TENTSMUIR INVESTIGATION
Experiences and conversations proved crucial to this body of work. Initially I documented my journeys to Tentsmuir through photography. Connecting with others highlighted the sense of community that comes from sharing places, I decided that a 2nd hand investigation of place would communicate this best. Memories are written in the landscape, being in touch with place again and experiencing the atmosphere can restore lost memories. I recorded perspectives of Tentsmuir in the form of storytelling, poetry and conversation. Listening to these recordings created a space to experience place whilst not physically being there.
I videoed a performance at Tentsmuir of myself carving the surface of the clay, conveying the layering and uncovering of memories and mirroring the process of erosion and deposition on the beach. Marks on the ceramics meet lines in the landscape. I capture the atmosphere of Tentsmuir through sound, installing speakers inside the sculptures. I learnt new skills through coiling, I experimented further with mixing stained clay. The organic shape gave weight and movement to the sculpture. The colours are inspired by the muted pinks and blues of sunset, the sandy yellow dunes, stripes of brown seaweed across the beach and gorse cutting through the sand into the forest. The variety of Tentsmuir is highlighted in ‘Memory investigation of Tentsmuir’ here I combine sound and video of Tentsmuir with audio recordings of people’s memories. I advanced my filming and editing skills and, in my installation, established a strong relationship between sculpture, video, sound and performance.