What I came to understand whilst I was up there is just how important the space I was projecting in influenced me. It was no longer just about projecting into a space but became much more about how the space projected onto me as well. Within its physical structure I felt affected by its presence and this really changed my approach when performing...
The tombs themselves gave me a great insight into just how interconnected we used to be to our landscapes. The spiritual chambers revealed how humanity once revolved around the circles of life, both natures and the humanities. I feel overwhelmed by the connection we used to have to our lands, and how we have lost it. I feel very changed by the experience, like a new air has been breathed into the understanding and research for this piece. What I found out in Orkney that I didn't imagine to find was just how far apart we feel now to the spaces we live in and inhabit, and also how much they can affect us emotionally. Sometimes, when entering them I felt scared of the darkness and the sense of enclosure, not knowing what to expect, it was like the spaces themselves could mirror our very own nature and within them reveal our humanity...It again became all about facing yourself in a space.
I had an overwhelming experience in the Italian Chapel, where I felt like I was vibrating off the space and like a part of my inner self had opened, and I was projecting something that I didn't know to exist inside me. The voice was a way to free this part of my internal self and it allowed me to come out of the physical dimension of my own body and for my energy to penetrate the space. It was like a dimension being opened within me and being expressed through my voice. The tones and the strength in my voice was like no other, and this made me realise just how important my connection to the space was in order for my final composition...
In saying this, I am now a little confused as to how this realisation will affect the project and exactly how an audience will fit into the final piece. I normally make my work very discursive and create an interactive dimension for the public to exchange with. Yet this piece seems like a very private dialogue between myself and the space and it is the performance between us, where we call to one another that will be witnessed. I need to question what is the purpose for the audience within this piece and how can incorporate them so that they can also enter into this external/internal dialogue....Could I do it through me?...
So, my questions are where am I trying to go with piece?....And how is it going to transform into a work of art?.. I need to start piecing all the different elements of my research and thought process together and begin forming a plan. I think for now I want to focus on this project as a physical space that one can enter...I have been looking at the different qualities of resonant chambers and I would be interested in creating one to begin building and creating within the project. I am still very interested in the notion that these chambers represent the physical and internal spaces of the human body. Fundamentally, I want to create a space for humanity to exist in...like their own personal world.
