Hammer and Sky Studios

Calling all Handy Persons! Announcing the Hammer and Sky Work Exchange Program - Do you know a Handyman or woman that wants to stay on beautiful Brier Island at the Hammer and Sky Residency for free in exchange for 21 hrs per week? We will design a work program that works around your skill set. We supply all the tools and materials. Come with your basic skills and we’ll teach you or maybe you’ll teach us! We need maintenance, painting, gardening, trail clearing, bell ringi...ng etc The Hammer and Sky Artist Residency is an artist residency that comprises a 170-year-old heritage church, a garage with loft and a 2-bedroom house. What we need: Painting, basic construction, gardening, general maintenance, trail maintenance. Timing: mid-May to October. What we offer: Stay in the Buckman House Artist Residence for up to 14 days: You get one bedroom with queen bed and private bathroom. The Buckman House is a restored house with 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, kitchen, living room and woodstove. E-mail John at [email protected] with a brief description of what you can do and when you’d be available. See more

The night view of the church.

The Church - then and now. In 2016, we bought the Westport United Baptist Church with the idea of restoring it and eventually using it as an artist space. It needed a lot of TLC, but it seemed do-able and probably simpler than some of our previous projects (long story - for later). Despite the challenges posed by COVID, everything worked out pretty well because we were able to focus on the restoration while not being distracted by the coming and going of artists. Here's a ...partial list of some of the major work that we've done since 2016: - Replaced the roof - installed plumbing and heating - installed a ladder for easy access to the peak of the steeple. - Insulated the floor and the ceiling - stripped, restored and repainted the exterior - Built a garage and an addition on back of the church There are a million of other things we did, which have been forgotten over the last 5 years... The top photo shows the church with newly restored doors (from a convent in Quebec city) - click on the photo to see the whole image. Bottom left photo is with removable storm doors in place. Bottom right photo is from 2018. We're proud of the work we've done so far and we're excited to get to the next phase which will be to invite lots of artists to Brier Island. John & Jane See more