Cave People, the collective I make work with had a week by the sea earlier in July, exhibiting as part of the Whitstable Biennale Satellite Programme. Our show, Songs of Salt was an installation in a beach hut which was based on sea shanties and other traditional folk songs about the sea.
Working in collaboraton with Whitstable-based folk groups Dead Horse Morris and the Shipwright Shanty Crew, we were interested in conveying a sense of the experiences of men and women whose lives were determined by working on the sea. The installation was a meditative experience which implied both the isolation of being at sea with the communal aspect of shanties, which were sung collectively as working songs.
Dead Horse Morris gave us a uproarious performance as the sun went down over Whitstable on the Saturday night, swilled down by lashings of Kent Cider, who most kindly sponsored the exhibition.
Photos by Tim Smith.
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