Nadine Anderson
It is 29 years since I wove my first willow basket, a rather strawberry shaped affair, but still it gripped me becoming my obsessive hobby and gradually full-time self-employment. Weekend courses and self-teaching from books led me to study in London for my City and Guilds in Creative Basketry, 2002-2004, with inspirational tutors including Mary Butcher, Olivia Elton Barratt. I am eternally grateful for their generous input and opening my eyes to the many materials and forms of Basketry.
I have served as course coordinator for The Basketmakers’ Association committee, am an active member of Cambridge Open Studios and became a Yeoman Basketmaker to The Worshipful Company of Basketmakers in 2017. I wrote a chapter for the Rush Book “Weaving with Eight Makers” and have taught many workshops over the years. I have woven props for films and created two full sized green men costumes in Rush for The Lord Mayor’s Show.
Currently my work is mostly traditional in technique, with functionality at its heart, often with a nod to vernacular baskets of The Cambridgeshire Fens; willow Eel Traps, Oval Potato baskets and plaited Rush or Flag Iris Docky Bags. I grow my own willow and harvest the wild freshwater Rush in waterways around Ely; this small-scale domestic practice is especially important to me and the integrity of my work. I hope the baskets tread lightly on this earth and bring joy to those that choose to own them.
