WILDER BEING: CREATION AND DESTRUCTION IN THE LITTORAL ZONE
2014
The Wilder Being art and archaeology project was initiated by Anne Bevan and Jane Downes and undertaken as part of the UK-wide 2014 ‘Being Human’ Festival of the Humanities. Sub-titled Creation and destruction in the littoral zone, Wilder Being was the most northerly event of the festival, taking place on the shores of the island of Sanday in Orkney. The place-based event aimed to highlight the connectivity between arts, humanities and sciences as it highlighted the blurring of lines between land and sea, culture and nature, setting an understanding of coastal erosion of archaeological heritage within wider contexts of climate change and sustainability.
The island beach workshop brought together artists, archaeologists, environmental scientists and community. Participants observed and recorded artefacts and materials and used archaeological techniques of survey and artefact recording combined with photography, drawing, sculpture and text to explore responses to place and environment. Materials from the shore were collected, analysed, interpreted, and then re-interpreted and configured into a new form. Fine Art & Textiles students from UHI created a ‘wilder being’ sculptural costume, influenced by the folklore of the island. These sculptures, along with material from the interdisciplinary event and a commissioned film by Mark Jenkins were then exhibited at the Pier Arts Centre, Stromness.
Further links: www.uhi.ac.uk
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