Well Dressing is the art of decorating wells, springs and other water sources with pictures created using natural materials such as petals, berries and clay. It is a community tradition that started in Derbyshire and still thrives today. The majority of well dressings take place during the Summer months. On completion, the Well Dressing is blessed in a special outdoor ceremony and erected in a public place – usually by a church or well – where it is displayed for up to a week or until it fades.

Between 2012-2015, Limestone Journeys and Junction Arts supported eight Well Dressing groups in the Limestone Journeys scheme area of North East Derbyshire to come together to skill share and promote their activities through the creation of a leaflet, an exhibition of photography, and have-a-go sessions at community events. Now that the Limestone Journeys programme has completed, the leaflet is funded by an annual subscription from each group (with additional match funding from other organisations e.g. a Bolsover Rotary grant in 2016) and organised by Greg Lindley from Clowne in Bloom (Clowne Community Association). It includes a map, an introduction to Well Dressing, and a diary showing the location, construction and display dates of each Well Dressing, starting with Elmton with Creswell in June.

Well Dressing groups are happy to gain new members, so please contact the individual groups (details in the leaflet) if you would like to get involved – or you could simply drop in to see a Well Dressing being made.

Full leaflet for 2016: Well_Dressing_leaflet_2016_(10)

Published by limestonejourneys

View all posts by limestonejourneys