After days of sunshine last week, the weather has become more typical of the Orkney I know. It may be cold and grey but the colours and the clouds sitting on top of the hills are a gift to paint and draw.
There were clouds both above and below the hills of Hoy
Meanwhile, work continues in Trench Y, where the wall they are uncovering is proving most interesting. Read all about it in the Dig Diary for today at www.nessofbrodgar.co.uk
There is progress in Trench Y, down by the water’s edge, where they are looking for the outer wall of the settlement. A test pit revealed what they were hoping for so this has been enlarged.
Obviously it’s early days but they are optimistic that it’s the corner of the wall.
Meanwhile further digging is going deeper towards the water, to see what happens outside the wall. Compared to other trenches, there is a lot of top soil much softer and easier to dig. But it is still back breaking work. They work hard and energetically, which means my drawings are even more sketchy.
I’m learning to let a couple of lines speak, and not try to make something more finished – hoping it will work well when it is integrated into the film.
In response to a comment by a-n blogs on Twitter: Do Artists in Residence need a plan? I have decided the answer is no. The whole point of being an Artist in Residence is to interact with the host context and for that you need an open mind, just as you do when meeting people. I have regarded every residency as a leap in the dark, which is why I resisted reading anything on archaeology before coming to the Ness of Brodgar. Although the first encounter may be daunting, to see uncluttered by preconceptions is to see with clarity.
Each day I arrive on site not knowing what I will do. Today is my 55th day since I began the residency in 2016. The morning was cold and, being the end of the week, I was tired. But by wandering round the site something caught my eye – as it usually does. The previous four days have been about the mundane tasks of uncovering the trenches and cleaning them up. Then a new trench was started and another extended, which all involves fairly brutal work with mattocks and shovels. In contrast today I focussed on two intricate and extremely delicate areas of the archaeology.
The hearths in two separate structures very different at first glance but sharing an amazing rich variety of colours in the burnt material. Difficult to excavate and difficult to paint.
Finally I saw a large cattle jaw bone lifted out of a structure – so fragile it was expected to disintegrate when moved. But with great skill it came out in one piece.
A good day without a plan…
Two trenches are uncovering new ground. Trench J has been extended and today they are starting to find bits of pottery.
The other is a completely new trench by the loch edge. This is a colour sketch that will be used behind the drawing below, when it becomes a film still.
By sitting low down in the grass, I was pleased to get some sound of actual wind in the grass, rather than noise in the microphone.
I have become aware of the need to achieve a balance:
People are asking what my plan is this year. Presumably because it is my third season there is an assumption that there is a clear route, which is far from the case. If I have a plan, it is simply to continue – putting one foot in front of the other. But alongside this gradual perambulation I need to allow time for reflection.
In I Swear I Saw This Michael Taussig says: “The way I see it, a plan of research is little more than an excuse for the real thing to come along”. So I am hoping that my ‘research’ in the form of drawing and conversation will throw something up. Last year the ‘rapture of the archive’ moment happened out of the blue, when I handled a worked stone that appeared to be something a Neolithic person drew with. I really just need to wait and watch.
One of the archaeologists suggested perhaps some group conversation might be interesting. That could be good if it is not to formal and forced.
Meanwhile today’s drawing of a team beginning to extend Trench J could be seen as a metaphor for my situation…
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.
