Thursday 28 August 2025: BAMBOO in the Brownfield Parklet.
Get Ready for a Thrilling Day at the Brilliant Bamboo Parklet in Stoke! Event Info: Thursday 28 August 2025 11.30am – 3pm Live Performance of BAMBOO: 1:30pm Location: Land off Boothen Road, Stoke, ST4 4AH We’re teaming up with our incredible friends NoFit State Circus to bring you BAMBOO — a spectacular high impact, high-skill […]
Saturday 9 August: Brownfield Parklet Open Day and Brilliant Bamboo Birthday Party!
Join us for a vibrant, fun-filled celebration as Brilliant Bamboo turns TWO! Saturday 9 August 2025 12pm – 3pm 📍 Bamboo Parklet, Land off Boothen Road, Stoke Town, ST4 4AH Bring your family, bring your friends – and get ready to be wowed by the power of bamboo! Discover how this incredible plant is transforming lives, inspiring creativity, and […]
Friday 8 August 2025: Pop Up Park Newcastle-under-Lyme
Join the Brilliant Bamboo artist team, Chloe Rickett and Francesca Wheeler, at Newcastle Business Improvement District’s pop-up park in the centre of town. You can expect den and structure making in a relaxed atmosphere throughout the day, drop-in at any time and suitable for all ages. Friday 8 August 2025 11am – 3pm Pop-Up Park, […]
Brilliant Bamboo secures brownfield site in Stoke for pioneering parklet
Press Release by Hannah Hiles for Brilliant Bamboo. A Stoke-on-Trent-based bamboo project has found a home on a disused patch of concrete in a supermarket car park where a major pottery factory once stood. Brilliant Bamboo, led by Gemma Thomas, has signed a 10-year lease on an approximately one-acre plot on the edge of Sainsbury’s […]
Brilliant Botanicals: Public art rooted in place, sustainability and story
Brilliant Botanicals is a public art project from Brilliant Bamboo that brings two striking new murals to Stoke-on-Trent, honouring the city’s ceramic history while exploring the creative, sustainable possibilities of bamboo. Artists Rob Fenton and Reiko Kaneko created two different but visually connected designs, working closely throughout with Brilliant Bamboo director Gemma Thomas, from setting […]
Brilliant Botanicals: Inspiration and Approach
Springtime 2025, we entered a fantastic time where projects in our imagination began to become a reality. We collaborated with two artists with experience and expertise in their existing work to create something magical for Stoke, the town, and the city. Each of the artists had their approach to the brief, and that’s what this […]
Brilliant Bamboo’s Journey of Discovery with Local Artists and Makers
Blog by Sally Malkin In today’s fast-paced world, where few have the time to pause and reflect, it was a true privilege to gather a small group of local artists and makers to explore and experiment with bamboo. There’s something deeply grounding about working with your hands—especially with a material as humble and unpredictable as […]
Four weeks with YMCA Go getting “stuck in”
Every Tuesday evening in June, artists and makers we work with and collaborate have worked with the young people visiting YMCA through the YMCA Go project. Below is the YMCA team and young people thought about the sessions. Thank you! “Brilliant Bamboo have held four workshops with the young people visiting North Staffordshire’s YMCA, within which […]
UK Bamboo Summit 2025 in Stoke-on-Trent
Brilliant Bamboo and Imagine Bamboo Creative Director, Orit Azaz, alongside the Bamboo in the UK Group partners are working to develop the fifth UK Bamboo Summit in Stoke-on-Trent on Friday 10 October 2025, 10am – 5pm at the Jubilee Room, Kings Hall, Stoke-on-Trent (5 minute walk from Stoke-on-Trent railway station). At the UK Bamboo Summit, […]
How an Email About Bamboo Changed My Life
Blog by Sally Malkin. Back at Easter in 2022, I received an email from an arts programme I’d previously worked with. They were asking if I’d be interested in project managing a new project based on bamboo. At the time, I was recovering from the challenges of COVID and dealing with personal loss and grateful […]