COLLAGE & CONVERSATION WORKSHOP WITH SAM IKHUORIA, ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE

The Collage & Conversation workshop took place on 30 July 2025

The Collage & Conversation workshop was an exciting highlight of the residency for Sam. The session invited participants to explore the history of the building through collage-making and conversation, using the art technique of positive and negative spaces.

With imagery taken from the building’s fire brigade and film set periods, participants created 1-2 collages, reimagining Alice Billing House and reflecting on its many lives. For some, working only with historic building images rather than magazines or newspapers was a new and refreshing approach. A few participants were initially unsure how to apply positive and negative spaces to their work, but after seeing examples of the technique in practice, they embraced the process and produced interesting results.

One particularly memorable moment came from Jackie, a participant who wove her fascination with plants into her artwork by filling the negative white space with hand-drawn leaves. At the end of the workshop, Jackie shared her knowledge of plants with me, in the Alice Billing House garden, naming most of the plants there. This beautifully illustrated how participants brought their own personal perspectives into the creative process, enriching the session with their individuality.

Another participant, Ife, found the archive images fascinating and plans to explore them further by experimenting with printing them onto her pottery work. A brilliant example of how the workshop sparked new creative directions beyond the collage.

The workshop was not only about making collages but also an open conversation about Alice Billing and the building named after her - connecting art, history and community in a relaxed, welcoming environment. By the end of the evening, participants left with both new creative skills and a fresh way of looking at space and storytelling.