The first stage of this project took place during winter/spring 2022.

A series of informal conversations to share memories took place, working with Bressay History Group and its members, as well as other individuals in the community.

The Bressay Lighthouse was our starting theme, leading to lots of conversations about changing technology and how island life has evolved in recent times.

We allowed this process of ‘gathering string’ to identify threads to focus on in the next stage of the project.

The second stage was leading children in a series of drawing workshops during the Easter holidays, 2022, which responded stories gathered.

We creatively explored collected narratives through art processes such as collage, watercolour, pastel and wax resist.

We drew from photographs, stories, sounds and the imagination, investigating how drawing as a process can describe thought, capture time, and navigate sense of place and environment.

The final stage was two parallel exhibitions in Bressay during summer 2022.

At Bressay Heritage Centre was a display of historical material, memories and photographs gathered during the project, and with illustrations by our young artists.

At Speldiburn Café, the ‘Lookout’ exhibition showcased the children’s original artwork.

Through this project, I aimed to begin conversations about memory, island existence and resilience, and ways in which 20th century change has affected rural life through industry and infrastructure.

Islands inspire thoughts of isolation, but I also hoped to explore how islanders are always looking outwards, the sea being both a container and a strong link to the wider world; ‘string’ in Shetland dialect also means ‘a strong current in the sea’.

It was a privilege to hear so many interesting memories and stories about Bressay in times-gone-by, and to learn so much about lighthouse keepers and their unique way of life.

In our art sessions, it was a lovely experience to see these stories re-imagined and given colour, and to see how much the children had learnt and included in their work.

By bringing history and art together, the project explored also how the practice of drawing gives interesting ways to communicate and evolve ideas - a way to record, imagine and gather-together collective memory and shared experience in ways which are felt as well as re-told.

Thank you to all who took part, and to Bressay History Group.