Laura Ford makes an array of small people and large animals out of old clothing.

These fantasy figures seem like sweet creatures partly because they are so tiny, yet their strangeness gives them a slightly menacing edge.

In this exhibition, the sleeve of a wool jumper has been shaped into an elephant trunk nose for a boy pulling a sledge filled with paraphernalia.

The hood of his coat covers the rest of his face. So, while looking incredibly human through pose and action, you have to remind yourself he is really an eyeless construction of old clothes.

Five larger-than-life stags tower over the boy, fixing him with their stares, albeit blankly, because they, too, are eyeless.

As he goes about the business of pulling his sledge, the boy's trunk and the socks the stags wear reveal Ford's playfulness.

Given Ford's background, her leaning towards make-believe and theatrical scenarios is not surprising.

Born in Cardiff, she grew up on a fairground and on an old farm that was previously a zoo.

Her family were show people who worked at the fair. She recalls her favourite sideshow at the fair included a figure of Frankenstein's monster.

"He looked like a statue but suddenly he would leap up and chase you out of the booth," she says. "You knew perfectly well it would happen but it was always incredibly exciting. It's that uncertainty I'm aiming for in my work."

The worn look of the characters also derives from her childhood.

"My dad used to run a bingo game with little plaster figurines as prizes. They were nothing really but people coveted and cherished them and I have always known I have to make things that looked loved."

The show has been organised to coincide with the production of Peter Pan which will be shown at the De La Warr.

As well as the impact of her own childhood on her work, Ford now observes her young son's games.

"I would watch him trooping about loaded with all his gear - his bags, his Superman costume - and marvel at the gap between reality and his idea of himself. We all invest in tales of adventure and extremity as an antidote to what, generally, are very comfortable lives."

Laura Ford will be giving a talk about her work on January 25. Call 01424 787949 for details.