I was lucky enought to get the oppertunity to work along Leith Hill Place in the creation of an installation for their basement space, based on the theme of environmental protection and the importance of mycelium and detritavores. Part of the breif was the inclusion of the quote “When I am laid in the earth, may my wrongs create no trouble in thy breast” – paraphrased from the first two lines of Dido’s Lament. In oder to help design the Install, I first created a model of the space in maya to map into in terms of designing placement of the elements within the insallation, as seen below.

During my time working of the install project for Leith Hill, I had the opportunity to design an installation based on the brief for ‘Going Underground’ and work alongside Cathrine McCusker to organise and plan the lighting, layout, materials and lettering following a £200 budget. I visited the site to take photos and view the space before creating a proposal through making a 3D model/photoshop mock-up of the installation with examples of artist inspiration to give an overview of my ideas. I had meetings with Cathrine, Amanda and Sarah to discuss and finalize our ideas for the project as well as meeting and speaking with many of those working at the house. The installation itself was completed over three days and included creating a mycelium-like structure using thread, polymer clay snails and lettering cut from lace, arranged and sewn to the mycelium threads in a manner to create depth and create audience engagement through the need to shift positions and peer within the structure in order to read the words – a quote from Dido’s Lament. There were a range of issues we encountered during the project that needed to be resolved, such as the weight of the cardboard coffin meaning it needed to be presented on an acetate plinth as opposed to hung from the ceiling, the lace needing to be laminated to prevent it distorting in the damp conditions of the basement, as well as working around the restrictions in place to protect the building. I found the work fast-paced and demanding but incredibly rewarding and would love to work with Leith Hill Place in the future, perhaps through my plans to apply for an artist in residency position there once applications open. I have also made plans to return both for artist talks to the public, visits to continue work within the space such as the addition of further insects and a felted floor piece based on slime mould.

I feel the install project has helped me gain experience in creating install works outside of university, learn more about the workings at the National Trust and Leith Hill place and to design for a different audience. The install required long hours working in dim/UV lighting and I found that despite the difficulties and what was for me a completely different environment form anywhere I’ve worked on installations before, that I surprised myself with the amount I was able to get done and put together during my time there. I feel this experience has helped prepare me to apply for similar opportunities in the future, as well as test my making skills.