Interactive sustainability and upcycling workshops delivered at Colchester's annual Rice & Spice Festival — open to all ages and free to attend.
The Rice & Spice Festival is one of Colchester's most vibrant community celebrations, bringing together thousands of visitors from across the region. Ife has delivered hands-on creative workshops at the festival in both 2024 and 2025, making sustainable art-making accessible to a broad and diverse audience.
Workshop participants — from young children to grandparents — worked with reclaimed and donated materials to create small sculptural pieces they could take home. The sessions were deliberately informal and welcoming, designed to lower the barrier to creative participation.
The festival workshops serve as an important outreach activity, introducing new audiences to Ife's broader practice and demonstrating that sustainable creativity is something anyone can engage with — regardless of experience, age, or background.
My kids made something from 'rubbish' and they were so proud. That's exactly what this kind of workshop does.— Festival visitor, 2025