The Folkestone Triennial is one of the most ambitious public art projects presented in the UK. It takes place 30th August – 2nd November 2014, open daily 10am-5pm. The theme of this year’s Triennial is “Lookout”.
Located in the seaside town of Folkestone on the south-east coast of England, invited artists utilise public spaces to create work that reflects issues affecting both the town and the wider world. Artists commissioned to take part in previous Triennials include Cornelia Parker, Tracey Emin, Jeremy Deller, Martin Creed and Richard Wilson.
The Folkestone Triennial takes place every three years, this year being the third time, and is one of the five key projects of the Creative Foundation, an independent visionary arts charity dedicated to enabling the regeneration of Folkestone through creative activity. The five projects are: Folkestone Creative Quarter, Folkestone Quarterhouse, Folkestone Triennial, Folkestone Book Festival and Folkestone Artworks.
It was my first time in Folkestone when I went for the Triennial on Oct 8th, and so I joined a walking tour led by MA Curation student Lauren Holmes. In spite of not being properly prepared for the rain that fell during the early part of the tour, I really enjoyed both the town and the art. Many of the artworks are visible from the street, but you get a better view if you go during opening hours. Since much of the art is outdoors it is mostly sculpture and sculptural installation, much of it site specific.
We started on the walking tour at the harbour end of Tontine Street, at the Triennial visitor’s centre in the Creative Quarter. It was about three hours and as you follow along with the photos I took you can see that the weather changed a few times! It was not enough time to see everything, so I will be going back in a couple of weeks time to see more!
The following images are in the order of our walking tour.
Come along and tour the Folkestone Triennial:
Heaven is a Place Where Nothing Every Happens
One of the permanent outdoor works in the Artworks collection.
Undélaissé – To Reminisce the Future by Sharing Bread and Stories
An audio installation in a garden where in WWI 60 people were killed by a bomb.
SKYLADDER 2014
an ‘instruction’ work
Payers Park
A transformed space for adults and children.
Amusefood
On the roof of a college an aquaculture setup grows everything you need for fish and chips!
Fish, peas, chives, mint and potatoes.
Amusefood
The fish tanks look like fry vats and the spuds at the other end of the greenhouse are doing very well!
From the college roof we saw our second of a series of five sculptures called the Pent Houses. Water tanks placed along the line of the hidden waterways of the Pent Stream.
Giving It All That
Sculptural installations in a very derelict house on Tontine Street. The teardrop form in ceramic reappears to signify: eye, breast, teardrop, drop of sweat and locks of hair. It looked both fragile and roughly made.
Rain Shadow
Video of his lying down on the pavement in the rain to leave a dry patch shaped like his body. It was surprising to see passersby walk around the dry patch.
Whithervanes: A Neurotic Early Worrying System (NEWS)
Five headless chicken sculptures on high buildings, that react to the amount of anxiety in newsfeeds by swiveling round.
We spotted our third Pent House.
The Wind Lift
A wind powered lift that will carry people to the top of the viaduct.
The Wind Lift
A wind powered lift that will carry people to the top of the viaduct.
The Wind Lift
A wind powered lift that will carry people to the top of the viaduct.
You can see the sea over there between the land and the sky.
Green/Light (for M.R.)
Hop garden strings and light poles on the footprint of one of the original gasometers on the site.
Earth Peace 2014
One of the many sightings.
Earth Peace appears in many places as posters in shops and houses, on billboards, as stickers, postcards and badges and as a morse code message beamed out by a light over the Channel.
Clay Window
The outside view, the clay layer is on the inside of the glass.
Clay Window
The view from inside with only the light from outside showing through the cracks of the drying clay layer on the inside of the glass.
Next we went down to the harbour. Our fourth sighting of a Pent House.
Folkestone Digs
Gold bars are buried in the sand. I feel that the artwork is the people digging.
Steve
A steel pavilion plus three seating benches.
Steve
Looking through one of the sides of the pavilion.
The Folkestone Mermaid
One of the permanent Artworks pieces.
With some surfers taking advantage of the rough seas.
The Electrified Line
From the back side, in the distance
The Electrified Line (Cross-track Observation-deck).
A bamboo structure on decking over a disused railway line with bamboo wind chimes.
The Electrified Line (Cross-track Observation-deck).
The Electrified Line
From the front side, in the distance
Vigil
He camped out on a platform suspended on the side of a hotel looking out over the harbour.
The theme of this year’s Triennial is “Lookout”.
Rug People
Note the rotting away rug under the figures.
A permanent work in Folkestone Artworks.
Is Why the Place
A pair of neon signs in the former Harbour Railway Station.
Is Why the Place
A pair of neon signs in the former Harbour Railway Station. A victim of the space, I found that the haunting location and the gorgeous sunlight overpowered the artwork.
Lookout!
I have had these songs in my head for a week now!
Submitted ‘complaints and aspirations’ were composed into songs, sung by a choir and filmed.
Text shown in video: “It won’t be good if it would get much bigger.”
Earth Peace 2014
Goodbye at the train station!
