotlight LE1, on Wednesday 22 May, then voted for their favourite artist via social media, eventually crowning local painter and illustrator, Samantha Jayne Peberdy as the standout creative talent of the day.
Beating off stiff competition, with six other local creatives in attendance – covering a range of disciplines including sketching, charcoal drawing, painting and textiles – Samantha will return to Highcross to host an exclusive free creative workshop tomorrow (Thursday 30 May) between the hours of 11am-6pm, aligned with National Creativity Day.
Set to take place on the lower mall, next door to Damaged Society, this event invites interested shoppers to drop in throughout the day to participate in interactive tutorials and learn new creative skills from Samantha, all without needing to pre-book.
The workshop will focus on the creation of a community inspired tapestry, offering a unique opportunity for attendees to engage with Leicester’s independent creative scene and support local talent.
The creative initiative, hosted by Highcross, expanded on the innovative ‘Speed spacing’ concept developed by Tina Barton, director of education and engagement at the Documentary Media Centre.
Created with the aim of transforming ‘spaces into places’ throughout Leicester, the initiative works to connect creatives and businesses with vacant spaces, to help their own start-up initiatives to thrive.
Commenting on the announcement, Jo Tallack, senior general manager of Highcross, said:
“We are delighted to see Samantha Jayne Peberdy crowned the winner of our Spotlight LE1 event; an initiative which highlights the rich talent Leicester is brimming with. It’s been a pleasure to work alongside Tina Barton and John Coster, who have made Leicester a more creative place over the past thirteen years with their innovative Speed spacing events.
“We’d like to say a big ‘thank you’ to all seven of the artists who took part in the initiative – for bringing their artistry and inspiring work to the centre, and being open to speaking with passers-by about their work and what creativity in Leicester means to them.
“Now, any shoppers wishing to get involved with the creativity themselves can return on Thursday 30 May, when Samantha puts on her very own workshop. So, make sure to drop by for the chance to learn new skills and engage in interactive tutorials focused on tapestry.”
Samantha Jayne Peberdy, who will be hosting the workshop, said: “I am thrilled to have been selected to host this special workshop at Highcross, providing a unique opportunity for a whole host of different people from across the Leicestershire community, to come together, collaborate, and create a vibrant tapestry.”
“At the workshop, I’ll be inviting attendees to create something that represents who they are – using fabric and art materials to design their own self-reflective work, before weaving their individual piece into a much larger, collective mural. I look forward to welcoming all who’d like to pop along and join the workshop, and I cannot wait to see what masterpiece we create.”
