Holly

Thought it was about time I introduced myself on here! My name is Holly Le Var and I am an artist, facilitator, designer, and print-maker based in the South-West of England. My work stems from a background in Spatial Practice, in which I utilise space as a vehicle and resource for engagement, performance and play. Over the last 5 years, I’ve been designing and leading workshops for young people as a means to explore emancipatory learning and educational reform; encouraging participants to care, respond to and build empathy with their collective landscapes. When I’m not facilitating, I go inwards and use etching, monotype, and trace-monotype print-making to foster more considered understandings of the people, meanings, and feelings I encounter. The two often act as a bit of a back and forth - one feeding the other. I find that abstracting my observations into ambiguous marks and shapes removes me from the biased first impression; it provides me with a moment to meditate or step back. I create small and large format work, which can sometimes shape-shift into printy objects and 3D things. Watch this space for more unfolding work! 📷: @tmrichardson95

The Johnstone Boathouse and Triptych Plywood and original monotype prints The Johnstone Boathouse is placed along Wallis Road, in Hackney Wick. All façades are dappled with layers of graffiti and for the last 10 years, the site has been in a state of disuse. My MArch enquiry explores how buildings such as these can be appropriated for longer term use, how they might be ‘plugged’, ‘propped’ and repaired over time, while maintaining the original vernacular. How might a 100 year old masonry wall be supported and better insulated? How might these adaptations offer playful educational uses inside the building, and improved street presence? I will also be looking at how the layers and forms of graffiti can be celebrated and mirrored in this framework. How might local and youth-driven art works form part of the enquiry? My experience working with children will also inform how this site is infiltrated and adapted for comfortable use, and potentially open up opportunities for co-design with local schools in later stages of development. Big thanks to the wonderful @csm_printmaking dept 🌞

Make, Build, Create — day two Day two is all about getting stuck in! Our young makers are crafting, building, and bringing their own mythical beast to life 🐉✨ Cardboard, imagination, and teamwork are shaping a creature for this afternoon’s exhibition — keep your eyes peeled for the final reveal! 👀 This project was supported by Clarion Homes and The Nisbet Trust. #StAnnesHouse #MakeBuildCreate #YouthArts #BristolArts #MythicalCreatures

Make, Build, Create — day one! A first look inside day one of our youth holiday club with Johnny Morgan-Jones and our Youth Producer Holly Le Var ✨ Hands busy, ideas flowing — exploring folklore, building characters, and shaping stories together 🛠️🌿 More to come… keep your eyes peeled for snapshots from day two and three 👀 This project was supported by Clarion Homes and The Nisbet Trust. #StAnnesHouse #MakeBuildCreate #YouthArts #BristolArts #CreativeYouth HolidayClub

Hop on board the No36 bus! Over the past six weeks, seven young people aged 14-16 have created their first ever zine (a handmade, self-published mini magazine)! Taking inspiration from travel frustrations, they told the story of what it’s like navigating Bristol as a teenager. Our final session took us to the brilliant @16tonne , where we RISO printed 150 copies of our zine. The team there kindly showed us how it all works, and we even got to have a go at folding and stapling a few! This project was led by Holly le Var (Youth Programme Producer at St Anne’s House) and artist Jo Chalkblack. Huge thanks to our wonderful volunteers Scarlet (@scarlets_art ) and Polly (@p0oart ) for keeping the sessions running smoothly, creatively and joyfully. Part of our ongoing Youth Programme at St Anne’s House, with this particular project made possible by Centre for Sustainable Energy. 👀 Watch this space for more about the zine!
For enquiries, or if you’d like more info, contact Holly via the St Anne’s House website (see bio). #bricksbristol #stanneshouse #supportlocal #bricksbristol #zine #risograph #youthprogramme #bs4youth #firstbus

W I L D P L A Y Forest of Imagination 2025 A workshop by Morgane Sha’ban and Holly le Var In the Forest at Entry Hill, you’ll find a temporary play space, which went through many shifting stages of being. It was co-created with local participants, who were invited to add, modify, and play with a wibbly collection of loose parts. All we asked was: what would you place on this forgotten land? Exploring their surrounding geographies, participants also gathered natural materials and tools to weave into their structures. Some of the creations included a soup maker, a swing for a ladybird, an ode to a fire anteater, a ship, and a telephone pole. Thanks to @forestofimagination And the wonderful @pennyhay5

Next week at Forest of Imagination, Entry Hill becomes a living play-space where YOU help build a giant puppet creature from stories, recycled materials & imagination. ✨ Join artists @le__var__studio & Morgie Shaban on site at Entry Hill to: Play. Build. Creature. Procession. Don’t miss it! 🌱 Step into Wild Play – inside the Creatures of the Anthropocene Workshop 🙌 At Entry Hill, Bath Family & Public Weekend: 27–28 September, 10am–5pm Forest of Imagination 2025 – Imagining the Future of the Forgotten Land ✨

As part of Forest of Imagination’s collaboration with Wokingham Council, we (@le__var__studio and @matthewleece ) planned, designed and delivered many many workshops in many many primary schools across the borough! Each session began with the question “What is the Forest of Imagination?”, letting the children’s ideas lead the way. This video captures one of those journeys with a group of Year 2 students over 5 sessions. Their theme became forest creatures, so we explored how these beings might see the world… using UV pens, vision goggles, and guided meditations to bring their imagined landscapes to life. They built costumes, props, and layered sets for a shadow puppet performance, using the OHP to explore colour, shape, and atmosphere. Every 30-second story was devised, choreographed, and performed by the children themselves. In our final workshop, we completed the film with a live soundtrack made from sticks, stones, and crazy voices (inspired by the field recordings and music of the one and only @cosmosheldrake )- make sure to turn the volume up to listen! Created during Feb, March and May 2025

✫ Welcome to the forest! ✫ This is your invitation to the darkest depths, crinkly corners, and layered lores of this particular forest (and perhaps others, too). It will lead you down quiet paths and into hidden clearings, where shadows shift and branches lean. Go slowly, pause often… notice what’s small, what’s strange, what’s easily missed. Will you find things that wriggle? Things that buzz? Along the way, you’ll discover gentle prompts: to draw, to collect, or to simply observe. A whimsical map made for @forestofimagination @wokinghamboroughcouncil to be shared among families and children during a 4 day event at @dintonpasturescp A3 double sided / Monochrome

"I've never done anything quite like it before, and it was so much fun to just experiment" – Young Attendee 🌻 This week at St Anne’s House, young creatives from Brislington joined artists Holly le Var & Esme (Melo) Murals for Make, Build, Create – a 3-day burst of colour, curiosity, and connection! They finished by curating their own exhibition and guiding visitors through their creative journeys exploring the statement "Everyone Is An Artist". 🌟 Want to be first to hear about free youth activities like this? Sign up to our newsletter via the link in bio for our upcoming Summer Programme. ✨ #StAnnesHouse #YouthSessions #CreativeYouth #ThingsForYoungPeopleToDo #MakeBuildCreate #EveryoneIsAnArtist #SAH

Welcome Bricks new team member Holly le Var as the Youth Programme Producer for St Anne’s House! Holly works across the youth activities for St Anne’s House, from our weekly open access sessions, to project based holiday programming. Holly has a background in Spatial Practice, where she explored how we can better provide for the arts in our communities. She’s interested in how third place provision can offer a contrast to the national curriculum, and how varied environments outside of school exploring creativity can cultivate more flexible, adaptable, emotionally literate, and resilient young people. Holly is a print-maker and illustrator by trade, and likes to bring these mediums into conversations and workshops she produces. Get in touch with [email protected] for connecting, partnering, or any questions around our youth programme in St Annes, Bristol. Check out her art account 👉 @le__var__studio #StAnnesHouse #YouthProgramme #StAnnes

Back in June, I had an absolute blast creating wibbly symbols for the banners and leaflets of our entirely student-led MArch Showcase @csm_architecture_march in collaboration with @sallyclapp_design , the print/publication team and MArch cohort! Image 1: A3 trifold double-sided leaflet for showcase Image 2: Photo of leaflets in situ by Henri T @henritartist Thanks to: @csm_architecture_march @csm_printmaking @csm_news June 2024