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My plan for the two weeks was to explore the local landscape and record some of the textures, plants, rocks, human traces on the landscape and movements of the tide along the river estuary. I took some materials with me but I wanted to be able to collect local materials to make inks and investigate working with the clay from along the riverbed, and be led by the landscape rather than making too much of a daily plan of what I wanted to achieve. It was wonderful to be able to watch the tide changing on the river each day - the movement of the water, and the gradual revealing, and disappearance of the sandbank in the estuary. I was totally mesmerised by the landscape from the studio window seat and on reflection feel it was an important two weeks of observing rather than capturing. I think I needed at least another two weeks to do that justice! I made collages and drawings of the shapes that were formed and the negative shapes in the water around them. I tried to capture the trickling sounds of the water and current with words and the movement of the huge mounds of seaweed moving by drawing along the tideline. I collected gorse, nettles, clay from the estuary, seaweed and different coloured earth from the woodland to make inks and then used these materials to make drawings - some made with brushes I created using different items (natural and manmade) I had collected. I played with the clay and seaweed, using the strange textures of the seaweed to create new textures to evoke the landscape and made shapes with the clay inspired by the moss formations in the woodland behind Mawddach Crescent. I took rubbings from the rock formations to build up a texture map of the area. The moss was also a huge source of inspiration during my residency and I was listening to the audiobook of Robin Wall Kimmerer’s ‘Gathering Moss’ while in the studio - learning about moss and being inspired by Robin’s words and stories about learning to see what’s right in front of us, on a tiny scale. Robin also spoke about how mosses grow in the ‘boundary layer’ of the earth, where the air is still, and how every object/being has a boundary layer. This is something I want to continue exploring in upcoming work. Being on the residency with my partner Stuart Leech was interesting as I was able to explore the landscape through my eyes but also from a different perspective of how he saw things. We were both inspired by the way nature took over old mines and manmade structures and have some ideas for a collaborative project that we would like to come back to explore and create which feels exciting.
The few weeks leading up to the residency for me felt hectic and busy, so spending two weeks at the Mawddach Residency was incredibly nourishing on many levels. I feel I had a personal revelation while I was away about my confidence and the way I have been working on my practice the last year. I think the time and space away from the busy everyday and also experiencing how Jake and Scarlett (and Toby of course!) balance their practices and everyday life (and work) has been a huge inspiration. Louise Frances Smith website
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