Sustainable Art: Reasons to be wild T
his month, we spoke to Molly Crookshank, who is one of the three sisters of Reasons to be Wild. Reasons to be Wild are dedicated to raising awareness of British wildlife through art and engagement.
What inspired you to start Reasons to be Wild? I was studying wildlife conservation at university and realised how many positive projects there are everywhere that people might not be aware of. This, combined with Emily’s impressive artistic talents – especially with charcoal, made us realise we could make a difference and bring awareness to some of these projects. If we could also help people discover and get involved with wildlife projects on their doorstep, no matter where they live, then this would be another bonus. Why is raising awareness about British wildlife so important to you? It’s so important because not only does it help save and restore some wonderful habitats and species, but we feel that encouraging people into nature is fantastic for mental wellbeing as well. What is it like working with your sisters? How do you separate your personal lives and the business? We were very close before starting Reasons to be Wild, so it’s been great building this together and has even brought us closer which is lovely. Yes, we’ve had some heated discussions about some things, but the joy of being family is that you can move on very quickly. How do you ensure your art is always sustainable? We take our time before we do anything to make sure it’s sustainable. We don’t just read the label, we ask the company and we do our research. We’ve made sure that all the packaging materials we use to as possible. It took us over four months of research and we will always look to improve it. What is your favourite piece you’ve made/sold so far? That is a hard question as I think we would all choose a different piece. They are all impressive in their own way and the journey in their creation, and the projects each one supports resonates differently with each of the pieces so far and has been very popular so maybe the current favourite, but if you asked the others, I’m sure they’d tell you something different.
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We’ve had so much joy from nature through our childhoods and our adult lives that we want to make sure these wonderful plants and animals are still around for future generations to enjoy.
Is there anything right now you want to continue the voice on? One of the projects we support is The Conservation to create healthier and happier communities by connecting people with green spaces. It’s such a great group and offers so many opportunities for people to get involved, helping not only with conservation in their local areas but themselves and their mental health through the community it creates. This issue is all about conservation, what does conservation mean to you? Conservation means everything to us, we have always spent a lot of time outside surrounded by nature, so we feel very strongly about helping to conserve the precious places and species. We’ve had so much joy from nature through our childhoods and our adult lives that we want to make sure these wonderful plants and animals are still around for future generations to enjoy.
@reasonstobewild
website and also social media
Interview by Kirsty Taylor
