Say hello to our amazing new benches!

Sculptor Gary March has been chain-sawing, sanding, polishing and varnishing our spectacular benches over the last couple of weeks. So if you've been watching them take shape below the underpass, now you can head into the meadow for the full bench experience. Gary put all three benches in place a couple of days ago, and they look INCREDIBLE.

The official unveiling will happen at the daffodil bulb-planting on Saturday 17 September. So come along and get acquainted with our beautiful, one-of-a-kind benches - and you might even get your photo in the paper too!

Almost there!

The incredible Gary March has almost finished carving our equally incredible benches! Take a look at his almost-finished masterpieces!

Bench building with Gary March - Sunday 14 August

If you've been by the meadow in the last week or so, you'll have seen sculptor Gary March turning some local Ash logs into a set of beautiful, one-off benches for us. And on Sunday, we can help put the finishing touches on them, and start getting ready to put them in place.

So come to the meadow anytime from 12pm - 5pm on Sunday 14 August to get a carving lesson from Gary, and help make the meadow even more amazing!

And now on a more political note, the last week has seen the looting of London's communities - not least of all in Hackney. But while it only takes a small few to destroy, it takes an equally small (but much more powerful) few to build up our neighbourhoods and make them stronger and more cohesive, so that the riots never happen here again.

The meadow has always been about improving Hackney for the people who live here. But the last week proves that every action that we take to make our area better and our community more connected can be more than a good deed. It can be a highly political act too.

So whether you like sculpture, wildflowers, green spaces or just getting stuck in, come along on Sunday to prove that the positives in our area will always overcome the negatives. And we can all make a difference in our neighbourhood.

Our soon-to-be benches have arrived!

If you've taken a wander below the flyover next to Mabley Meadow lately, you might have spied two gigantic logs. But these aren't just any logs - they're sculptures in the making. Yes, over the next two weeks, sculptor Gary March will be carving them into incredible, one-of-a-kind benches for us. He'll be working on them below the flyover, so feel free to stop by and say hi. And if you come along on the August 14th, you can help him put the finishing touches on them before we install them among our wildflowers together.

Free all-ages carving workshop - 12pm, Saturday June 18

In August, the amazing Gary March will be sculpting a set of three unique benches for us. But before he gets started, he'll be teaching the carving basics in a free workshop on the meadow (or below the flyover if it's raining).

As we'll all be beginners, we'll be carving in soap rather than wood. And Gary's had loads of experience teaching sculpture newbies, so we'll all be in good (and very patient) hands.

Organised by muf art+architecture, the workshop will run from midday - for more details, take a look at their flyer below.

Meet the amazing Gary!

Everyone, say hello to Gary! As well as being an an unbelievably nice guy, Gary is also an expert wood and stone sculptor. AND he's agreed to create some hand-carved benches for the meadow this summer.

Gary carves his benches using logs from trees felled in Hackney's parks for safety reasons, and usually carves them in his workshop in Haggerston Park. But he'll be mixing things up a little for us.

First, he's agreed carve our benches on site (either on the meadow or below the flyover) so we can see watch him as he works, and even have a go ourselves.

Second, he might be able to get hold of some oak from further afield - which would mean our benches would last forever, and be extra special too.

Here's a question for you:
Gary will be carving two or three benches for us. So where do you think they should go? Leave your answers in the comments...

Gary will start carving in June or July (depending on when he can get the logs), so keep an eye on the blog for more details soon. And keep an eye on the meadow for beautiful new benches too!