Visual art exhibitions and events with a platform for critical writing
Waxham Barn, Norfolk
3–25 July
Reviewed by: Caroline Fisher
The North Sea is a stone’s throw away from Wrexham Barn, but since the place is protected by sea defences it feels very much part of the Broadland landscape. The cavernous interior is well suited to work related to the area which makes up the exhibition ‘Field Day’. In 2002 curator Stephanie Douet organised a day trip for artists and environmental experts to the Norfolk Broads, and the resulting partnerships explore the collision between the natural and man–made that characterises Broadland and its vulnerability to the elements.
Matt Rogalsky’s sound piece, paradoxically entitled In a Nature Region, dominates the space. The sound of water churned up by motor–boats, and crews shouting to each other above the din, this unedited tape was recorded where a narrow channel allows boats to pass into Ranworth Broad. In Anne Rook’s photographic installation, A Landscape of Containment, the viewer is invited to walk along a narrow ‘boardwalk’ that gives views into pools of watery imagery: on one side the sea, and on the other shallow water encroached by reeds. In the work, as in life, one‘s view of the landscape is restricted and one’s body is contained by paths, reeds and the sea defences that protect against flooding. A collaboration between Kate Allen and the storyteller Hugh Lupton, Ignis Fatuus relates most closely to the barn itself. Heard through a headset, Lupton describes some of the folklore surrounding the old English myth of the Ignis Fatuus, or will–o’–the–wisp. The accompanying screen images show light entering Waxham Barn through its many small windows, and these make a link between the lantern man in his various guises, and the faltering light passing into the building.
Writer detail: Venue detail: No one has commented on this article yet, why not be the first? To post a comment you need
to login
Caroline Fisher is an artist and curator
Post your comment
Back to top