蜜芽传媒

Luke Jerram creates spectacular art installations all over the world. He reached millions of people with his work 鈥楶lay Me, I鈥檓 Yours鈥�, inviting anyone to make music on the 2,000 pianos he鈥檇 placed on the streets of more than 70 cities. He鈥檚 also created large sculptures of the moon, the planet Mars and the sun, which were suspended in spaces like cathedrals so that visitors could admire the celestial bodies up close.
For In the Studio Julian May follows the creation of the artist鈥檚 latest work, made for Bradford, this year鈥檚 UK City of Culture. 鈥淎 Good Yarn鈥� plays on the double meaning of the word 鈥測arn鈥� 鈥� both a length of thread and a story. It looks like a giant multi-coloured ball of wool, 3 metres high, which will be rolled through the city鈥檚 streets.
During the Industrial Revolution Bradford became the centre of the woollen industry. By 1836 there were 73 mills in Bradford, creating 70,000 jobs, drawing people to work in the city first from Ireland and Germany and, in the 1960s, from Pakistan.
Luke Jerram is a collaborative artist and Bradford residents have worked together to create a kilometre-long rope, made from woollen fabric donated by the public or from second-hand shops. It鈥檚 made up of all kinds of cloth 鈥� children鈥檚 bedsheets, men鈥檚 old shirts, saris, a ballet tutu 鈥� so the rope mirrors the intertwined lives of local people. As the work takes shape, the theatre company Bloomin鈥� Buds gather the volunteers鈥� textile-related memories, including from women who worked in the mills. Musicians The Broken Orchestra have been weaving these into a soundscape.
In the programme Julian May follows Luke Jerram from his initial idea through the winding of the rope into a huge ball and rolling it - accompanied by local musicians - through the streets where the people who contributed the fabric - and their stories - live.