By Passages Editor, Monica Stark
This July, a Yukon-based artist will return to Brier Island with skeins of wool and a vision that reaches well beyond her own two hands. Janet Patterson, a visual artist and former Nova Scotian, will be spending two weeks at the Hammer and Sky Studios in Westport, her second residency there, with a project that is as much about community as it is about craft.
The centrepiece of her visit will be a large felted wall hanging depicting the Peters Island Lighthouse, created collaboratively with anyone who wants to pull up a chair and learn.
“I will be working with community members to create a large felted wall hanging of the Peters Island lighthouse,” Janet explained. “As you know, the community is in the process of restoring that historic lighthouse and I thought it would be lovely to work with locals to create a commemorative art piece related to their project.”
A Returning Friend
Janet Patterson grew up in the Annapolis Valley, and when she first came to Brier Island last summer for a residency at Hammer and Sky, something clicked. She describes the experience as a homecoming, in the people she met, the landscape that surrounded her, and the easy warmth of island life.
“Having grown up in the Annapolis Valley, the residency felt like a ‘returning home’ in so many ways,” she said. During that first visit, she taught needle felting at a community fundraiser held at the Hammer and Sky Studios. “I remember sitting there that evening with a big smile on my face. I couldn’t remember the last time I had felt such contentment. I was home among ‘my people.'” She knew then that she had to come back.
This summer, she returns July 12 to 25 with a larger purpose in mind.
The Lighthouse as Symbol
For Janet, the Peters Island Lighthouse is more than a picturesque subject. Lighthouses have always represented safety, security, and hope in difficult times, and she felt a particular pull when she learned about the SAIL2 community effort to restore this one.
“It’s saddened me to see so many of the traditional lighthouses shuttered and left uncared for,” she said. “When I learned about this community initiative to bring the Peters Island lighthouse back to life, I was so excited.” She wanted to find a way to honour not just the structure itself, but the generations of families whose lives depended on it, and the people working today to bring it back.
The wall hanging she envisions will be substantial, roughly six feet by three feet, made entirely from sheep’s wool using both needle felting and wet felting techniques. She spent the winter studying reference photographs of the lighthouse and plans to complete a sketch and small-scale felted version before arriving, so community participants will have a clear guide to work from.
Come and Felt
Between July 12 and 25, Janet will be set up at Hammer and Sky Studios, welcoming visitors from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Saturday. No experience is necessary, as she will teach participants everything they need to know. A small donation to cover the cost of wool and felting needles is appreciated.
She is clear that community involvement is not a nice addition to this project. It is the point.
“To have the community involved is absolutely key. This isn’t about me creating a pretty image of a lighthouse. This is a celebration of an important part of Brier Island’s history, by the people who have collectively built that history.” She sees the project as a tip of the hat to island resilience, and a reminder of what working together can accomplish.
She also hopes the experience offers something quieter: a chance to simply be together. “I hope this will give people time to just be with one another, and maybe discover things about one another that they didn’t know before. I remember as a kid, going with my mom to church basement quilting parties. I loved those times and I hope we can capture something of that feeling.”
Beyond Brier Island
When the piece is complete, Janet hopes to arrange a temporary exhibition at a Nova Scotia gallery so that people beyond the island can see it, and she may even bring it north to the Yukon for a show there.
In one sentence, she sums the whole thing up: “This project is a celebration of history, resilience, comradeship, and hope.”
If you’d like to take part, head to the Hammer and Sky church Monday to Saturday between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. during the weeks of July 12 to 25. You can see more of Janet’s work on her Instagram page at https://www.instagram.com/janet_patterson_artist_page/
