I told Dan my plans and ideas about the lit up (and modeled) woodland in Studio X. Which he liked, but so make it more Site Specific we agreed that the woodland shape will be based on a scaled down section of the Arboretum. I’m thinking just beyond the main entrance where the bandstand and the wonderful stone lion resides.
Also, we talked more in depth and the audio element, which has been slightly left behind lately due to the reformation of project etc. In a previous meeting Conan advised us on what questions we could use (see previous blogs to recap) yet he was a little worried that we might get one word answers. So both Dan and I thought long and hard on what Luke and I can do about this. In the end we came with this conclusion;
Considering we have three MP3 players we could have a different question on each.
As like for the single tree idea, we can record people’s stories of Lincoln on one. This will give longer answers so we would get three to four stories for MP3 player number 1.
On another we can ask, “Where is your secret place in Lincoln?” These will more than likely will result in one to word answers, which if all the recordings of this question are put together it will sound interesting in it’s own right. So for MP3 player number 2, we’re thinking about having 20 to 25 sound clips.
On the final MP3 player we can ask “Tell us a fact about Lincoln.” This may seem as a daunting question for some people who may not know anything about Lincoln, but those that do will be giving a new insight to the audience about Lincoln. So we think that we will get a sentence or two from each person so we can record about 10 sound clips for MP3 player number 3.
The proposal is a key element to our process in Site Specific Performance. We need to have evidence of our plans etc in order to gain full permission for the project to go ahead.
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– Names : Luke Talbott & Victoria Wood
– Title of Project :“Making the Unseen of the Seen, Seen” – The Lost Histories and Thoughts of Lincoln.
– Please describe your proposed work in no more than 50 words :
When you walk down the street, what do you see? Shops? The road? But what is also there, hiding in the nooks and crannies? Take a walk in a magical forest installation were we show you through audio and visual imagery what exactly you don’t see on a day to day basis even though they are in plain sight.
– Tell us what you plan to do and provide a sketch of the ideas behind the work (250 words) :
Our piece is inspired by Hans K Clausen’s “Significance in the Insignificant” where he uses everyday items which are taken for granted and presented in individual see-through pockets against a white background to focus the viewer’s attention, to show the importance of their individual significance in our lives and to make them realise that without those objects, their daily routines would not be able to function.
By using Clausen’s theme, we wish to do this for Lincoln, unearthing the unseen and stories, by placing them in front of the public in a abstract woodland environment indoors (scale model of a section of the Arboretum), to make them interact and learn the truth behind what the take for granted everyday in a completely different way.
The piece is split into three.
Visual
As like Clausen’s piece, but by using a series of images, facts, found items etc from around Lincoln which have been unnoticed/been taken for granted, such as hidden areas or close ups of buildings etc which can be put back to light to get the citizens of Lincoln to not only learn something new but also go out a search for the unseen themselves. These items would be the “Leaves”. Also with 3D models of particular statues around Lincoln hiding within the trees, they also hunt for them on their adventure.
Tactile
Instead of like Clausen’s piece of where its just seen, we want the audience to physically interact, so each of the “Leaves” hang freely on the trees and models made from paper mache like Katie Holten and Jonni Good’s work who make abstract/life size structures with paper mache. This would cause the audience to push other “Leaves” out of the way to see others.
3. Audio
An audio piece mingled into the visual display. The audience put headphones on and listen to MP3 players, containing different sound clips of people’s memories, stories and opinions of Lincoln.
– Tell us about your target audience, and how your work will interact with them (150 words) :
Our target audience is the general public of all ages, the shoppers and walkers of Lincoln High Street who take for granted what they see on their daily outings around town.
Because the piece will be in doors we will try to attract the audience by visually capturing their attention from the moment they step through the door. With trees etc starting from the door all the way up to Studio X. Studio X itself containing the wood and enchantingly lit with multi coloured lights.
The aim of the piece to let the audience to go up and interact with the piece, but we expect them to question if they’re aloud to touch it or not, so we will be on hand to invite people to interact with the piece and walk through the forest to see what’s on the trees, the mysterious creatures (copies of statues) lurking within the trees and listen to the mp3 players for the piece is there for their own benefit at the end of the day.
– When and where do you propose to present your work (location, date and time) :
We propose that the piece is performed on Saturday the 5th of May in Studio X at the LPAC due to its black blank canvas and enclosed space.
We plan to set up the wood with all the documentation and lighting at around 8.00am to be ready for operation by ten o’clock when the audience may be invited into the space. We hope to close the piece at around 6.00pm, which would give us eight hours of viewing time to be appreciated by the audience.
– Provide a project timetable detailing key targets and actions between now and the presentation of your work. Include Permissions, Materials, Health and Safety checks where applicable (250 words) :
– List the equipment & materials you will need to deliver your project (and how you will source them) :
Cardboard, white paint, thick wire, paper mache, cutting tools etc – (Trees and models) already taken care of through family connections with previous projects.
Lighting (stage lamps and gels) we shall ask the tech department at the LPAC if we can borrow some of their lamps etc.
Visual documentation – (leaves) found, printed & laminated, to be resourced through extensive research and photographing trips around Lincoln, each piece of information printed at the library and local printing services and to be laminated through personal supplies.
Audio documentation – (sound clips leaves) We will ask the tech Conan if we may borrow his recording devise to interview certain members of the public for their stories about Lincoln then we will upload and edit the voice clips on our own resources.
Fishing wire – (to hang each individual piece of documentation) scout around different suppliers and compare prices then return to the retailer which has the cheapest best quality fishing wire.
MP3 players x3– (audio clips) We are comparing different retailers on ebay to find the cheapest MP3 players then we will upload the edited voice clips onto them.
– Give details of your project budget (though be aware that there is no Module budget so any expenses will, unfortunately, have to be borne by you alone) :
We are attempting to keep within a £25 – £40 budget between us (approx £20 per group member max).
Trees/models – cheap newspapers, modelling rock, PVA glue and white paint. = £10.00 (max)
Visual documentation – printing credits at UNI, professional photograph printing and laminating pouches = £10.00 (max)
Audio documentation – MP3 players = £10.00 (max)
Hanging tools – fishing wire = £5.00 (max)
Extras (if required) = £5.00 (max)
– Audience suitability: is there anything in your work we may need to make audiences aware of (eg. Swearing, nudity, flashing lights etc)? :
There are no problems that spring to mind except the fact that audiences must be careful with the handling of the piece and to aware that their will be lights on the floor etc so to be wary of cables etc even though as a safety percussion we will tape them down.
– Include a brief artist’s statement that describes you and your work (100 words) :
Our work highlights how general insignificant items can easily be missed on a day to day basis. With influences from Hans K Clausen and Jonni Good, we create observational/tactile material to resurface the importance of these missed items.
For a long time now, we have been fascinated by the hidden historic features, like architecture, but as older forms become altered through modification of modern amenities, the viewer is left with a false front on their historic surroundings.
Our work seeks to draw attention to these unseen artefacts that make our history and show thier importance as a part of modern living.
– Provide any images, plans, maps or other materials that support your proposal :
Studio X
The chosen Location – LPAC – Studio X.
Forest Drawing
A basic drawing of what the wood would look like in Studio X.
Stone Lion
Example 1, of the images we plan to hang from the tree. Also the inspiration on one of the models. (Stone Lion at the Arboretum).
War Angel
Example 2, of the images we plan to hang from one of the trees. (Close up of angel on War Memorial in the centre of the High Street).
__________
And this concludes our proposal, we hope that it is informative and acceptable for actual performance
Finally an idea came to me a little while before I met up with Luke on Tuesday.
We met up on the stone picnic tables outside the Main Uni building by the wharf, even better we were surrounded by trees on such a warm sunny day – perfect picturesque surroundings to tell Luke of my new idea 🙂
You may remember that I (for some reason or other) have a thing about trees. Well years ago I watched a home decoration program and they used this most wonderful wallpaper by Cole & Son called “Wood”;
Fig. 1 Cole & Son - Wood
This wallpaper got me thinking. Plus the fact that Conan suggested that we perform the piece in Studio X, a small studio in the LPAC that has recently been redecorated with black floor and black curtains. A black box. What if we made white trees like the ones on Cole & Son’s wallpaper in Studio X, to create a mini forest – bringing the outside, in. The images and the MP3 players hang from the high branches as like before. White paper mache miniature copies of some of the statues from around Lincoln such as the Arboretum Lion and the Lincoln Imp hiding in between the trees in the wood and some clever use of coloured lighting, maybe even some pretty fairy lights. A fantasy of Lincoln, the hidden version or if Lincoln was a real forest, a forest of buildings and statues?
I truly believe that it can be not only beautiful yet visually enchanting and inspirational. Multi-coloured lights shining onto the white trees and models, giving depth and a fairy-like picture to draw the attention of the audience to influence them to go deeper in the forest and search for more.
Luke even added an idea to this, “What if the trees represented the buildings of Lincoln? Like, the base of the Cathedral growing a forming the top of the tree.” Clever boy.
As I mentioned my resent post, we discussed with Conan about our piece.
Conan had a lot to say about it especially about his disagreement about our tree and using the paper mache materials in a different way. But we believe that the tree is or focal point, the element that attracts the audience at the very beginning and engages them to interact with it.
As I said before, the tree represents to norm that is taken for granted and also the life of Lincoln.
So to link the two points together; Conan’s objection and idea, with our significance and original aim, I came across this idea and rather fond memory.
Clive Kay.
Fig. 1 Clive Kay & his wife Enriqueta
Clive Kay is a self taught artist born in Zimbabwe. Later in life he moved to South Africa then a year later to England where he became highly influenced by David Shepard’s work, and now resides in Canada.
He is fascinated with wild life, especially from the African plains, and thus commissioned by the Walt Disney Company to paint the Collector’s edition of “The Tree of Life” for the opening of The Animal Kingdom park in the Spring of 1998. This is when I first became interested with Kay. I met him in person when I went to the Animal Kingdom the week it opened and became overwhelmed by the beauty of the “Tree of Life”, to the point when I had my parents purchase a print of his painting, lucky for us, he was there too and he signed it for us. He is truly an inspiration, even at that time for a child of 6.
As you can see in these images below, I took when I went the Animal Kingdom in Florida, the animals are carved into to the wood of tree (admittedly some are caved then place on the tree), maybe for our piece we can do something like this, not as busy, but a few elements of Lincoln that we miss, like the architecture, could be moulded into the tree and become part of the visual element, maybe even part of the slightly tactile element too. It certainly doesn’t go unrecognised at the Animal Kingdom, this could even attract the audience better here too.
On Friday 9th March, Luke and I met up with Conan and told him about our project; “Making the Unseen of the Seen, Seen” The Lost Histories and Thoughts of Lincoln.
As part of the meeting, Conan gave us feedback and personal opinions on what he feels would work better for our piece.
Feedback ETC
The slight bumps in the road…
For starters he didn’t like the idea of the tree, he seems to think that there is no real need for it, and considering that we don’t have a busking licence for the location yet, (even though we have thought of a backup location since finding out this problem) he thinks that it would be better if we mounted all the “Leaves” on the walls of Studio X in the LPAC like an exhibition gallery.
We feel that, the tree is the symbol of the norm that is taken for granted, the life of Lincoln, made and placed infront of the audience in such a way that it can’t be missed, causing them to interested and to go up to the piece in genuine intrigue, not forced to walk into a building and stare at a load of pictures on a wall, that isn’t interesting at all, we want them to be hands on and involved with the piece, make them question and realize what they are missing to influence them to physically go out and search for the images in person – to see the real Lincoln.
At first Conan didn’t understand the importance of the paper mache element, but by this point we had already sourced ALL the materials for the project and paid through our own pockets. Sadly, we have no real budget because we have no outside funding, only a little money that we have set aside ourselves.
So instead, Conan advised that we think about making something smaller, something to do with Lincoln, what that is we won’t know until as he said, we interview people for the audio part of the project – the main element he liked, even though he would prefer three times more stories than we were thinking about for the project.
Also he wants us to focus our idea more on a smaller space than the entire of Lincoln, even though our main research so far has been mostly between the area around the Cathedral, down Steep Hill, through the High Street to around St Mary de Wigford by the Train Station, with also a few hidden places around Lincoln to such as the Arboretum and the Botanical gardens at The Lawn, a few minutes walk away from the Cathedral. Places you wouldn’t know about until someone took you there who knew about them. I guess we will have to think about thinning our margins.
Overcoming the Paper Mache Problem
Even though it seems that the tree idea is out of the window, Conan’s thought about it did influence me slightly after the meeting. I really do like the tree idea, personally, it feels like an important element to the foundations of the project, but if we can keep the tree, what is stopping us from incorporating Conan’s idea of the smaller models?
The unseen elements of Lincoln, maybe don’t just have to be the “Leaves” of images and audio clips, but maybe also elements of the tree.
I remembered going to Disney’s Animal Kingdom and being overwhelmed by the size and beauty of the “Tree of Life”, originally designed by Clive Kay.
The tree is not your average tree, it is built up of carvings of animals from all over the animal kingdom, carvings very much like the ones in the Arboretum in the play area of the snake and the fish.
Fig. 2 Arboretum Fish
Fig. 3 Arboretum Snake
Maybe, we can merge Conan’s idea of the smaller models of Lincoln with the Animal Kingdom’s “Tree of Life”, maybe even a little Lincoln Imp sitting at the top of the tree? Who knows? This will require further thought.
The Upside to the Meeting
It wasn’t all negative in the meeting. Of course criticism helps, we have taken on board what Conan said, and we have taken it forward, tried to resolve/tweak our problems – tighten the screws as it were.
Also as part of the audio front Conan did offer us his new toy, an extremely good recording devise, which I will say now, we are eternally grateful for and we will guard with our lives!!! This will give the added professional finish to our performance.
