Second Hand
An exhibition of four artists working with inherited and discarded materials.
Celia Pym, Tilly Shiner, Jane Stewart, and Shane Waltener.
Thursday 2nd April - Saturday 30th May. 2026.

Second Hand brings together four artists who work with materials that have lived other lives. Working with garments, textiles, and found objects, each artist uses what is worn, handled, discarded, and redistributed.

Using sculpture, textile, and collage, the artists in our Second Hand exhibition work with old materials to create new artworks, experimenting with techniques passed down through generations. Clothes are mended, reworked, and reassembled; objects are recreated rather than discarded.

One Work Gallery: Simon Carter
‘Turning Back’, 2022

Our next artist is Simon Carter, who studied at Colchester Institute and then North East London Polytechnic. Often described as a 'painter's painter', his painting lies between figuration and abstraction, illustrating both landscape and the subjectivity of looking, to reflect a perceptual and psychological experience of the world. Simon is President of Colchester Art Society and has been Artist-in-residence at the  University of Essex and Firstsite. 

Reading: Eighteen: A History of Britain in 18 Young Lives.
By Alice Loxton
Wednesday 11th FEBRUARY,
6.45pm Soup, 7pm Book Club.

In this unconventional and witty history, award-winning writer and broadcaster Alice Loxton delves into Britain's past, exploring the country through eighteen notable figures at that most formative age – eighteen. From a young Elizabeth Tudor facing deadly intrigue at court, to Empress Matilda already changing the fate of nations, Eighteen invites readers to join an eclectic cast of young Britons across the nation and throughout its history.
Price £10.99

SOCKS Imaginative Mending
By Celia Pym
Thursday 30th April
6pm-7pm
£5 Book online or in the bookshop.

Celia Pym will be talking about her mending project ‘Socks’ that formed the work for her latest book.

In Summer Term 2024 Celia Pym taught the whole of Surrey Square Primary School in Southwark, Central London, how to darn a sock. All the children from Nursery Class (the four-year-olds) to Year 6 (the 11-year-olds), as well as several of the teachers, staff and family members. SOCKS Imaginative Mending describes the project, why it happened, how it was planned and the impact it had. It also celebrates the socks and stitches themselves with photographs of every mended sock – more than 500 in all. An encounter with craft and ‘making’ gives a child a key to opening their creative imagination. This book illustrates the joyful case for why craft learning  must be embedded in the school curriculum.

SOCK Mending Drop-In Session
With Celia Pym
Thursday 30th April
2-5pm
Free, all welcome

Holes in your socks? Bring them along to the SOCK mending meet up. Celia will be on hand to help you with your sock mending. Or if you are experienced, you can help others!

Mending curious? Never mended before no problem – come by and have a go at mending a sock. Spare ‘industry’ waste socks will be available to practice on

All materials and tools provided. Beginners to experienced menders welcome. Please come by for an afternoon of mending and hanging out.

Sketch and Social
Saturday 4th and 18th April
2pm-4pm, Free

Saturday Sketch and Social on Saturday 7th March with Tania Lawrence @tania_lawrence_art. Bring a sketch book, pencils, pens, whatever you fancy. Grab a cuppa, then draw and chat with other creatives. It’s free, and is for all levels, from hobbyists, students, beginners, to pro doodlers. We’ll be running them every two weeks, and it's fine to drop in and out. We have pens and paper if you need them.

28 Newgate Street, Walton on the Naze, Essex, Co14 8AL