Journal
‘Meeting Ethel’
If you are interested in following my journey, sculpting through the Ethels of Derbyshire, this is the place. Here I will be sharing my inspirations and processes, I will also be doing regular updates on my instagram page- http://www.instagram.com/francesball.art
How it all started
In search of the perfect spot to photograph my latest sculpture and struggling to find the right light and space at home, I drove out to Stanage Edge, where you are guaranteed plenty of both. Setting off in perfect weather conditions, part cloud with intermittent sunshine, I hadn’t anticipated strong winds, so finding a stable resting place for my sculpture was tricky. After expending much effort crouching on hard granite, chasing untethered belongings and teetering precariously close to the rock edge, I spotted the perfect base, a trig point, also known as a triangulation pillar or Ethel as they are known in the Peak District. It was the perfect base, enabling me to film a full 360 degrees.
Embraced by rock and sky suddenly the sculpture became part of a bigger conversation, ……….here the seed of an idea was conceived, Meeting Ethel was born and the quest to create a sculpture for each of the 95 Ethels.
Who was Ethel
“Ethel Haythornthwaite was an enviromental campaigner and poet, who was instrumental in protecting many green spaces around Sheffield. In 1928 she led the successful public appeal to stop the Longshaw Estate being sold off to developers. In 1932, she helped acquire Blacka Moor, which in 1938 became part of Sheffield’s Green Belt-the country’s first. Her tireless campaigning helped make Green Belt part of national policy.”
CPRE Campaign to Protect Rural England
Ethel Ready App
In 1924 Ethel founded the local campaign group that would become CPRE Peak District and South Yorkshire, https://www.cprepdsy.org.uk/who are still very active today, working to protect our local countryside. It is through their app Ethel Ready https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.colton.ethel_ready&hl=en_GB which has enabled me locate all 95 Ethels.
