AN art gallery is set to pop up in a very unusual location.

Machynlleth Housing Co-operative will be turning the bike shelter in their garden into a pop-up art gallery for the weekend of Friday, 21 May to Sunday, 21 to 23 May.

Eleven local artists will showcase creative work they have produced during the pandemic under the exhibition the name of There Are Things We Did In Lockdown.

Mim Davies, exhibition organiser and artist, feels the pandemic has made her see the places immediately around her as resources, rather than things she walks past to get somewhere else.

“The bike shelter has acted as an outdoor café, cinema and bar during the periods when we’ve been allowed to have guests in the garden,” she says.

“Turning it into an art gallery seemed like the logical next step.”

Mim will be showing a piece based on screenshots of internet dating app profiles that she’s taken during the past year.

Penny Tristram, a local illustrator, will be showing pieces of embroidery which will be available to buy.

“One silver lining that occurred from the coronavirus pandemic was a space for intense focus on traditional skills,” Penny says.

“The frantic pace of our ‘normal’ lives, and the resultant fear of missing out, simply doesn’t allow the uninterrupted concentration needed to develop certain arts and craft skills.

“So the downtime, provided by lockdown, has prompted a surge in interest in craft and making.

“As a result, many practitioners have used this quiet time to take their skills to a new level.

“I’m proud to exhibit with this group of artists and makers and hope that art-lovers will join us to find out what we did in lockdown.”

Collage artist Beth Maiden agrees that lockdowns have had an effect on her creative practice.

“Many of us were forced to change our routines and rethink how we spend our time,” she says.

“For me, those suddenly empty weekends made space for weekly art practice, something I would never have fit in before.

“I can’t believe I’ve maintained that commitment for a whole year! I hope I never stop.”

Other exhibiting local artists include Gráinne Murphy, Bethan Roberts, Lailac Al-Taie, Richard Hawkins, Hele Oakley, Benji Robinson and Elena Blackmore. They’ll be showing illustrations, prints, graphic design and more.

To maintain social distancing, the artists are asking people to book their visit in pairs.

To book your free socially distanced visit, and for directions to the gallery, go to mimdavies.com/exhibitions. Can’t make it to the gallery in person? There’ll be a viewing over Zoom on Friday, 21 May at 8pm with the chance to meet some of the artists involved.

Go to mimdavies.com/exhibitions to register for the Zoom link and password.