Project Outline

We were invited to visit this town on account of what we do as a group of artists, how we conduct an investigation into a particular place and how we represent our thoughts on what we discover. The containing and guiding concept is that of Borders, lines of demarcation between one thing and another, edges, divisions, ancient and modern, for convenience, allocation of resources, physical, emotional and intellectual territory, attempts to control, to order and define.

Oswestry is interesting to us, not just as a unique place but because we have a guide or informant who has grown up in Oswestry, left and returned. Her focus is on our process and means of representation, as a cultural geographer we are interested in her perspective on the concepts of space and place. She will work with us on important aspects of our investigation and occasionally influence where we direct our attention. While two of us have never visited Oswestry before, one has, and in what seems like another life. Our being here is not neutral or objective but already carries psychological weight. We will seek out the perspectives of people we meet who live and work in Oswestry. From our research period we know that local history, memory and the ancient and modern politics of borders and language are a significant aspect of life in this town. We will weave these encounters with those of Holly McLaren and Tea into the narrative of the project.

We envisage this project as an evolving, research based, performative interaction with the built environment, topography and inhabitants of Oswestry. As a basic structure to form and carry the content of our research we will construct two videos to be seen as aspects of the immaterial architecture of space, the human experience of architecture, space and place as it is encountered and lived.

Video 1

The all round panoramic view of the town and countryside around it viewed from the high point of The Castle Mound.

Brief performances will be inter-cut with the panorama.

For example, we will use a re-enactment of our first visit when searching for the location of the border between England and Wales we misread the compass and sighted the border in completely the opposite direction. Any other sightseers or high altitude dog walkers who happen to be on the mound would be asked to participate and appear in the video. It will be constructed so that there are repeated sightings of TEA and others as the camera pans.

This represents a commanding overview of the town, providing a superficial knowledge of the town but a satisfying experience as a visitor. Being able to see a whole town from one site is a unique experience for us as city dwellers. It is the site of the remains of the defensive Bailey guarding the border. Visitors to Oswestry and the mound follow the path of ancient invaders.

Video 2

A film of incidents, some real time some re-enacted where we are interacting with the people of the town and exploring the present and the co existence of the past in the present. In contrast to the "panorama" this represents an "internal" encounter within the town, spatial, material and social.

Powis Hall is a modern version of the previous market hall, occupying the same site, a palimpsest of form and activity. The market is a place of exchange, ritual and performance. Video sequences will arise from our research process, through conversations in the market cafe and encounters in the Market Hall. Incidents, anecdotes and stories from the past may be told through various means. They could be re-enacted using models of parts of buildings, old photographs of people, material from the Council Archive and through voice-over accounts on the soundtrack. They could be performed in the locations where incidents took place or witnesses and participants could provide straightforward accounts while moving through the locations.

Presentation:

This will take place in two sites, the Powis Hall and Qube.

We have become more interested in developing the relationship between the sites of production and the sites of presentation and the relationship between the two sites of presentation.

Powis Hall:

A site-specific video installation will be constructed for the Bordering Arts presentation. A number of screens/monitors will playback the recorded incidents in the market. Possibly larger plasma screens arranged on the market stalls. A live recording/playback facility will be researched to allow viewers to become participants and performers in the work, constantly emphasising the works existence in the present.

Qube:

the panorama video would be presented at Qube, depending on light levels and what other aspects of Bordering Art are being presented we may project this or more likely present on a flat-screen of some kind. The video would accompany a 3D "model" of the video installation constructed in Powis Hall. The model would be a deconstructed version, using video stills to reveal the layering of time, space and activity.

Summary:

The audience will visit both venues.
The more casual possibly non art-audience which encounters the work in the market may be encouraged to visit Qube.
The residents of Oswestry can participate in the work.
The work will be available to a much larger audience for a longer period.