Thought it was about time I shared my love for the little things on here! I am a miniature intervention artist, which is just a fancy way of saying I set up teeny tiny little scenes in public space- photograph them, then leave them there. As far as miniature urban artists go, there aren’t a lot but to name a few; Slinkachu, Sprinkle Brigade (who do genius things with dog poo) and Charles Simonds and his work on “Dwellings” (who has been developing a narrative for “the little people” since 1970.) I think I’ve always had an interest in little things, For me it was dolls houses and tiny furniture. I remember going to a Wallace and Grommit exhibition about six or seven year ago and just being so absolutely content studying all the tiny rooms, props and food. The detail just absolutely swept me up and took me into a very happy place. I looked into the nature of “miniature” on my degree and I guess wasn’t surprised when I read and discovered that imagining yourself there inside that tiny detailed dolls house is a form of escapism, and there are great children’s stories out there that execute this brilliantly. So my love for the miniature is ever growing- as of late Hotch Potch are working on a new show called “Café Petite”. It explores the notion of the tall and the small through Celtic and Cornish folklore-whilst we serve people tiny tea and cakes. Ross- the other half of Hotch Potch used to work as a Chef and is a pretty awesome stilt performer. A couple of years ago we started dreaming up ways to combine our practices and one was Café Petite- a performative dining experience serving miniature food. We started experimenting and invited friends round for miniature roast dinners. We didn’t know it at the time but we were not only creating exciting novelty food but a new way to enjoy food. To appreciate the small….take your time….take it in. To encourage mindfulness and to celebrate quality over quantity. We are big foodies and we are pretty excited about all the changes that are taking place with regards to produce and sustainability at the minute but are also saddened by the problems with obesity and other health related illnesses our culture has. Café Petite is our way of communicating a new way of appreciating not only our food but everything. Take time to look at a tiny spider make its web, and how an Ant colony works. Its incredible, don’t over look it. After all we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for all the tiny bugs and bees. So Café Petite is our thank you to the little things that make the world go round…we do see you and we thank you.
For my mice- sorry I don’t get you out of your cage more often to play. You have my word I will make a maze for you soon.
Laura 🙂
Cornwall Street Theatre 