Porous
Earlier this summer, at the suggestion of my friend David England, I went to the Koffee Pot cafe in Hereford to see Porous, a multimedia exhition. I was determined to go because the exhibition had been inspired by the River Lugg, a river that joins the Wye just south of the city.
When I arrived, I was greeted by a smiling face. I guessed it belonged to the artist. I was right.
Here was Kate Gathercole, and we soon got chatting. In that conversation, an intriguing thread emerged - it turned out she knew the song I had written and produced, Will You Be The Change, and had played some part in it being adapted for the Climate Choir.
For anyone inclined towards a more mythical view of the life, this had the feel of magic. For anyone more rational, it was a pleasant but not so surprising synchronicity. Either way, it set a lovely tone.
River Lugg, river mud, river sounds
I found the exhibition enchanting - in the original sense of the word. Pictures on the walls painted with river mud, videos of light dancing on the river (see the video here) and, star of the show for me, a tape loop of the sound of Lugg’s flowing waters. The tape was physically looping in front of my eyes, in and out of the artist’s dad’s old reel to reel tape recorder. Here was more magic for me.
Standing there, beside this old machine, the beautiful sound of the river, the family history, and the venue, right on the bank of the River Wye, felt very moving. Surely this was an affirmation of the sacredness of the rivers and nature, simultaneously expressed both personally and universally.
Some exhibitions ask you to have a look, Kate’s Porous invited me to immerse.
An online record of the exhibition can be found on Kate’s website, you can see it here.
Comments