A MEMBER of Skipton-based Craven Arts will launch a preview of her new ‘folklore’ exhibition at 6pm on Friday, October 5, at the Mill Bridge Gallery in Skipton.

Adele Froude’s new exhibition Preternatural Forest, which will then run until Saturday, October 27, explores folklore linked to the beliefs and emotions surrounding forests, through the mediums of needle felting, needlework, paint and sculpture.

Having always admired the form and textures in nature, Adele was initially intrigued by the differing colloquial names and strange beliefs attributed to the hedgerow plants featured in much of her artwork.

This sparked her curiosity to explore deeper, not realising she was about to uncover a vast quantity of folklore associated with forests and the flora and fauna she admired.

Much of the folklore originated from times of widespread superstition and fear; belief in witchcraft and evil spirits were commonplace and unsurprisingly many believed the dense foreboding forests harboured unnatural creatures.

Entirely self-taught, Adele developed personal techniques to create two and three dimensional artworks using natural materials such as sheep wool and plant fibres. Adele also paints and at times combines all of these elements into one singular piece.

Through hours of needle felting, hand stitching and painting, intricate and complex representations of the natural forest environment were formed.

Adele wanted to create a truly unique experience for the viewer and so set about ways to incorporate the sounds and earthy smells of the forest along with scripted descriptions of the folklore or symbolism associated with each piece of art.

Preternatural Forest, which is part of Craven Arts’ monthly programme of exhibitions, will run at Mill Bridge Gallery from Friday, October 5, to Saturday, October 27. The gallery is open from 11am to 4pm on Thursdays to Saturdays.