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A public artwork made for the exhibition 'Up a Hill, Down a Hill' at Lang Craigs in Dumbarton. In this exhibition thirteen Glasgow School of Art students worked alongside The Woodland Trust using environmental art as a tool for people to use to engage with an outdoor space. Each work was set in the grounds of Lang Craigs, a 600 acre new native woodland with 6km of grass and surfaced paths, linking both Lang Craigs and Overtoun Estate.
My contribution, 'Ashen Light', was a steel and fabric sculpture suspended within a circle of trees and accompanied by a soundscape. The soundscape was a cello and piano duet that grounded and focussed the listener whilst creating an ominous environment. The link to the soundscape was written on a small strip of paper attached to small booklets that the viewer could collect from the entrance of Overton House.
Booklet text:
‘Ashen Light’ – a hypothesised, subtle green glow on the night side of the planet Venus.
‘Venus’ – the mythological Goddess of love, beauty, desire, sex, fertility and victory.
‘Venus’ – our solar system’s most inhospitable planet.
Our increasing knowledge and continuous exploration into space influences our folklore, literature, spirituality and imagination. Planets also exemplify the possible future of the Earth and the potential environmental issues that we could face if we continue living and consuming unsustainably.
The potential causes of ‘Ashen Light’ remain disputed, however, it may be associated with lightning on Venus or the high percentages of CO2 in the planet’s atmosphere. Both effect of the ‘runaway greenhouse effect’ – a potential future for our own planet.
Exhibition: ‘Up a Hill, Down a Hill’, Lang Craigs, Dumbarton, 17th March 2017
Ashen Light sculpture: Netted fabric, steel rods, rope. Approximate sphere with 2.5 metre diameter.
Venus relics: Bronze with copper finish. 40mm x 3mm.