Put together your book over a coffee and chat

Ania Bas

Come along to the new headquarters of Bedford Creative Arts to join artist Ania Bas for a cup of coffee while compiling your own book of cafe stories.

Over the last couple of months, Ania Bas has worked as a ‘waitress in residence’ at two of the town centre’s bustling cafes.

Between carrying cups of tea and cakes, clearing and cleaning tables, the artist took time to chat with the cafe’s clientele.

She welcomed the sharing of stories over a lazy smoothie or swift espresso with visitors to the cafe. These short stories became the source material for pages for a book, but the conversation didn’t stop there.

Each story became the topic of discussion between the artist and her editor, Laura Trevail.

Explanatory notes between the artist and editor appear on each page and footnotes explain and elaborate on the stories and comments from the visitors to the cafes.

The stories collected by Ania from conversations with the people of Bedford will be presented as individual pages so that visitors can choose their own pages to make a book.

Ania and staff of Bedford Creative Arts will be your waitress, fastening the pages with gingham ribbon for you to take home and serving cups of coffee and a chat.

This is also a chance to visit the new Bedford Creative Arts headquarters before the launch in the autumn.