In Hayle, Penwith, and wider Cornwall there is a tradition of locals migrating away from their homeland in search of work and opportunity. Yet this migration is countered by one in the other direction – incomers drawn by the beauty of Cornwall, its artistic heritage, its lifestyle and remoteness, or, as in the growing Polish community, by job opportunities. At times there is conflict between Cornish and incomers, over housing shortages and economic opportunities and perceived cultural differences, over second homes, drug problems, class differences. At times the inward migration is celebrated – the financial successes of incomer-led projects such as the Minack Theatre, the Eden Project, the Tate St Ives or Jamie Oliver's Fifteen can contribute to this. These tensions and celebrations reflect what happens with human migration in the wider world, in England, Europe and elsewhere. We are interested in the role of culture, class, ethnicity and race in allowing migrants to adapt to and contribute to their host communities, on a macro political level and a human, personal level.
Migration is not, however, purely human. Cornwall's climate and geographical position make it a stopping off point for animal and bird migration, with Hayle estuary RSPB reserve playing host to thousands of winter migrant birds, with the Atlantic currents and tides bringing unexpected visitors and the climate supporting famous gardens of exotic plants. These natural incomers create a specific landscape and physical environment as a setting and inspiration for art.
We believe that these ideas will inspire strong conceptual installation in the front room which would resonate with and challenge our audience of established art lovers and high street passers-by. We want to work with artists to produce a coherent and vibrant series of linked shows exploring as many facets of migration as possible.
From 2009, ten artists will present their visions of change and continuity linked by the concept of MIGRATION. Human and natural migration is a key element of Cornish life, from the annual influx of visitors to the county to the birds flocking to Hayle's nature reserves and the changing fish in our seas. It can lead to both tension and creativity in the community and in the arts here. This project will attempt to examine the changes and adaptations by all involved in migration.
There will be an open competition to recruit artists to take part, soliciting applications by advertising and networking, from which ten projects will be selected to address and complement our theme of "Migration" and each other. the front room projects will then support and mentor the artists and their creative processes and exhibit the resulting work in our dedicated public space. Each of the ten works will be exhibited for two months during the two year project period and will be linked to the other works produced for the project in order to create a defined identity for the shows.
"Migration" has been selected as the theme for the project because it has resonances at all geographic levels and therefore for many in our audience and our artistic communities. The term is used as loosely as possible, to include human migration both out of and into communities, but also the migration of ideas, cultures and natural phenomena, so that individual artists can find some part of the theme which resonates with them and their work. Migration encompasses the idea of change, of the individual influence on the collective whole and the collective whole influencing the individual. the front room projects itself is part of this synthesis, attempting to move the artistic audience from its traditional haunts of St Ives and Newlyn to the more prosaic environs of Hayle, and drawing in a new audience for conceptual art from the pubs, shops and caravan parks of Hayle.
