Full frontal

Trust me I'm a builder

All quiet at the meadow side

I am writing to update you on the progress of the restoration of Lawson Park following the Parish Councils support of Grizedale Arts Planning Application.

Local company Leck Construction Ltd, were appointed as contractors in December ’07 following the tender process and began work on-site in mid January’08. The estimated programme for the work was forty weeks with a projected completion date of October

During the initial stages of the renovation a number of issues were revealed with the structure of the building. As we already knew additional barns and extensions had been added to the original cottage at a number of stages throughout the buildings history, but when the roof was removed it revealed that most of these additions had not been tied into the existing structure, making it difficult and potentially dangerous to carry out the alterations required. After much discussion, including consultation with the LDNP planning officers, it was agreed to stabilise the building and demolish and rebuild the critical unstable sections, retaining as much of the original structure as possible. As you know the property is not listed but Grizedale Arts are committed to restoring the building to retain the external appearance and character of the original building.

We have done a lot of research around the history of the buildings and site including reviewing public records, contacting previous residents and inviting the LDNP authorities conservation officer to visit the site and comment on our planned works. This is something we are keen to develop further and we would be very interested in any information or contacts you could provide that might give more of an insight into the historical use of Lawson Park. All of the information we have gathered to date is available on the Lawson Park website and we would welcome any suggestions or comment, http://www.lawsonpark.org/history

The Lawson Park project is monitored on a monthly basis by two groups, the Design Team; made up of the architects, consultants and the principal contractor and the advisory group; which represents the Grizedale Arts Board and local experts, if you would like to attend any of these meetings or be part of the advisory group we would be happy to for you to be involved.

Alongside the building work the land around Lawson Park is also being restored to productive use, including a kitchen garden and a forageable wildflower meadow. The wildflower meadow has recently been accepted into the Cumbria Upland Hay Meadows Project, which has involved it being surveyed by Cumbria Wildlife Trust including ensuring there has been no impact from the building works, the site is now being considered as a possible seed donor site.

Lawson Park will be open to the public on Sunday 24^th August as part of the National Garden Scheme and this would be a great opportunity for anyone interested in visiting the site or finding out about the project to come and see us, please see our website or contact me directly if you would like any further information about this event.

I appreciate that it may appear quite extreme some of the work currently being carried out on the building but the majority of the demolitions, additional openings and changes of level are being undertaken to make the building accessible for the disabled, which is not only desirable for us but also a requirement of building control and our funders. In the long run the ambition is that this renovation will secure a productive future for Lawson Park, for many years to come.

Lawson Park will be officially opened in May 2009, we will be inviting specific groups, such as the Parish Council, in advance of this date to visit the project and look at ways in which people can get involved and benefit from this important resource.

Yours sincerely,

Lisa Stewart
Project Manager
Grizedale Arts

Posted by Dorian Moore on 17/07/08 at 15:05
Originally posted at www.lawsonpark.org/blog/1660

The Coniston Water Festival starts today now completely run by the village with a fair bit of help on the management side from Lisa, they have a packed programme of stuff, including the world skimming championships and Britain's top unsigned band (that sounds a bit like top of the bottom). A full weekend. Lawson Park will be taking a stall at the Odd Market - a kind of farmers market meets craft/local enterprise. We will be featuring the work of local folk art guru Peter Hodgson (work in the collections of Jurgen Teller and Peter Greenaway). And the Dog Planter man Peter Inman (collected by fashion superstar Giles Deacon) We will also feature produce from the garden, wild food and other material from the Honesty Box network.

The baseball cap featuring the reversal of a famous Ruskin quote was described by the Coniston Corporate Embroidery company as 'overthought', an uncommon complaint almost unknown in the area.

'There is no life but wealth'

www.conistonwaterfestival.org.uk

Posted by Adam Sutherland on 11/07/08 at 08:32 : 0 Comments

LD 2008

Its nice to see the builders carrying on the old tradition of leaving their initials on the building, hopefully it'll be a long time before someone else re-discovers these.

Posted by Dorian Moore on 09/07/08 at 16:18
Originally posted at www.lawsonpark.org/blog/1662

Lawson park's 4 beehives are suffering from the bizarre spring and early summer weather here - 5 weeks without rain then 3 with nothing but.
We have to feed each colony a gallon of sugar water (in July !) to try and kickstart the queens' laying and get those girls out there again.

Posted by Karen Guthrie on 08/07/08 at 23:11
Originally posted at www.lawsonpark.org/blog/1465

Thats a pink cadillac in the background bydeway

The assault on the paddy fields by artist/lecturer Steve Duval and students from Oxford Brookes University and a brilliant lunchtime talk by Site manager and Liverpool John Moore's University lecturer John Byrne was only slightly marred by a continual downpour...

Here's some images from the group who were Graham Dorey, Andrew Hunter, Warren Shaw, Perce Jerrom, Seb Thomas and Steve Duval. They also found a press shot from the film Vroom, made up at the house and the reason it is such tasteful colours - an 80's art directors idea of what a farm house would be, painted over those dreary browns in Farrow and Ball heritage paint - the very same paint that is still in production and we were able to buy.

On the down side the film was also responsible for removing all the slates from the now wrecked barn in order to redo the house roof

Posted by Adam Sutherland on 07/07/08 at 08:26 : 0 Comments

Farmhouse borders in early July 2008

Adam illicitly climbed on top of Leck's site hut to take this picture of the garden. There's not a lot of flowers out yet as this is really a late summer part of the garden, but you can enjoy the lushness.

Posted by Karen Guthrie on 05/07/08 at 17:07
Originally posted at www.lawsonpark.org/blog/1464

The Bog Garden in July 2008

The bog garden we planted late last summer is developing rather gorgeously. As long as you ignore backdrop of the building site (behind me when I took this snap) you can revel in primulas - mooreana (that's the nonstop purple in the foreground) , florindae and bulleyana - hellebores, verbascum, ferns and hostas.
This area has called like a siren to our former gardener George Watson, whose now coming back in once a week!

Posted by Karen Guthrie on 03/07/08 at 19:23
Originally posted at www.lawsonpark.org/blog/1463

Chips growing in the wild

Rather pleased with the way the 2 regenerated paddy fields are coming along. Soil was created from rotting down the cuttings and wood chippings from the field. This year is the first year of cultivation purely based on what we have been able to regenerate from the hill. Crops of Broad and French beans in one bed plus potatoes, cauliflower and sprouts in the other - each field is half sewn with green manure - alfalfa on this occasion.

Posted by Dorian Moore on 03/07/08 at 18:02
Originally posted at www.lawsonpark.org/blog/1462

For a change from building work I dropped in on the Furness bee keepers skep making workshop and a found a farm kitchen strewn with straw and weaving enthusiasts, a medieval scene. For Lawson Park we are planning to use this material to back the window seats but of course it is harder to find someone to to it - mostly being used in Orkney and the Orkney weavers being unwilling to come so far south. So.... it doesn't look so hard, unless this was a particularly talented group with a special affinity for straw. This great example illustrated on the right is made with orange plastic baler twine, now that could be nice.

Posted by Adam Sutherland on 25/06/08 at 11:28 : 0 Comments

Topics: 'furness beekeepers' 'skep'

Peter Inman's animal planters await TNT for their trip to the 'Far West' exhibition at Arnofini in Bristol.

Along side many other 'products' from the Japan and China projects as well as products from the honesty stall network, there will be a stall running the duration of the programme, so if your in Bristol and have a sudden and urgent need for a dog planter, mare's milk, a bone comb or some wild Chinese mountain honey in an old coke bottle you will find all your needs quickly met at the Arnofini art gallery, and it's not often you can say that.
Works and collaborations from:
Myvillages, Pope and Guthrie, Seven Samurai, Happy Stacking 7, Public Works, Peter Hodgson, Peter Inman and many others

Posted by Adam Sutherland on 24/06/08 at 14:31 : 0 Comments

Topics: 'Arnofini' 'Far West' 'Happy Stacking 7' 'myvillages' 'Peter Hodgson' 'Peter Inman' 'Pope and Guthrie' 'public works' 'Seven Samurai'