A celebration of cotton mills...

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To celebrate Gongoozler Fest and the town's status of Greater Manchester Town of Culture, artist Rachael Elwell is working with the local community to create a knitted installation which celebrates the town's rich industrial heritage in the production of cotton textiles.

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Since the first purpose-built cotton mill was constructed in 1776 (Soot-Poke), 40 further cotton mills were built in Stalybridge, making the town one of the most prolific centres for the manufacture of woolen cloth in Greater Manchester.

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Rachael's celebratory sculpture will feature the waterwheel as a symbol of power; water-power was a vital source of energy and economic power as Stalybridge developed into a successful mill town from the early years of the industrial period.

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To acknowledge the production of woollen textiles in Stalybridge, Rachael's Waterwheel Sculpture will be hand knitted, and feature a knitted mill design and the names of the 41 named cotton mills that were built in the town.

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Rachael is looking to recruit knitters of all ages and abilities to help her construct the installation by knitting colourful strips of knitting to be included in the installation.  

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People of all abilities will be able to contribute, if you are eager to learn to knit or want to improve your skills, there are several knitting workshops taking place at Astley Cheetham Art Gallery, Stalybridge, between 10.30am and 2pm on Saturday 30th July and Saturday 20th August, and at Stalybridge Library on 27th August.

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This project is organised by Tameside Cultural Services, part of Tameside Council and funded through Greater Manchester Town of Culture.

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Download patterns and find out more about how to join in here: https://www.rachaelelwell.com/knittedwaterwheel

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The sculptures will be on public view during the weekend of the 9th, 10 and 11th September at Gongoozler Fest in Armentieres Square, with a view to displaying the sculpture at Stalybridge Civic Hall