About 

Ruth Philo

Concept

Pasture is an artist-led project space run by painter Ruth Philo, based at Braybrooks, an old dairy in Ballingdon, next to the ancient water meadows in Sudbury, Suffolk.  Pasture offers a space for artists, musicians, writers and other creatives to come and think, make work and immerse themselves in the surrounding landscape. Set in the Stour Valley, historically inspirational to artists such as Thomas Gainsborough, John Constable, Cedric Morris, Lett Haines and John Nash, the aim being to nurture and inspire work by creative people responding to the local, social and political landscape of today.

​Currently Pasture is running a series of test residencies in order to inform a well organised offer in its residency programme, after which there will be an open call to artists.  So far artists Lizzy Langford, Sarah Needham, Anna Lukala, Justin Hopper and Ruth Calland have undertaken test residencies, to help refine the ideas and practicalities. Sign up to the newsletter to hear more.

Place

Sudbury,  a historic market town famous for its silk industry and with its fair share of independent bakers, brewers, artists, artisans and crafts people, is 1 hour and 20 minutes from London by train. Access to the countryside is easy on foot or by using a kayak or cycle that are available.

Space

Braybrooks, originally a shop built c.1820, was part of an old dairy complex. It has now been restored as a house, comprising a large kitchen (formerly the shop), sitting room, bedrooms, bathrooms, studio, milk room, garden and cartway. There is sleeping capacity for 6 people. Residents will have their own bedroom and bathroom together with a creative studio space.

Studio

The studio is a large space on the second floor over the cartway, originally used for milk storage and production. It can be used for creative work and has a painting wall, table, studio equipment and internet.

Milk Room

A separate small ground floor shed space adjoining the cartway that can also be used as a studio space, with a desk, painting wall and internet.

Garden

​There is a small walled garden with mainly edible plants and herbs that works as an outdoor room, with space to cook, eat, work and socialise.

Host

Ruth is a painter, her work explores abstraction through colour, light and surface, often emerging from experiences of place and walking. Paintings combine inner and outer worlds and conscious and unconscious elements, to convey a sensory experience alongside the materiality of paint and process. She also works on projects including a podcast A Geography of Colour where she talks with painters about their relationshipswith colour, you  can find it in your podcast browser.

​Ruth Philo | The River Runs Through Us | Fabric: Silk Road | We Are The Weather