FEN BOXES – Karen Avilez
About the project
Creative Fenland are delighted to be supporting March-based artist Karen Avilez in delivering her Arts Council England funded project Fen Boxes. Inspired by the Retablos of Peru—traditional wooden boxes that showcase stunning, miniature scenes from everyday life—Fen Boxes invites participants to design and create their own unique dioramas, reflecting the cultural richness of our community. Whether it’s a depiction of a local festival, the beauty of Fenland’s landscapes, or a moment of people’s lives.
About the artist
Born in Peru, Karen settled in Fenland in 2019. She has been a regular arts tutor for Creative Fenland courses, and as a visual artist her work mainly focuses on cyanotype working with nature as inspiration. Fen Boxes is a wonderful opportunity for Karen to explore how art can tell stories and preserve cultural heritage, create a new creative community in March and share her own skills and techniques using Ritablos as inspiration.
How to take part
Karen will be occupying an empty shop in Broad Street, March until April 2025 and transforming it to a treasure trove of stories from the people of March and beyond into Fenland. She will be offering a series of workshops decorating Fen Boxes, creating air-clay tableau, and magical dioramas creating intrigue and curiosity for March residents and a new kind of experience on the High Street. The workshops are open to all and no experience necessary.
For more information and to sign up for a free workshop please visit the Fen Boxes website
