Collection Conversations - Ellie Conway (née Thompson) & Sam Heath

Collection Conversations are back for 2026! ️ ️ Join in our exciting series of free art talks at Chippenham Museum, where artists from our Modern and Contemporary Art collection will talk about their work, providing insights into their inspiration and practice. This will be followed by an opportunity to ask questions, with the audience encouraged to join the conversation. In November’s installment of our free art talk series, we will be joined by Ellie Thompson and Sam Heath. Ellie Thompson is an artist practicing in the South-West. Thompson’s interest in schadenfreude, anatomy and a cartoonish sense of humour informs each of her soft sculptures. Her puppet-like characters are at once extinct and alive, forever stuck in a sticky situation. Though motionless, Thompson’s skeletons are animated by their all-seeing yet unknowing eyes. Sam Heath studied at Camberwell College of Arts and Cardiff School of Art and Design. Following a three-year residency at Leighton Park School in Reading, he has continued to teach drawing and printmaking in schools and colleges, alongside exhibiting and curating shows in London and the South West. Regular drawing from life is an essential activity that informs Heath's practice. He repeatedly depicts the same familiar subjects, particularly his immediate family and friends. 📅 Saturday 14 November 🕒 2.00pm - 3.30pm 🎟️ Free, booking essential Image captions: Left image: My Finest Hour, 2024, Ellie Thompson, felt fabric and wire Right image: Sophie at The Three Crowns, 2017, Sam Heath, monotype