ARTSPACE / STILL WATERS

One of the attractions of this place is the lack of a formal museum or heritage centre. Archives exist, in Barrow; the Askam Historical Society holds talks and public events on the industrial history, and local people like Kevin Alexander combine research with passed-down accounts.   Rather than a shelf or a vitrine, Askam's story occupies the space available in it's people a nd the materiality of the place itself.   Jim and Kevin are from one of Askam's oldest families, and Kevin in particular has a direct connection with the past through his daily experience of this  shifting land, and the presence of his and Jim's old 'uns in it..their boats are still on the estuary, their pens are still worked, the stakes still get put out.    The rest of us are from outside the region; we arrive at a remove, needing a conduit for this fluid history. The need for these conduits may turn out to be the subject; the  extent to which we can - or should-  tell a story that isn't

Proto-storyboards from Jim for his animation, alongside Alex's props and Jim's surviving avatar from our previous projects, see here at the cottage. The plan is to rely less on clay, to build around the armature (below) with capok to give them mass and mobility without the problem of crumbling clay and repetitive strain injuries.  Clothing will be made from loose, light fabrics, which means Jim is  learning how to sew. At some point soon we will set-up a studio in the cottage, and you'll be able to see a bit of work in progress.