Caroline Walker opens art pod for West Fife nursery

The latest addition to Little Bugs Outdoor Nursery at Fordell Firs, near Hillend, is a Hully Pod to inspire creativity among their young learners.

It was donated by renowned Dunfermline artist, Caroline Walker, whose Nurture exhibition drew inspiration partly from the nursery.

She joined nursery staff and children yesterday (Tuesday) to officially open the pod.

Louise Licznerski, founder at Little Bugs Nursery, told the Press: “Something that was really important to us was that the children would be able to access it, so we need to have a free flow space.

“Even though they’re inside, they still feel the elements of the outside as well, so that’s why we kind of put in the glass front, which was a wee bit more costly and logistically difficult, but we managed.”

She added that the children have been “so so excited” about the art pod.

Caroline Walker opening the pod with some of the kids, as well as Louise Licznerski and Rosslyn Mullin. (Image: David Wardle)“When funding gets tight, they pull all these what’s deemed as ‘extracurricular things’, but actually, art and expression is so important.

“Even just the beauty of having literacy and numeracy through art is something that’s incredible,” Louise said.

The nursery can take up to 52 children a day and they currently have 200 on their books, who will all get to benefit from the space.

“It’s a bit of a legacy project, that’ll be here forevermore,” Louise commented.

Caroline herself became interested in art as a young child, and went on to study at the Glasgow School of Art and the Royal College of Art in London.

She said at the opening of the pod: “As a child, I was always mad for drawing and painting and then I went to art school so that kind of set me off on my path.

Children enjoying getting to use the pod for the first time. (Image: David Wardle)“My work’s always about women and about women’s work and work that might be invisible.

“The kind of work that’s happening in a nursery is a really great example of that because it’s such a female dominated job, but it’s something that you tend not to know what’s happening in a nursery.

“You drop your kids off and then you go off and do your own work for the day.”

Caroline’s Nurture exhibition at Ingleby Gallery in Edinburgh is made up of oil sketches, ink drawings, and oil paintings which show the women she has encountered, including the nursery teachers.

Speaking of the pod, she commented: “It’s fantastic! It looks so nice and clean at the moment. It’s going to get covered in mud like everything else here!

“It’s a nice space to think of the kids having somewhere to go and make art, they can be warm and dry.”