On A Piece Of Chalk
Public Art Commission – Fanshawe Road, Cambridge
Resonance–Cambridge is a new public art commission for Fanshawe Road, created as part of the new homes being developed by Cambridge Investment Partnership (CIP).
We have been commissioned to create permanent public artwork for a site to the south-east of Cambridge city centre. Formerly part of a post-war housing development built in the 1950s, Fanshawe Road is now being reimagined as a neighbourhood shaped by connection, landscape, and shared experience.
The new development introduces a central green space at its heart - a rich, biodiverse environment that strengthens pedestrian and cycle links to Coleridge Recreation Ground and the wider city.
Our work grows out of an engagement programme that uses artistic processes such as drawing, ink-making, and three-dimensional sculpture. These sessions will inform the creation of permanent artwork rooted in the site’s chalk soil, its geological history, and the flora and fauna that flourish above it. The engagement programme will be developed and delivered in collaboration with Abi Wheeler.
Through this work we ask:
What makes a place unique?
And can soil hold a memory?
To find out how you can take part in the creative programme and help shape the public artwork, visit our
News and Events pages for information about upcoming workshops and meetings.
Get in touch
We’re always interested to hear of new projects and collaborations, so feel free to contact us.
A Drawing Walk
‘ In Every Piece of Land, The Soil Has A Memory
Drawing from observation and imagination. These works feed into a record of the land and will help shape the public artworks planned for the new homes on Fanshawe Road.
Inspired by the work of Alberto and AnnaRita Ponis and the Land Lines workshop with Kirsty Badenoch at Drawing Matter, our sessions traced alternative ways of seeing, mapping, and connecting with place.
We began our engagement programme with a drawing walk through the streets and gardens of Cherry Hinton, uncovering the hidden patterns of its ecology and natural history. Along the way, we explored familiar landscapes through fresh eyes, using a range of experimental techniques and creating drawings that capture both observation and imagination. These works feed into a record of the land and will help shape the public artworks planned for the new homes on Fanshawe Road.
Workshop
Chalk Landscapes
Join us for a playful, hands-on exploration of the chalk landscapes of Cherry Hinton.
Local historian Michelle Bullivant will share Grounded in Chalk: Roots, Quarries and Growth in Cherry Hinton, an illustrated talk exploring how Cherry Hinton’s chalk landscape has shaped its people, its quarries, and its growth into new suburban areas.
From ancient geology and dramatic chalk pits to orchards, market gardening, and modern developments, discover the landscape story beneath the village, and how it continues to evolve today.
Together, we’ll delve into the geological story of chalk: how it formed, its unique properties, and what it looks like under a microscope. We’ll explore deep time, the composition of chalk, and the hidden layers beneath our feet in this remarkable local landscape.
Using chalk sourced from the area, we’ll experiment with making paints, forms, and small sculptures as we uncover the world beneath us.
To learn more and book your free place via Eventbrite, click here.
