I have started documenting the work being done to restore Russell Gardens. Today I caught up with the contractors putting in some new posts and paving stones. Next week there will be contractors laying tarmac which I will try and catch. Too often the hard graft behind creating a beautiful space (or piece of work) goes unrecorded.
I have been commissioned by Dover District Council, to portray Russell Gardens in Dover Kent, the only example of Thomas H Mawson’s garden design in the South East that is open to the public: Kearsey Abbey and Russell Gardens form the Kearsney Parks, the subject of a Heritage Lottery Funded project to restore a unique heritage, community and event venue.
The project is being delivered with Dover Arts Development (DAD) by the Kearsney Parks project, a DDC project with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund and Big Lottery Fund Parks for People programme. See more here.
It is a great opportunity for me to continue my research into:
I’ve started some research into Thomas Mawson and lines of enquiry include finding out more about the arts and crafts influence on garden design and his contribution in particular with a view to understanding its contemporary relevance. And of course I shall be considering the history of Russell Garden itself and the role of gardens generally as social & sensory spaces, as constructed ‘natural’ spaces existing between culture/nature, order/chaos, leisure/work.
I’ve visited the Park many times as a resident and regularly take my dog for a run in the adjoining Bushy Ruff, so I am really looking forward to getting stuck in.
I’ve spoken to the park keepers and given them a gopro to capture some immersive footage while they go about their day-to-day work and have been in touch with the architect who will be doing the restoration work.
Here are a few photos to whet your appetite!
Clare Smith's mixed English/Chinese heritage informs her perspective on issues of identity and categorisation. Her nomadic childhood and early adulthood have meant a somewhat ambivalent relationship to place, reinforced by the sense of ambiguity that comes from her mixed identity. Smith works with drawing, print media, collage and moving image to investigate this ambivalence, with references to craft, the importance of labour and the handmade. Through her choice of materials and approaches, she creates work which attempts to create a sense of unity, an interpretation of Homi Bhabha's "Third Space" - seen as a space in which different parts can come together to challenge dominant ideas of wholeness. Collaboration is part of Smith’s practice and she is also co-founder of Dover Arts Development (DAD) together with painter, Joanna Jones. This involves working with many different artists, curation, organisation, event management, creating networks across East Kent and influencing the public realm in Dover. Clare works from a studio in Dover. She has an MA in Fine Art from Central Saint Martins and has exhibited nationally and internationally.
