'In our own time', 8 - 17 June 2000, Wysing Arts, Bourn, Cambridge.


During our 10 day residency, we conducted short interviews with local people, asking about their favourite 'place and time'.
Armed with notepads, mbiras (thumb pianos) and a digital camcorder, we journeyed to the given locations (all within walking distance of Bourn) and recorded mbira improvisations and video footage. We were joined for several days by fine artist Angela Hinds and musician Jub Davis and also met with writer Steve Waters and behavioural psychologist Carle Sharp. An informal sharing was held at the end of this period to an invited audience that included local artists, students and lecturers from Loughborough University and children from Bourn primary school.

Here are some stills and quotes from the interviews: Whats your favourite place? What time do you like to go there?


 
 

 

Gale: "In the buttercup field... Early morning... about 7 am.... normaly on my own... theres a mad cow!... oh hours... you have to go and talk to the lady in the cottage Kate Amrstrong"
Lee: "Just the ford... its just nice to go up there...looking at the water... in the evenings...7-7:30... 10 minutes in the evening."
Gareth: "Its a walk rather than a place... its a point where you go across a crest and one side you look to a very big black barn and if you look back you look back to towards the village and the church and the hall ... when the light is low... in the evening... always alone...thats what its there for ... to be there at the right time and in the right frame of mind is something that is very difficult to describe."
Phillipa: "Probably the Jubilee, the large park.. theres loads of room..swings ...its nice up there its quiet... peaceful... away from all the children... when ever i'm free really... theres not really a special time...with friends normally...just sit and chat...peaceful."
Donna and Peta: "Theres nowhere else to go apart from here, the little park and the Jubilee... here is special because we can hang about and go to the shop... but we all got banned...between 6 and half nine - ten...always as a group."

Kate Armstrong: "Wimpole Hall... because again they manage it...its not too cultivated...theres a little pond... you can hear the fish spawning...early morning or early evening because the lights special or on a cold winters day... everythings crystal clean...almost like its all done in glass... photographic light ...i like strolling with my husband without the children because of the distraction... its almost nice to soak it in without anybody else that would be bliss...an afternoon and a picknic would be wonderful."

"If you leave things generaly alone, nature takes things over and you find things happening..."

 

Sonya Cumming: "Granchester Meadows... a nice walk...with other people i wouldn't go by my self...i would go with a friend or my partner...relaxing and a nice atmosphere...time sits still...if you've got time to sit and enoy the surroundings...apointment after apointment...mobile phone goes... its all manic. I'm working to my watch all day."

 

"You can be with someone in labour for 8 to 10 hours...you've just got to wait... shes hasn't been aware of the time...shes so focused on whats happening with her body shes completely oblivious..."




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