St Margaret’s House’s 16th Artist in Residence, Janaury-March 2026.

Rebecca has collaborated with SMH in the past, through her Art Collective @women.ontheedge - but is now developing her own personal practice, as a solo artist, over the course of three months as a part of her residency.

She will explore and examine the hyper-local, as a source of artistic inspiration and fulfillment.

Blog Post: Looking, Listening, Making

The three month artist residency at St Margarets House has been a brilliantly timed creative adventure for me. I was already attached to Bethnal Green, living nearby and visiting often. The idea of making work about this area of the city really appealed to me. An opportunity to have access to a studio as I reduced my hours at work was also a precious gift.

My starting point was a poem ‘Bethnal Green’ by Nayma Chamchoun about a journey to a lost lover through the local streets. I began to explore different paths from Bethnal Green station to my studio. I love the ordinary and everyday beauty of the city; looking, listening, uncovering, noticing sounds and signs everywhere is a joy. There was so much to inspire me in this unique urban landscape.

Regular weekly meetings with Sam helped me to develop my artwork. Every time we meet we discussed new ideas and different approaches emerged. One of the most inspired ideas was bringing my studio desk and chair with all the artwork in progress on it, into the exhibition. I can’t wait to see how this will work in the space.

These conversations helped me to let go, lean into my creative enthusiasm, and get on with making; drawing, painting on fabric, taking photos, getting work printed, collaging and making a soundscape. I continued to wander round the local area looking and listening for inspiration.

During the residency I had the opportunity to try some of the workshops on offer at St Margarets House. ‘Word Play’ workshops fitted in perfectly to support my ideas. I loved these carefully curated sessions and the slow creative flow helped me to rebalance and reflect.

Most weeks I had so many ideas roaming round in my head, going to see art also helped me to focus my thoughts.

I went to three exhibitions that inspired and supported me during this residency. Firstly, the Australian artist Emily Kam Kngwarray whose immense beautiful batik hangings dominated the Tate Modern gallery space.

One of her pieces in particular ‘The Journey’ spoke to me and I kept a postcard of this work on my studio wall throughout my residency.

At Tracey Emin’s ‘A second life’ I finally got to see ‘My Bed’ (1998) live in the gallery. Emin’s expression of raw emotions and use of intense colours encouraged me to continue letting go and be more expressive.

Another exhibition I loved was ‘Threads of Life’ by Chiharu Shiota at the Hayward. The criss-cross of so many threads filling rooms and covering objects inspired me to think about the routes I was researching in a more three-dimensional way. I wondered how I might use threads to represent the intersections of the paths and journeys I was exploring to fill the Chapel exhibition space.

As the exhibition date moves nearer my doubts are emerging; will anyone come? If they do come will they find my work weird, irrelevant, or boring? Ultimately, does any of this matter anyway?

Despite these doubts I feel incredibly grateful to be part of this supportive creative community and to have had this affirming experience. I am aware that my route back to art-making has been long and circuitous but now I am here. I intend to make the most of what this residency has offered me, and keep moving on with gratitude on my chosen artistic desire path.

Please come along to my Exhibition & PV and sign up for the free workshop I’m running. All details here.https://www.stmargaretshouse.org.uk/events/routes-encounters