At the Edge

Memory (a study) K Howell Pastel on Paper

 

     Some places are so hauntingly beautiful it's impossible to articulate the experience and equally impossible to not attempt... I spent some time on the headland at Heysham, Lancashire . The sort of place you stand and see Forever. Chill-inducing and unforgettable.
     Under the constantly changing sky and just beyond the reaching tide, there are these Human Memories carved in the stone of the headland. More like space left behind than graves, these shapes set in stone fill with rain water and reflect the sky.
     Some 12 years ago, there was a brilliant artist's residency in Heysham; Andrea Gregson took clay casts of these stone graves, also producing mixed media pieces using fabric, with shells and found materials filling the void shapes. Beautiful.
Anyway, the memory pulled at me, combined with the fact that the Human Void shape kept cropping up in my tree trunks.
     So very glad I went back. The visitor's Centre was closed, but I'm hoping there might be some photos on display from Andrea's residency. I'll check on the next visit...
     I seem to be thinking about time and memory, and look forward to playing with this Edge of the World landscape. If you've never been, I'd highly recommend dropping everything and going.