Painting pebbles and hiding them out and about is a craze that has swept the nation in recent years, bringing joy to those who paint them, and smiles to those who find them; so this summer, artists at the Stokes Art Group decided to join in the fun and create some of their own!
The idea is to paint a pebble or hand sized stone, write some information on the back of what to do with it once found, then place it somewhere outside for others to find. The information written on the back is the artist’s name or hashtag, and asks the finder to post a photo and message to a particular Facebook group – such as ‘The Stokes Rocks’ or ‘Bristol Rocks’” – then to either keep it or relocate it. Anyone can paint and hide pebbles, and it’s fun to track them – it’s amazing how far some pebbles have travelled – but to track them you need to be a Facebook user, and join the tagged group.
Susan Hartry, admin for the Bradley Stoke based Stokes Art Group, thought it would be a great idea to challenge the Stokes artists to ‘Painting on Stone’ – for this purpose; she explained: “Not only a fun thing to do, and for most members a new surface to paint a mini masterpiece on, but also a fun way of letting people know there is an art group in their area. Also, by tagging the pebbles to another community group on Facebook, ‘The Stokes Rocks’, we can track them, and maybe get other people to paint their own pebbles and join in on the fun.”
More than 30 colourful painted pebbles were placed in random locations throughout all the Stokes and nearby areas at the beginning of the school holidays – including Parkway Station, The Green and Meade Park in Stoke Gifford; The Common playing fields and The Common in Stoke Lodge; the Willow Brook Centre, The Common East, Primrose Bridge, the cycle path near Somerby Close, the leisure centre, the Baileys Court area and the Three Brooks Lake in Bradley Stoke; Patchway Roundabout and Little Stoke Park.
“Obviously not everyone is a Facebook user – and that’s OK – but if finding a cheery pebble painted by a Stokes Art Group member, or anyone else, brings a smile to someone’s face and brightens their day, that’s great!” says Susan.
Photos: 1 A selection of pebbles painted by members of the Stokes Art Group. 2 Message on the reverse of a pebble.
About the Stokes Art Group
When: Tuesday evenings / Thursday mornings (you can subscribe to one or both)
Where: Christ The King Church, Mautravers Close, Bradley Stoke, BS32 8EE
Ethos: To provide affordable Table Space and Time for local Artists to work on Practice Pieces or Projects with like-minded people, away from the distractions of home.
Members: 18+ / All Abilities welcome
Structure: Informal, non-instructional & self funded Community art group
Free Extras (optional): include Themed Project Competitions / Annual Competition – the Jam Jar Prize / Whole Group Evening Events / Online Showcasing of Members’ Artworks / Newsletter – the SAG-e-Mag.
PLACES AVAILABLE for ‘Series 3’ autumn painting sessions start 1st week in September
TASTER SESSIONS offered Tuesday 4th or Thursday 6th September – only pay if you stay
£35 for 12 x 3 hour sessions (OFFER £60 if subscribing to both groups)
Susan and the Stokes Artists would love to hear from you!
Web: stokesart0.wix.com/stokes-art-group
Email: stokesart2@gmail.com
‘Bradley Stoke ROCKS’ community event on Jubilee Green
A free community pebble painting event held on Jubilee Green on 15th August was well attended by families looking for something different to do during the school holidays. Sponsors Managed Mayhem said: “A huge thank you to everybody who came to our first summer rock painting event, ‘Bradley Stoke ROCKS’. What a turn out! We went through 300 rocks in the end!”
This article originally appeared in the September 2018 issue of the Bradley Stoke Journal news magazine (on pages 10 & 11). The magazine is delivered FREE, EVERY MONTH, to ALL 8,700 homes in Bradley Stoke. Phone 01454 300 400 to enquire about advertising or leaflet insertion.
