Lore And The Living Archive exhibition coming to Cecil Sharp House

Lore And The Living Archive

An exhibition of original artworks and artefacts from the Doc Rowe Archive and Collection will be displayed from 30th January to 14th April at Cecil Sharp House in North London, the home of the English folk arts.

Lore And The Living Archive is the culmination of two years of research and development for three emerging artists who have been commissioned to respond to traditional folk arts artefacts in the Doc Rowe Archive and Collection – and Doc himself as collector.

Photographer, Bryony Bainbridge; printmaker and poet, Natalie Reid, and multimedia artist, Anna FC Smith, contemplate what place traditions have in contemporary society and how they influence the communities in which they originate. The artists also consider the role of the archivist and how his presence at some events has become as anticipated and revered as the tradition itself.

The original artworks will be displayed alongside a curated selection of material from the Archive that illustrate customs from across the British Isles and complement the themes explored through the new artworks.

Before moving to Cecil Sharp House, the exhibition was on display at Touchstones Rochdale 5 May – 30 June 2018.

Project manager, Stephanie West, says:

“The exhibition will allow us to explore the role of the folklorist and collector in the present day, and how intangible traditional customs can be ‘preserved’ for future reflection and artistic contemplation.”

Venue website: www.cecilsharphouse.org/exhibitions


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