Above and Below

March 14th

In trying to find out how to find the Cathedral Beech Tree prior to our walk I rang Fineshade but could only talk to a Bot who assured me he wasn’t a Bot and that if I left a message someone on the team would get back to me. This didn’t happen, it was only after the walk I managed to navigate the many pathways to find these two entries on the Rockingham Forrest Vision website.

“Fineshade’s Cathedral Tree – update

2 July 2024

We reported last autumn that what is arguably Fineshade Wood’s finest tree had lost two of its huge limbs. Forestry England have now erected fencing around the veteran tree, along with interpretation panels describing how they have decided to manage the sad but inevitable decline of what for many people is a most significant tree.  You can download a copy of the sign here but what is highly recommended is to listen to Forester, Scott Martin’s explanation, using the QR code or by following this link.​”

“Further demise of Cathedral Tree

29 August 2024

Despite Forestry England’s best efforts (as we reported in July) there has been further very extensive damage to the famous and much-loved Beech tree that stood in the woods between King’s Cliffe and Fineshade. The recent unseasonably strong winds have now brought almost all of the tree down.  This is exactly what Forester Scott Martin predicted in this excellent video: “If we get a real bad storm tomorrow it could take the rest of the limbs off in one go, or it could still be here in another 50 years. We just don’t know.”

We intend to produce a fuller article about the Cathedral tree in the near future.”

Below are some photos from the canopy by Shell’s brother

13th March

Enticed by this legend

“This veteran Beech has stood for hundreds of years on the eastern edge of Fineshade Wood and is called the Cathedral Tree by some Fineshade folk. However, it is much closer to the village of KIng’s Cliffe. There it is known simply as “The Beech Tree” but it seems to have special significance and one hears tell of solstice celebrations and of marriage rites being conducted under its arching branches.

Walking under the tree in summer you enter a huge vaulted green space that seems very special indeed.

The tree is entered in the national Ancient Tree Inventory and we have recorded its girth as 6.43m. which means that it is probably over 300 years old”

Philippa and I set off on a walk to find this inspirational tree. “Have you been there before?”

“No, but I’ve seen pictures!” in terms of path finding, map reading and compass points, I am about as much use as a chocolate teapot. We did find an OS map reference, we knew King’s Cliffe was where we needed to head for and the What Three Words ap helped us on our way.

It’s a long, long time since I have been on a longish walk, I am very creaky, I was worried I wouldn’t keep up and my breathing would be terrible. I am carrying too much weight, was inappropriately dressed and my boots were ancient and leaky. Hard to believe I had spent ten years on creative walking and wellbeing projects. I had achieved a great level of fitness, had lost weight but 10 years on and all that life had thrown my way, I was back to unfit central!

However, once we were on the path, which was wide and solid, I felt a lot better. The magnificent Beech had loomed large in my dreams for so long and this was the day we would finally meet. The air quality was great, my breathing was good, the lichen had told its truth and Phil was a brilliant Pathfinder. We marvelled at moss, grasses, saplings, catkins and the many changes in the weather, sun, wind, hail, rain, this walk had it all. There were gaps I the hedges which showing signs of animal activity. Not much bird song but a few wheeling Kites. We were on the Jurassic Way. We passed some purposeful walkers coming in the opposite direction and we asked if they had seen a huge and stately Beech Tree on there travels. They shook their heads and we trudged on.

We reached an area that had been cleared, it was like a field of bones, sloping down towards a managed area of younger beech trees, a Muntjac deer flashed his tail at us as he headed for the trees. Then it started to hail so we decided to brave the field of bones and shelter amongst the beech trees. There was a crispy carpet of leaves and beech masts and we sat for awhile on a sinuous upended youngster whilst the map app told us we were just a minute away from our veteran tree! We decided to walk down between the trees and stumbled on a path, we followed that. We found a trampled fence and a fallen sign, and it became apparent that the Cathedral Beech was no more! After three to four hundred years, it was a being reclaimed as a habitat. So once again we were caught in that dead, not dead liminal zone and what remained of the tree remined me, from certain angles it remined me of footage I had seen of the steelworks coming down. From other angles it looked like a David Shrigley sculpture. It was hard to know what to think or feel – than, as if by magic a young woman with two black Labradors turned the corner and came towards us. Shell was able to tell us what had happened and when and that her brother, a tree surgeon, had scaled the tree before it had lost all its limbs. She promised to send photos.

There was more to see and more people to meet on our way back to the car but the walk certainly felt like something out of a story!

“In narratology and comparative mythology, the hero’s quest or hero’s journey, also known as the monomyth, is the common template of stories that involve a hero who goes on an adventure, is victorious in a decisive crisis, and comes home changed or transformed.”

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hero%27s_journey

10th / 17th March

Some much needed planning has started to happen, I had spent a lot of time exploring inks, watercolours, collage, stamps, small prints, and other materials thinking my way towards what I would create for Do The 100 Day Project 2025 and tying it in with artwork for the textiles I will create for my Above and Below installation. I had become so absorbed in that I forgot that my first Public Engagement sessions were due to start. Thankfully I had written the bid with a target group in mind and happily was able to fill the spaces easily, in fact I was oversubscribed. I had originally hoped for 10 people but now have 16 and really didn’t have the heart to turn anyone down.

I know there are more people who would have liked to come but the space can only just cope with this number of participants.  I want to have time to enjoy the interaction with the people present, hear their stories, share their recollections about Rockingham Forest. This will inform what I make. Having been a group facilitator for so long I need to find my way back to my own practice, whilst still making work that in informed by the community I am working in, so it is important for me to maintain the boundaries I set for this project and for myself. On the other hand, I hate to disappoint people, but I can’t allow myself to fall back into old ways

At the end of the Eloquent Fold’s “Pebble In My Pocket” I found myself with severe admin / spreadsheet burn out and I needed to take a break before creating a new project with The Eloquent Fold. The one shadow that hangs over this is the Bank Account we use for our projects is now charging £4.50 per month plus a charge for each transaction. The Eloquent fold is a tiny Not For Profit Community Organisation with no paid staff, we only have income if we have had a successful grant application. I am very proud of the work we have done with the community over the last 13 years. We have no core funding and a tiny reserve; it won’t take long for Bank Charges to eat that up; how will we continue? Should we continue? I am busy trying to put this out of my mind for the time being, but every time a statement arrives, there is the anxiety again.

No matter how hard you try to take everything into consideration when putting together a project budget planning and preparation takes more time than you can ever really budget for. I also discovered that I had made a bit of a VAT “Oops”, but nothing insurmountable.  So, in the last two weeks I have been drawing together materials and resources. I am trying not to take a huge number of materials with me. For the Rust and Remembrance sessions I have put together a pack of fabric etc for each person which they can add to at home, but its surprising just how much time this actually takes.

There have been good conversations and meetings with Kate, Philippa, Suzanne, and Steve. I must stop worrying about the end and start enjoying the journey. I also need to stop worrying about future work and money, or even just the future. Be in the moment. Enjoy each moment.

At least I know I am prepared and have a group who are keen to get started!

I am delighted to be at the beginning of my ABOVE AND BELOW project – Supported using public funding by Arts Council England

How did I get here? My participation in The University of Northampton’s Heritage Accelerator Program during 2023 / 2024 significantly influenced my approach to Above & Below. The 10-month incubator provided opportunities for research and development within the heritage sector, leading to a desire to create a project that has a meaningful impact on the community. The Accelerator informed my understanding of community needs and the potential for art to engage diverse audiences.

When I began thinking about an arts and heritage based project in Corby I started with the title ‘What Lies Beneath, What Thrives Above,’ and I was in a very dark place as my partner had been diagnosed with life limiting incurable, inoperable kidney cancer. I had had pneumonia, ruined sinuses, temporary deafness, and Lyme disease in between his diagnosis and began to rethink my public facing work as I was so susceptible to infections and caring for someone with a weakened immune system. I was thinking a lot about death and our fleeting time on the earth. I was inspired by our trip to The Arc – Archaeology at Chester House Estate, seeing the importance of the traces we leave behind and the knowledge this brings.

I was able to visit https://gardenmuseum.org.uk and meet with friend and author Kathy Page to discuss ideas of Above and Below. I had been to visit her in British Columbia, and she had taken me to see some magnificent ancient forests which had trees which were both dead and alive. This was a pivotal moment as it brought me back into the land of the living and the idea of landscape as a heritage environment. I attended a variety of online writing / literature events, made very bad notes, and attempts at poems. I revisited my love of printmaking and had conversations with several inspirational artists.

I got myself into some tangles along the way as my literal brain insisted on tripping me up! My first application was unsuccessful, but the feedback was so encouraging I went back and looked at everything again and with help from my Accelerator Mentor Suzanne Oliver, Heritage Projects and Partnerships Officer Directorate of Research and Knowledge Exchange, University of Northampton managed to restructure the project and I was awarded the grant.

During the project I want to create space for people to breathe, slow down & connect with their local environment & heritage. It will be transformative experience for both the artists I will be working with and the community, combining art, history, & community engagement. The project has the potential to foster a sense of community pride and belonging, providing opportunities for individuals to see their personal responses reimagined.

Above an Below – Project Aims:

• community transformed by industrialisation; the project invites viewers to consider the enduring presence of the past in the present.

• natural environment, represented by the “Mother of the Woods” inspired by the Cathedral Beech in Fineshade Woods. It highlights the interconnectedness of life & death as expressed through nature.

• communities that have shaped Corby over time, emphasizing the importance of shared experiences & the creation of a sense of place.

• listen within an immersive installation, the project encourages reflection, contemplation, & a deeper connection to the surrounding environment & its history.

I decided that it would be good to combine making images for the textiles which will be part of the installation with taking part in the Do the 100 Day Project. I am using inks, watercolours, found stamps, poetry word stamps, stamps made from actual photos of trees, stamps made from simple drawings, pigment pens, Karisma pencils and collage papers from older books. I have tried not to overthink things and to get into a flow state. It has been delicious just spending time exploring materials and thinking about the task ahead.

This link will take you to the many trees in Fineshade and also more about the Cathedral Beech Tree

https://www.fineshade.org.uk/trees

This link will take you to the history of Fineshade Abbey

History of Fineshade Abbey

Fineshade Wood, described by the Forestry Commission as:

“an ancient mixed broadleaf and conifer woodland with waymarked walks, car park and Caravan Club site. The wood contains rich semi-natural native woodland, as well as areas of conifers that are gradually being restored to site-native broadleaf woodland under the ‘Ancient Woodland Project’. The wood was coppiced for many centuries, and the remnant coppice banks can still be seen. The coppice was used in the past for charcoal making, and there is evidence of medieval and Roman iron smelting in the wood.”

Some lovely blog posts about the excellent work that has been done to connect the community to Rockingham Forest

Rockingham Forest Vision’s blog

This link will take you to information about the geology and landscape

Quarried landscapes of Rockingham Forest