The Sound of Silence?

The Jubilee weekend meant smaller numbers participating, but  the level of engagement from those who participated was exemplary! From children to older people and art lovers, all were surprised and delighted by the experience of walking around the De La Warr in total silence. And in the silence we heard and saw the building in new and surprising ways...
 

seaside reverie . . .

The unseasonably summery conditions made for a slow session - could see plenty of people cooling themselves on the balcony, the terrace and the beach. The 'P' word tends to put people off and have tried hard not to say it ... but children and young people tend to be less easily put off by the idea of making poems ! there was a nice thoughtful piece from a student from Sussex Coast College and some local school girls were keen to express their love of Bexhill in swirly felt pen. Some are torn by the desire to just walk away thinking it's not for them and then a word of phrase catches their eye and then they play around with words for a while - sometimes happy to display their creation on the window, others preferring to just leave their verse on the table.

Well done to everyone who got creative and took part !

The Poetry Jukebox

I was back in Gallery 2 for the second Poetry Jukebox, this week, inviting visitors to choose a poem on the theme of light - and then performing them, live and unrehearsed - whilst the lights of Cerith Wyn Evans' S=U=P=E=R=S=T=R=U=C=T=U=R=E turned on and off. Over the course of three hours - I performed to 53 people. That's a lot of poems!

"Hearing the poem was quite an experience," said Lisa, who was visiting with a group of friends, "I walked past the art and thought - I don't get that. But when I went and sat and felt the lights going on and off, it gave it a different feel."

As this was the last Poetry Jukebox at the De La Warr, I also composed a poem especially for the event, borrowing text from the exhibition catalogue - rather in the way that Cerith Wyn Evans borrows words by Guy De Bord and Jimi Hendrix in the art works on show in the Pavilion. The resulting video-poem is called s_u_p_e_r_c_o_n_d_u_c_t_o_r and explores the theme of longing. So hit the play button, and enjoy the poetry jukebox one last time...

A brilliantly sunny day in Bexhill yesterday as I set up the first Art Enquiries Service  for the CWE exhibition.  After a slow start, due to low visitor numbers in general, people began to approach and enquire.  Two small girls took up the offer of Art Goggles to view the installations, and seemed very happy with the results.  More children took the Magic Mirrors downstairs in order to read the neon text piece without looking at the reflection - a nigh impossible feat for a very short person in bright sunshine!
The responses to the questionnaire were funny and charming - I walked several visitors around the exhibits personally, conversing and finding out what they think about conceptual art, installations and more....
Some responses to the work:

"Hollywood neon"

"I followed the nails, braille-like, but using my eyes"

"challenge to decode"

"transient, being both familiar and vague"

"calmness and wellbeing"

"relaxing and challenging"

"I would keep this piece ( the light columns)  in my kitchen"

"shifting patterns and relaxation"

"it makes my hearing aid go funny"

up the purple path . . . . .

An afternoon filled with carefully composed free verse, inspired by Cerith Wyn Evans exhibition, went in a flash. Cold blank skies formed a backdrop to a range of sweetly composed thoughts stuck to the windows outside the cafe. Some approach the task like an exam and like to get it over with quickly, whilst others stood around, thinking for up to half an hour, carefully selecting the 'mot juste' in order to convey their feelings and ideas.

Thanks to those of you who joined in and to Penny for encouraging all to have a go !

Dreams at De La Warr

So what does lie beyond this moment? 
On a beautiful blustery day, while the building was ransacked by an immersive theatre group, storyteller and composer Daniel Marcus Clark found refuge in the warmth of gallery one with the good people of Bexhill and beyond collecting tales and accounts of their dreams. The accounts were beautifully soundtracked by Cerith's flute piece incarnation installation, recorded and then compiled to create a collective dream piece which can be found here: 
Dreams and Cerith Wyn Evans

Participants also drew pictures of their dream landscapes on acetates, which were stuck onto the glass looking out at the horizon to show what does indeed lie beyond for us all. 

A love letter in sound

Not your average love letter, no fancy words, no paper soaked in perfume, no protestations of undying commitment, just sound. Ordinary sound, everyday sound, ignored sound. The sound of silence... This was the focus of a very successful workshop afternoon on Saturday 14th April, in and around the Cerith Wyn Evan's exhibition. I took groups of up to 4 people on a silent soundwalk around the De La Warr so that they could express their love of the building through attention and listening. Here is the one of the binaural recordings that I made, please listen on headphones.