Relax & Lactate / Rest & Play

I worked with m/others, parents, carers, babies, tots and children in Birmingham through a series of workshops to explore infant feeding in its widest sense. The workshops centred around creating herbal teas, by combining flavours and nutrition. Those making teas were invited to create recipes that would care for them in some way. The workshops explored how care can be offered in the humblest of ways, through sharing a cup of tea and holding space for one another. We asked 'who cares for the carers?'

From the workshops I developed two teas taking inspiration and knowledge from the workshops session. The teas were 'Relax and Lactate' focusing on the use of fenugreek for lactation, and 'Rest and Play' focusing on apricot as the most popular ingridient with both adults and children in the workshops.

The teas were shared at a celebration picnic. Where artworks by Ania Bas and Joanne Masding who were also part of the project, were shared. Ania created picnic blankets about feeding experiences, and Joanne created centre pieces and pouring bottles from clay breasts, cones, teats, made in the workshops. Kaye Winwood created the celebration food.

Ania Bas, Joanne Masding and I also made a score for performance based on text and conversations generated from the workshops. Scroll down to view.

Milk and Blankets project is part of Feed a collaborative art project about breastfeeding in public, run by In Certain Places at the University of Lancashire. Funded by Arts Council England and Birmingham City Council.

Photography: Fiona Finchett