WOUND & WOVEN MAYPOLE

Commissioned by Milton Keyne’s Council Culture Team for Midsummer Festival, June 2026

Temporarily sited on Midsummer Boulevard, Central Milton Keynes.

Pine and marine ply, discarded ribbons and fabric from NW factories, handmade tassels by public, 4.7m x 1.5m (Tower), 6 coloured baskets, willow, ribbon, trimming, yarn, 1m x 80cm.

The Wound and Woven Maypole was a bold, celebratory and colourful interactive sculpture installation at the heart of the Midsummer Festival, Milton Keynes. Combining the restorative and celebratory processes of weaving and tassel making, festival goers were able to help build the sculpture and installation throughout the day, as well as learning new techniques at the creative stations around and under the artwork.

The Maypole Tower (4.7m tall) was a wood weighted tower structure with upright poles to create the warp, into which members of the public wove the walls with ribbons and cut strips of recycled fabric to create a multicoloured and textured maypole sculpture, selecting fabrics from handwoven willow baskets. There were Tassel making stations around and underneath the sculpture where participants could make their own tassels to attach to the ropes and ribbons above.

Below images credit: Chris Henley and Milton Keynes Council