Mystery and making are coming to the streets of Bedminster and Southville this Christmas, as a troupe of elves pop up in unexpected places…
100 elves, decorated by primary school children and an artist, will be hidden in windows, trees and around the streets for people to find from Saturday 28 November. The Elf Takeover is coordinated by Bedminster Town Team, who have been working with us, artist Russ Henry of Hot Soup House and a local primary school to bring some locally made magic to the streets.
For two weeks in November our digital manufacturing space became a Santa’s workshop, with the cutting and sanding of 100 wooden elves.
Our team then supported 60 six year olds from St Peter’s CofE Primary School in Bishopsworth to design and decorate their own elves. The sessions were part of our new education programme for schools, Maker Lab in a Box, which offers opportunities for schoolchildren to experiment with digital manufacturing and new technologies, try out the latest making tools, and explore careers in the industry.
Artist Russ Henry designed 40 elves to complete the troupe.
The Elf Takeover is run by Bedminster Town Team and will feature four properties – The Elf and Safety Office, Elf Hotel, Santa’s Mailroom and the Elf Workshop – and each of the properties will be interactive, featuring voice activated experiences, lighting effects and falling snow. Several elves will be accompanied by ‘sElfie sticks’, so people can capture the moment.
To find out more about the Bedminster Elves visit their Facebook page.
For more details about making at KWMC contact Justin. For details of our schools’ programme contact Penny.
