An amazingly still day – hardly any wind, which is so unusual. Voices carry across the trench. Huge cotton wool clouds moving very slowly. Some rain on the far horizon. The sky is so big. The trench is huge when you keep your eyes on the ground but becomes tiny when you look up to the sky. Has the normal windy weather meant that I keep my head down?
Then the rain came down.
Structure 1 has an unbelievably square plan. Hard to believe its age and ability to survive.
Trench tour for the many specialists working with the Ness of Brodgar makes me feel in awe of the complexity of the dig. Put in parallel with my project as Artist in Residence, it shows up the bewildering nature of what I am attempting. Must hold on to the process of drawing and trust that will reveal a way forward.
On a lighter note, at morning coffee break, while getting out of the wind, flapjack and shortbread are passed round. Other food consumed includes sushi and crunchy peanut butter balanced on banana.
Hugo talked most interestingly about how Structure 14 may have been built – what was probably established first and how, bit by bit, the (non architect based) structure gradually appeared over time. Stones straight on to earth. (Our early C19 cottage was originally six inch ashlars directly on earth – so not a lot has changed over 5000 years). Then Martha was pointing out how the size of stones in different structures indicate whether it took one man or two to build a wall. Also, there are rounded stones beside a wall of Structure 8 that appear to have been dumped – and where did they come from? There is a pervading air of randomness mixed with pragmatism and serendipity, which resonates with the way I work.
More pictures from the site in today’s sunshine.
Re excavation. Revisiting an eight year old trench. Yesterday they excavated the black plastic. Today brushing, weeding and gentle spade work, dragging off earth settled on top of previously exposed stone. Like working with a big trowel. Not on their knees but still bent over. Housework clearing up loose stones with brush and shovel.
Mild, damp, grey upon grey. The grass is lighter than the sky. The waves on the loch travel one way and the clouds appear to blow in the other direction.
Wet paint
I draw and paint the everyday world, and have kept a daily drawing journal since January 2013, which is shared via social media. I am curious about the role of images and how they are perceived by the viewer; in particular how visual rhetoric influences their perceptions through historical reference, methods of display, and curatorial input.
