Here is a very short taster of the Since Sliced Bread exhibition at Ayscoughfee Hall, on until December 14th.
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Since Sliced Bread Exhibition at Ayscoughfee Hall
‘Flours’ at Ayscoughfee Hall
Since Sliced Bread at Ayscoughfee Hall Museum is the culmination of an immersive year of artistic research into the Windmills and communities of Lincolnshire by visual philosopher Fi Burke. This fresh body of work presents a unique way of looking at our relationship with the ‘Field to Fork’ journey. It binds social history, food heritage and contemporary art, integrating the voices of Millers, rural communities and the land itself. Fi eschews the official exhibition area in favour of a series of site reflexive artistic responses.
In the Medieval brick Undercroft, a field of hand made white windmills are placed in an enigmatic grid, reflecting on the unsung roles of Millers and farmers, in our lives throughout history. The field adopts the standard layout of WW1 cemeteries in France; echoing the linear layout of the drains in the fens. These Windmills are redundant, trapped in a windless vault, reflecting in part on the defunct Windmills that once powered the nation’s food baskets. It is a eulogy to the land and its cycles – to the wind and to the soil.
Upstairs in the Hall, Fi explores and subverts the historic depictions of local landmarks by temporarily displacing them with digitally printed pieces evolved in reaction to present day visits – illustrating the changes in land use as well as the continuity of life. In the display vitrines, Fi choreographs multiple terracotta flowerpots, spouting proverbs on lolly sticks, written by local residents to create a garden of wisdom. Other pieces appropriate cupboards and nooks and crannies to infiltrate the architecture of Ayscoughfee Hall
The exhibition runs from October 8th to December 14th, 2014.
Wednesday – Sunday between 10.30am and 4pm.
Admission is free.
Ayscoughfee Hall Tel: 01775 764555 or email museum@sholland.gov.uk
Friends of the Mill, part of the exhibition at Ayscoughfee Hall
Salt Dough sculpture, Millers’ handprints
Exhibition at Ayscoughfee Hall Museum
The Since Sliced Bread solo exhibition at Ayscoughfee Hall Museum is the culmination of this immersive year of artistic research into the Windmills and communities of Lincolnshire. This fresh body of work presents a unique way of looking at our relationship with the ‘Field to Fork’ journey.
Works include a field of hand made white windmills placed in an enigmatic grid, reflecting on the unsung roles of Millers and farmers, in our lives throughout history. The field adopts the standard layout of WW1 cemeteries in France. They are redundant, trapped in a windless Medieval brick Undercroft. A community ‘garden of wisdom’ and other pieces appropriate cupboards and nooks and crannies to infiltrate the architecture of Ayscoughfee Hall.
The exhibition runs from October 8th to December 14th, 2014.
Wednesday – Sunday between 10.30am and 4pm.
Admission is free.
The preview of the exhibition is on Wednesday October 8th from 6-8pm, this will include an artist’s ‘walk and talk’ at 6.15pm and 7.15pm.
For tickets to the preview, please contact Ayscoughfee Hall Tel: 01775 764555 or email museum@sholland.gov.uk
or
contact me directly at info@fiburke.com or here.
Sailors
engine pump
This week’s research took me to the site of Pode Hole Steam Engine house. I was lucky enough to get a tour of the current engine room. It smelt and felt like a ship’s engine (or what I imagine one to smell like as I don’t think I have ever actually been in an engine room!). There are mind-boggling statistics about how much water the engines can shift in a short space of time i.e. enough to supply the population of London in water!
Being in windmills, always makes me think of the similarities between Millers and sailors in the sense that the Mill’s perform at their best with a good understanding of wind – from earth and air comes food. The sound of the sails turning is a serene experience. I guess a pump engine ‘captain’, has to sail a ship too – even though it is on old sea bed and the point is to extract water rather then be on it!
Drains and Dragonflies
More food for thought, inspired by visiting the places once painted by Hilkiah Burgess.
On the tracks of Hilkiah Burgess
On permanent display at Ayscoughfee Hall are several prints of local scenes originally painted by Hilkiah Burgess nearly 200 years ago. As part of my Since Sliced Bread research, I am visiting each of the places depicted to explore what links they may have to the ‘field to fork’ journey. The discoveries I make will feed into the work I create for Ayscoughfee, on exhibition in October, 2014. This is a short (unpolished!) vid I made on arrival at my first port of call – Gedney Church.
Summer Baked!
The Since Sliced Bread Summer Bake at Boston College in Spalding yesterday had all the right ingredients! The gazebos enabled the flour bed to stay dry, so the only doughy activity was inside and intended! We had the occasional downpour but Jim’s flour from Heckington windmill stayed dry as did Sonya’s lovely french oven baked bread. It was lovely to see so many people taking part in creativity with flour, with salt dough and with grains. Thanks to Lincolnshire’s windmills for being our inspiration.
Exhibition at Moulton Mill May, 2014
Moulton Graffiti
I find the graffiti found in different parts of Moulton Mill absolutely fascinating. These marks all tell a story of a life once lived, a life connected to the Mill either as a Miller, mill worker or visitor. There are signatures, addresses, tally marks, notes about quantities and grain origins. Some of the graffiti is located right at the top of the mill on the main central shaft so I made images for display during the exhibition.
Since Sliced Bread 