This workshop will give participants the opportunity to make their own natural material from milk. The material will be handmade from scratch, and then worked into samples and small decorative objects using a variety of hand-moulding techniques and tools. Participants will experiment with pigments and dyes to achieve various colour combinations. Inspiration for the workshop is taken from designer Tessa Silva’s latest project, ‘Chalk & Cheese’, whereby surplus milk from the UK dairy industry is sourced to produce a material similar to clay. Please note that any pieces produced during the workshop will need to be cured (similarly to ceramic firing process) and therefore participants cannot take anything away with them on the day. The pieces will be packaged and ready to collect from Store Store the following week. 

Tessa Silva-Dawson is a process-lead designer maker based in London, graduated from the MA Design Products course at the Royal College of Art. Projects are born from an ongoing fascination in our material culture, throughout the past, present, and into the future. The work is often intended as a catalyst for discourse - shifting perceptions of the material world and stimulating the creative exploration of the weird and wonderful resources available. Her ongoing project, Protein, is an investigation into the use of milk proteins as a natural material for the handcrafted production of objects.

This workshop is open to a maximum of 10 participants (age 12+). Attendance at the workshop costs £40 (£30 students) with all proceeds supporting the STORE's After school club for local state school students.