The Williamson Tunnels - meeting no.1

Williamson Tunnels: Link to the website

"The Williamson Tunnels Heritage Centre is the only tourist attraction in Liverpool dedicated to 19th Century philanthropist Joseph Williamson.

Opened in 2002 the Williamson Tunnels Heritage Centre has welcomed over 100,000 visitors into the fascinating underground world created beneath the streets of the Edge Hill district of Liverpool by Joseph Williamson, a wealthy tobacco merchant who employed many hundreds of men in the construction of a huge and elaborate underground labyrinth of tunnels, chambers and passageways.

Visitors to the Williamson Tunnels Heritage Centre can take a guided tour through a section of the network of tunnels and view exhibits and displays which depict the life and times of one of Liverpool's most eccentric characters.

The Williamson Tunnels Heritage Centre is owned and operated by the Joseph Williamson Society.(Registered Charity No: 1062091)

The Joseph Williamson Society is a registered charity which receives no public funding, therefore, the Society relies entirely on visitor income and donations to maintain and develop the Williamson Tunnels Heritage Centre."

The space that can be hired:

The tunnels:

I think it is a very interesting environment to show work in. It has character, history and no plain white gallery wall to display work - which is exciting and challenging at the same time. They have tours for general public in the tunnels which i find very interesting. Especially seeing how passionate the people who volunteer there are about the tunnels and the tours and the extension and development of them. They are volunteers so don't get paid for their work. They run events in the hiring space at the end of the tunnels which are used for number of things, for example raves, music groups, lectures etc

The number of times i have visited the tunnels i was welcomed and the people were positive in what i had in mind for the space. They are open minded and that is great to hear as a creative. 

I came up with a group of 10 individuals from my course, 1st and 2nd years, who are interested in responding to the space and produce work for it.

List of artists:

1st year - Lucy Jane Smith 

1st year - Jon Edgley

1st year - Callum Morley

1st year - Danielle Waine

2nd year - Vinny Quirk

2nd year - Eryn Gross

2nd year - Wayne Shaw

2nd year - Osian Fletcher

2nd year - Rory Larbalestier

2nd year - Ellie Hoskins

+ me

These artists produce a range of work from different disciplines (sound, sculpture, painting, performance, interactive etc) and it will be very exciting to see what we as a group and as individuals can produce for this exhibition. I am aiming to have as many group discussions possible every week to discuss the development of this project and listen to individual needs and communicate throughout so everybody is happy in what we are doing. 

We are planning to have the exhibition sometime in April which is yet to be discussed both with the tunnels and the group. 

First meeting:

In the first meeting what i really wanted to discuss with the group is what space they are keen in using - the tunnels themselves or the hiring space at the end of the tunnels which is used for all kind of events. Personally i am keen on having an exhibition in the tunnels themselves, where there are tours for general public, sounds more appealing to me than just using the hiring space to show work. It also sounds more demanding in terms working around the tours and the limitations of the space e.g. hanging artwork on the walls. The work in the tunnels need to be placed in a way that does not block the tour path or in any way damage the tunnels themselves. The walls and the whole of the space is damp which could be and negative and a positive as well, as we can use the dampness and natural conditions of the space to our advantage. 

So far i think we have determined as a group that we will be showing in the tunnels where tours happen, responding to the space and creating work for it. The hiring space at the end of the tunnels will be used for socialising on the day of the private view which will be for one or two hours. It might also be the space used by Jon Edgley for his piece of interactive work if he decides to follow with it. The rest of the work will be shown in the tunnels. As the tunnels close at 5pm and the last tour is at 4pm, we might want to have our private view running from 4-6pm or 5-7pm depending on the discussions i will have with the staff there and how much we can afford. The private view will be for one night only and the work in the tunnels might stay longer, for a couple of days if it isn't in the way of the tunnel workers. So again something to discuss with them again. 

What also be of our interest os the charity shop next door. What is sold there the money goes back to the tunnels. Maybe we could think about a way of helping the tunnels to gain more money from our exhibition. Maybe the charity shop be of help for that. 

We will have our next meeting on Friday 26th at 4:15pm in the tunnels to discuss our thoughts and ideas further, when we will have the chance to explore the space together.

I am very excited and i hope the group is too!

~Ev

Jon Spruce / space / my work

I was advised to talk to Jon Spruce, (course leader of Spatial Design at LJMU), due to my interest in Interior Design and the online course that i am doing in it. When i started talking to Jon Spruce i could not believe the overlap between spatial design and fine art! Spatial design is not just interior and an environment but also people's experiences and feelings in the space. The course that i am studying at the moment in interior design is very structured, and has rules to follow in arranging, planning and furnishing a living space. It is very interesting to me as it is completely different from fine art which is very free and subjective. Spatial design is something in the middle - it works with the space and environment but in a more free way than interior design. What has opened my eyes was one question that Jon Spruce asked me in our meeting - “What particularly do you like about interior design?” in which i answered that it was the experiences people have in the space, you can create different atmospheres and moods, play with the architecture, the lighting etc…  

I think that is when i realized again that what i am interested in, deep down is people's experiences through what i do or change in a space. I looked back at the works that i have created for the past couple of years. From a floor piece that i have made in foundation course which was really interactive in the sense people walked on it, to solo show in Set the Controls where i created work the size of the wall, using uv lights which meant people had a unique experience of art in the dark. The lighting determined whether the work was seen or not. Both were also site specific and worked with the space itself. The floor piece engaged with splashes on the floor and the uv wall art engaged with imperfections and traces of previous artists artwork.

As i think about my current piece of work such as the spiral on the window, spill work on pavements, or the “mapping” piece where i work with symmetry in a space, it all engages with people's experiences of the artwork. It's not something i can take a picture of and call it art, but it's art for me when people engage with it. Some kind of interaction is very important to me.

The odd one out piece in this bunch of works in progress, is a piece of performance artwork where i unpick a cardigan with my hands. This piece of work is more about the traces of people through their clothes. The memories that are imprinted in them and the experiences that the clothes and their owners went through together. This is interesting for me as this is now a “performance piece” however i would prefer to call it an experience and the sharing of it, compared to an interactive piece where my audience is engaged. Or where i actually engage with the space. However it is still important if i was to do this performance, to really pick my spot in the showing space which is pleasing and somehow responds to the space also, visually of where it is placed.

Another strand that this project went is where i make work in charity shops. Engaging with the clothes such as coats and jackets by putting one on, getting a feel of its character and whilst wearing it quickly writing a note addressing the next owner of it. Slipping the note in the pocket and placing the jacket or coat back where i found it. This has nothing to do with the space structurally wise however it is very particular in what happens in the space and the objects there. It is very interesting for me. It is like a performance, however not an obvious one - it is an experience both for me and the people who find the note.

~Ev

Ann Hamilton

'indigo blue' 1991, 2007

"How is it that materials carry an embodied knowledge?"

For this piece of work Hamilton became interested in the early economic histories, the fact that indigo was the first cash crop that was cultivated. She began researching the history of the colour indigo and its use. How the meaning of the colour changed through time. From highly unique wallpaper to work clothing. She became interested in using work clothing that came from actual labouring class. How is it that materials can evoke presence of something that is not stated. 

What is very interesting for me is that Hamilton decided to stack the workers clothes on top of each other, that takes time and patience and links really well with the clothes and where they come from. It was important for her the way the clothes being touched and handled. It was part of the meaning of the project. The embodied quality of material as the blue cotton and the form of the shirts and the pants themselves, and their reference to the labouring class. Hamilton had a layer of pants and a layer of shirts places on top of each other honouring an individual history within a collective. 

I feel as though this piece has some overlapping with my performance piece, where i unpicked a cardigan, focusing on the process. The process for Hamilton was getting the workers clothes as well as the repetitive process of folding and stacking the shirts and pants on top of each other. In a way she identifies with the workers through the process and labour of folding and stacking, the same way i identify with the cardigan through unpicking and how the structure of it reflects how i feel inside - all tangled up. So by unpicking the cardigan its like im unpicking myself. untangling myself.

I love how it was important for Hamilton how the clothes were handled, she didn't just pile them as they were brought to her, but thought really carefully how to interact with them. Folding them in the same way each time to have consistency and repetition. i handle my carding in a particular way as well. I decided to unpick it myself, with my own hands, really interacting with the threads, the structure of it and the smell of perfume that still lingers. 

I see one difference though between this work and the performance i made. Hamilton is successful in interacting with the audience through her art, however i feel that my performance is more about my own experience and it might be hard for people to relate and understand it. 

Time lapse: link

~ Ev