On Pilgrimage… Medieval & Modern Journeys
The Map of Mundi Exhibition: One of 5 Weekly Themes
In this last week, I ran workshops for schools, and several people dropped in to finish work they had begun in previous workshops. I’d been exploring a different theme each week, engaging with visitors and running workshops for both the public and for special groups:
Week 5 theme:
Medieval & Modern Journeys
In the 13th century, if you wanted to travel safely in England or abroad you went on Pilgrimage. This was the Medieval version of Tourism today.
What do we know of pilgrimages originating here in Poole?
What was a journey of this kind like?
Where and how far could you go?
Who with? How often? Why?
Where were the most popular destinations?
Intention:
My idea here was to invite local people interested in tourism. These could include tour guides, travel agents and Google local guides. People who are interested in pilgrimage, including cultural pilgrimages (artists, curators, academics etc), or spiritual pilgrimage (church groups? local clergy?) etc. Also, people who have been on a pilgrimage of any sort – to be healed, to make the journey. I’d like to collect their stories from the Camino de Santiago, the trip to Mecca, etc…
What we did:
Outcomes:
During this, the last week, I added more artworks to the ‘Wall of Time’ in the gallery. People who had taken part dropped in to see how it was unfolding. There was a closing event on the Saturday to celebrate the completion of the wall.
- The Wall of Time reached the end of the space, telling the ‘story’ of the exhibition. Now you could literally walk back through time!
- People remarked on their own sense of surprise and achievement in what they themselves had created.
- I missed the closing event as I went down with flu the night before. The gallery takeover was suitably completed without me – participants, staff, friends and family celebrated the end of their own exhibition!