From and To
From and To is both an exhibition about creative freedoms and a place for creative freedoms to be explored together, a ‘commons’ of sorts.
At the centre of the exhibition is Laura Eldret’s large-scale curtain installation snaking across the gallery, with openings creating different routes, zones and backdrops within the gallery. Newly commissioned for the exhibition, this curtain brings together imagery shaped through conversations and shared making with local communities and individuals.
Together, these exchanges explored ideas of freedoms and creativity: how freedom and creativity is felt, imagined and enacted. Motifs emerge of elemental wind, speech bubbles and listening ears, an orchard, singing apples, a giant egg and a potato. These forms coalesce across the curtain, imagined as a landscape that speaks of multiple freedoms: fresh air and open ground, movement and meandering, windfalls and growing, playfulness and chat, food and the sea. But also freedom is not always easy; it is political, conditional, and hard to find. The work holds space for that complexity too: a landscape both imagined and real, shared and hoped for.
Vital to From and To is a gallery wall dedicated to a growing and evolving display of ‘creative freedoms’ shared by community members and visitors, and the Honestly honesty shop for people to add to or buy from. From and To has also been informed by artefacts uncovered by Laura Eldret during her research into cultures of freedom in Dorset – including the Dorset Union of Agricultural Workers banner on display.
From and To refers to the idea of having ‘freedom from’ and ‘freedom to’ as distinct forms of freedom. This exhibition contemplates creativity as something that is for everyone to engage in, as a vital source of freedom. When thinking of creativity as a freedom – and relating this to the freedoms fought for in the past and today – creativity more clearly become an essential need and right for everyone.
Laura Eldret is a Dorset-based artist and researcher making work for/about/with people, places, ecologies and communities. Her work has been exhibited widely, from England to Argentina, and she has been awarded commissions by major art institutions. She was recently (2024-25) artist-in-residence at West Dean Gardens. Since 2023, she has been carrying out a PhD at the University of the West of England exploring ideas of commons/ing, the rural and ecologies. She is founding director of More Than Ponies, a visiting lecturer, a trained permaculturist and play worker.
TAKE PART:
From and To is an evolving exhibition created in collaboration with communities of Bridport and surrounding areas of Dorset. Visitors and residents are invited to take part in a range of ways, including the Honestly honesty shop, and by contributing to the evolving gallery wall display of ‘creative freedoms’.
→ To contribute to the ‘creative freedoms’ display simply hand in your submission at the gallery more info here.
→ The Honestly honesty shop is open to anyone to use as a platform to sell (to gallery visitors) their creative wares with freedom from mainstream formats of commerce, details here.
→ The exhibition is also being offered as a space for [free] use by the community as a site for creativity from busking to pickle-making sessions, meet-ups to… more info and booking via BAC.
THANK YOUS:
Laura Eldret was commissioned by Bridport Arts Centre in Summer 2025 to respond to the idea of creativity and freedom, as part of Future Arts Centres’ national project Our Freedom: Then and Now supported by the DCMS, Arts Council England, Open Eye Gallery and Libraries Connected. From and To was imagined by Laura but made possible through the generosity, time, and collaboration of the individuals and communities who informed the research, inspired the work, and continue to support the exhibition and events – thank you.
With appreciation for the conversations and collaborations thank you to:
The individuals who tend to Bridport Community Orchard, for the chats over the juicing machines about freedom, produce and markets, and to Alison for the reflections on creativity, place and community – and for making BAC’s own apple day happen!
To Gemma and everyone who makes Bridport Youth Club happen— especially the young people who responded with inquisitiveness and creativity, exploring creativity as a form of freedom and inspiring the egg as both a symbol and a creative aide.
Dorset Red Choir – for generous discussions around the complexities of freedom, bread and roses, and the strength of song in fostering collective creativity, vulnerability, and expression. Thank you also for raising your voices in songs of freedom in dialogue with From and To.
Thank you to the individuals from Bridport Rotary Club for inviting me to share the ideas informing From and To, and for your openness and willing participation—especially in the drawing activity. I hope you can spot the viewfinder motif inspired by our conversations.
Thank you to the local British Legion for sharing archives and generously hosting our workshop.
To Dorset History Centre, Dorset Museum and Art Gallery, Bridport Museum,West Bay Discovery Centre, Poorhouse Reading Rooms and Tolpuddle Martyrs Museum as sources of inspiration—and to the individuals I met at each who generously shared their insights.
To artist Jo Burlington, who led a series of workshops as the first stage of BAC’s Our Freedom: Then and Now project. Thank you, Jo, for your workshop collaborations, your vital support in engaging the youth club, and your generosity and thoughtfulness in sharing stories from your work— especially the freedom potato from your ASCape session. From and To would have been impossible without your input.
Thanks also to the many individuals who gave time and thought around ideas of freedoms, creativity and Dorset including Mayor of Bridport Councillor Anne Rickards, Rebecca at Liminal on South Street, Les Bishop, Barry Lovejoy and those who wish to be unnamed. Also to those who have supported the realisation of the project, including everyone at Bridport Art Centre especially Dee, Honor and Archie, Ben at Asset AV Events and Alexa, Patricia, Colin, Ianto and Fiadh. And to Prime Coppice in Marshwood Vale for the curtain sticks.
EVENTS:
Free Reading, Sat 18 Oct 10.30am – 1pm
An offsite event at the Poor House Reading Rooms — an archive and a space for reading, writing, and art publishing based in a former church poor house. In partnership with More Than Ponies, book here.
No Fail Drawing, Wed 22 Oct 1 – 3pm
A ‘no fail’ drawing session for adults with artist Jo Burlington, more info and book here.
Apples Session, Sat 25 Oct 1 -3pm
Bridport Community Orchard brings juice, juicing demos, and creative activities to the gallery, weaving together the deep connections of people, place, and creativity that flourish at the orchard. Drop in, all welcome, more info
Art Play, Wed 29 Oct 10 – 12pm
What do you want to be? What do you want people to see, or not see? What do you want to make? A making session with Jo Burlington from Oops Wow responding to the ‘From & To’ exhibition. For age 6+ more info and book here
Hip-hop Words, Wed 29 Oct 1.30 – 3pm
A young people’s creative writing workshop with Dorset-based rapper Isaiah Dreads, exploring personal storytelling through rap, poetry, and group collaboration. For age 12+ more info and book here
Freedom Songs by Dorset Red on Sat 1 Nov
Politically engaged choir Dorset Red performed as part of From and To watch here
Storylines Wed 5 Nov, 3.30 – 5.30pm
A playful, collaborative story-writing adventure workshop with The Bank of Dreams & Nightmares, empowering young imaginations to explore, question, and dream big through the power of words. For children aged 8+, more info and booking here.
Artist-in-conversation, Sat 8 Nov, 11am
Join artist Laura Eldret in conversation with curator Honor Beddard within the From and To exhibition at Bridport Art Centre’s Allsop Gallery, more info and booking here.
From and To at Bridport Art Cantre 2025 © Laura Eldret CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. IMAGES: From and To by Laura Eldret at Bridport Art Centre 2025. Photos by Jayne Jackson.
Exhibition typeface: Us by Laura Eldret in collaboration with children of Milford Academy and Fraser Muggeridge as part of Schools of Tomorrow, Nottingham Contemporary © CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 download here