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Quest 3 at SUBMERGE

“Quest” is an ongoing environmental project by artist Jan Hogarth, exploring our relationship with the environment, land, and water. Jan’s working practice grows out of a deep love of the land (in the broadest sense of the word—by “land” I mean water, trees, animals, mountains, etc.), an empathy for it, and a deep desire to heal it. Jan has been working with Sheila Pollock, a practitioner in the healing arts for over 30 years, and invites others who love the land to become involved in the environmental art quests.

In Celtic tradition, healing wells, springs, and the sources of rivers were thought to possess sacred and healing properties.

“Quest” explores rituals and the truths behind them to create and invent new environmental art rituals aimed at healing the environment. The idea of searching for the source of the Nith originated from a local rumour that the Lynors of Dumfries Guid Nychburris took spring water from the source of the Nith and carried it with them when they rode the boundaries of the town. My friend Sheila, who has been working in the healing arts, and I went in search of the source of the Nith, which is located at Dalmellington in Ayrshire. Instead, we found an environmental catastrophe in the form of open-cast mines and landfill sites, with no access to the source due to the activities of the open-cast mine operators. It was shocking—how could this river be healed when its source serves as an example of how we take from the land without empathy for our energy consumption? This seemed to act as a metaphor for the wider issue of climate change. The problem lies with us—our lack of love for non-human life and our lack of reverence for nature, water, and the land.

Sheila has worked with Jan on the Quests project, focusing on the energy of water and its places, and exploring how to lift that energy and raise its vibration. Through dowsing, there is evidence that the vibration of the water she worked on during Quest 1 was raised, and that improvement has been sustained. The Nith presents a significant challenge due to its source in an open-cast mine. Sheila and Jan will be discussing this on Thursday evening at the Stove as part of their work.

Jan’s install in preparation for SUBMERGE

Quest is part of SUBMERGE, an exhibition featured in ArtCOP Dumfries, running daily from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm until Saturday, 12th December.

Jan and Sheila will be discussing Quest as part of A Question of Scale

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News Project Updates

The Lands of EAFS

The Environmental Art Festival Scotland (EAFS) is an international biennial showcasing contemporary art practice within the landscape.

The Lands of EAFS extended from the main festival village site at Morton Castle out into the Lowther Hills in South West Scotland and were mapped for the festival by Andrew McAvoy. Artworks, installations, guided walks, and expeditions invited visitors to venture into the landscape, make new discoveries, and explore alternative routes. One of the festival’s themes, focusing on journeys and migrations, encouraged visitors to experience varied forms of transport—from horse and kayak to foot travel. EAFS shuttle buses transported visitors to different points, fostering new ways of engaging with the Lands.

This is what they found.

EAFS 2015 was created and co-produced by The Stove Network and Wide Open, collaborating with the brilliant Robbie Coleman and the EAFS recharge team, with additional support from Spring Fling.

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News Project Updates

EAFS – People

The Environmental Art Festival Scotland 2015—an international biennial of contemporary art practice in the landscape—ventured off-grid into the wilds of the Lowther Hills in South West Scotland. This two-day festival was based at Morton Castle near Thornhill and explored themes of generosity and hospitality, journeys and migrations, as well as foolishness and playfulness as ways of understanding the world. The weekend featured art installations and experiments, walks, talks, performances, and campfire discussions.

EAFS served as a hub for gathering, meeting, and discussion in the open air. During the day, visitors embarked on walks and adventures into the landscape. In the evenings, they returned to the festival site to share discoveries made during their explorations and to gather around the EAFS campfires. Conversations ranged from navigating new futures to contemplating death and the unknown, tracing local watercourses to exploring innovative approaches for tackling global climate change.

EAFS 2015 was created and co-produced by The Stove Network and Wide Open, in collaboration with the brilliant Robbie Coleman and the EAFS recharge team, with additional support from Spring Fling.

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News Project Updates

EAFS – Adventures

The Environmental Art Festival Scotland 2015—an international biennial of contemporary art practice in the landscape—ventured off-grid into the wilds of the Lowther Hills in South West Scotland. This two-day festival, based at Morton Castle near Thornhill, explored themes of generosity and hospitality, journeys and migrations, as well as foolishness and playfulness as ways to understand the world. The weekend featured art installations, experiments, walks, talks, performances, and campfire discussions.

EAFS 2015 was created and co-produced by The Stove Network and Wide Open, in collaboration with the exceptional Robbie Coleman and the EAFS recharge team, with additional support from Spring Fling.

Categories
News Project Updates

EAFS – Discussions

The Environmental Art Festival Scotland 2015—an international biennial of contemporary art practice in the landscape—ventured off-grid into the wilds of the Lowther Hills in South West Scotland. This two-day festival, based at Morton Castle near Thornhill, explored themes of generosity and hospitality, journeys and migrations, as well as foolishness and playfulness as ways of understanding the world. Across the weekend, attendees engaged with art installations, experiments, walks, talks, performances, and campfire discussions.

EAFS was a hub for gathering, meeting, and open-air discussion. During the day, visitors embarked on walks and adventures into the landscape, and in the evenings, they returned to the festival site to share new discoveries from their explorations. Around the campfires, conversations delved into a wide range of topics—from navigating new futures to death and the unknown, tracing local watercourses, and exploring innovative approaches to tackling global climate change.

EAFS 2015 was created and co-produced by The Stove Network and Wide Open, in collaboration with the exceptional Robbie Coleman and the EAFS recharge team, with additional support from Spring Fling.

Categories
Musings Project Updates

As Above So Below

From Ivor Gott

“Hey Ivor, it’d be pretty neat if you could write a blog to tell us about your project for Nithraid,” announced Katie Anderson excitedly at the last Young Stove meeting. The first thing that went through my mind upon hearing these words was, “Crikey! How on earth am I ever going to explain this to the general public?” After much careful consideration, I’ve come to the conclusion that the best approach would be to just tell the truth.

So here goes…

It all started with a pirate ship. A great big pirate ship. A great big pirate ship made out of recycled plastic bottles. How did I get from a pirate ship to two pyramids—or should I say tetrahedrons—a chrome unicorn, and an art performance loosely based on the concept of enlightenment? The truth is, I didn’t get there on my own. The pirate ship was a snap decision made during a meeting with my Stove mentor, Denise Zygadlo. I was under immense pressure to come up with a decision for the project. At this point, it had been two weeks since the commission began, and my initial idea, although perfect for the Dock Park site (where Nithraid was originally intended to be), just wasn’t going to work at Mill Green.

“Come on, Ivor,” my inner voice urged. “What are you going to do? It must be good—no, better than good—it must be fabulous!” So, before I’d even thought it through properly, I found myself telling Denise that I might make a pirate ship out of plastic bottles.

This idea evolved from a pirate ship into a Viking longboat, inspired by a workshop held at The Stove that evening. However, this didn’t remain the case for very long. After a few meetings with my fellow creatives—The Mad Jackals (Majikals)—the idea of making a Viking longboat was beginning to feel tiresome. I just couldn’t get excited about it. It didn’t reflect me or my wonderfully creative friends.

And then it just came to me. I said, “We need to make a pyramid and float it down the Nith! We have to have a unicorn inside the pyramid!” The words of a mad person? Yes, probably.

At that point, it was me, Sophie, and Michael in the studio. You could feel the collective excitement crackling between us. I started scribbling ideas down. It must—and I repeat, must—include the Mer-ka-ba, rainbow smoke, flash grenades, horned elementals… I was really getting carried away. Credit to Sophie and Michael—they were running with me. We were organic and free, if perhaps a little overly optimistic.

The next day, I met with my little brother in the Queensberry. I was expressing anxiety over the scale of the project. Conor is often the voice of reason and someone I consult when mashing around creative ideas. He’s a creative too, but where I veer off into tangents and allow my concepts to grow bigger than I can handle, he has a knack for reducing it down and keeping it real. I can always trust him to tell me the truth and be realistic.

“One question?” he pondered, eyebrow raised. “How are you going to do this in two weeks?”

I knew he was right. The idea had to change again—and fast. More of the Jackals were arriving at this point. Ideas were flying thick and fast.

“Time capsule…” Did you say time capsule?

That’s perfect. The Mer-ka-ba… As above, so below… We’ll make a time capsule, and it’ll be in the shape of an inverse tetrahedron. Of course, we’ll need a non-inverted tetrahedron too. Ah, it’s perfect. There’ll be two tetrahedrons. The unicorn stays, and so does the rainbow smoke.

To maintain some mystery about the performance and workshop, I’ll stop there. But in a nutshell, that’s how an idea that first birthed itself as a plastic bottle pirate ship evolved into an exciting, interactive art performance loosely based on the theme of enlightenment. We look forward to seeing you all on Sunday when all will be revealed.

One thing I’d like to say before I get back to putting the finishing touches on everything is this: although this commission was applied for as a solo project, it’s been a collaborative effort. I often find collaboration much more exciting than working alone, and I’m lucky to have the most fabulous team of creative individuals in my life. We are The Mad Jackals. They think we’re mad, but we know we’re majickal.