Bibliography

Ford, S. (2005) ‘Potlatch, Psychogeography, Dérive, and Détourement’, in The Situationist International: A User’s Guide. London: Black Dog Publishing, pp. 33-37

Harman, K. (2004) You Are Here: Personal Geographies and Other Maps of the Imagination. New York: Princeton Architectural Press

Pearson, M. (2006). “Bubbling Tom,” In Comes I. Exeter, Exeter press, pp. 21-29

Pearson, M. (2006). In comes I. Performance, Memory and Landscape. Exeter. Exeter press

Pearson, M. (2010) Site-Specific Performance. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan

Phillips, A. (2005) ‘Cultural Geographies in Practice: Walking and Looking’, Cultural Geographies 12: 507-513

Pinder, D. (2005) ‘Arts of Urban Exploration’, Cultural Geographies, 12(4), pp. 383-411

Rendell, J. (2006) ‘Site, Non-Site, Off-Site’ in Rendell, J. Art and Architecture: A Place Between

Tompkins, J. (ed.) (2012) ‘The ‘Place’ and Practice of Site-Specific Theatre and Performance’, in Birch, A. (ed.) Performance Site-Specific Theatre: Politics, Place, Practice. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan

Critical Evaluation of the guided walk

Today I was really excited to show the rest of the group what work myself and Rachel had produced. We met at the Proud Archivist where other groups were setting up their projects, in different spaces. Everybody was expected to be ready for 10 am and the running order of the day is displayed below.

Noisy Maps, Silent Walks (10am) – continuous
Behind Closed Doors (10am) – continuous
We Want You! (10am) – continuous
Hate and Space (10am) continuous
The Madness Within (10.15am) Performance
Desire Lines through the Past (10.15am) Every Hour
Change…What Change? (10.30am) Continuous Installation
Body Mapping (10.30am) Performance
The Lover (11am) Performance
The Madness Within (11am) Performance
Desire Lines through the Past (11.15am) Every Hour
Body Mapping (11.30) Performance
Bath (11.45am) Performance
The Lover (12pm) Performance
Change…What Change? (12.15pm) Performance
Desire Lines through the Past (12.15pm) Every Hour
The Madness Within (12.15pm) Performance
Body Mapping (12.30pm) Performance
Bath (12.45) Performance
The Lover (1pm) Performance
Desire Lines through the Past (1.15pm) Every Hour
The Madness Within (1.15pm) Performance
Change…What Change (1.15pm) Performance
Body Mapping (1.30pm) Performance

The structure of the walk:
I will facilitate the walk and discuss the Regents canal and Thomas Briggs locations and Rachel. J will take the lead on the Rosemary Gardens and the Rosemary Branch Theatre.

I felt a bit disappointed because the weather was awful and due to the heavy rain fall, I thought to myself people would not want to take a long walk in the rain. When I could see everybody had arrived, I started handing out my leaflets and asked who wanted to join me and Rachel on the walk. There was no surprise that my class mates wanted to concentrate on their own projects and did not want to get wet. Thankfully my lecturer Solomon and PhD student Blake, was happy to take part in the walk. We provided them with the pamphlets, maps and pencils, then started the walk outside the Proud Archivist. I provided them with factual history about the canal whilst creating a descriptive vision, of what it was like in the 18’00s. On the maps provided I asked them to write down, any memories they retrieved from the canal, whether it was a different canal or something completely different. I explained it could be written, drawn or they could use different symbols, the important thing was they were mapping their own memories. The participants observations were really interesting and they asked some really good questions. They were asked to also add any observations to their maps. We had some interesting conversations on the walk about, how a location has a lot more meaning when you become familiar with the history. The conversation ended with us all discussing canals or lakes in our own towns growing up and how they, were different to the hackney canal through community and architecture.

What our participants used the canal for:

1. Cycling to work
2. Walking
3. Socialising
4. Relaxing

What our participants memories of the canal were:

1. Uncle found a dead body
2. Fishing with grandad
3. Eating all the bate
4. Local tensions and relationships
5. A lot of fun
6. The smell of fresh air

We walked up the stairs to the left of the canal just before the Rosemary Branch bridge and carried on across the road to our next building, the Thomas Briggs Building. I discussed the historical background of this building, explaining the different business that took place in the building and what it is used for today. The building is private so unfortunately we could only stand out side, but I guided the participants to the entrance, which is a long path that horse and carts used in the 1800’s. They were surprised all the original design and brick work, still existed because it is a Georgian building from the 1700’s. The participants were able to share my headphones and listen to the recording of the owner, giving us a short interview discussing what he knew about the building. I come to realise at this point that if there were more than two participants on the walk, this could have created a problem. Some. Participants may of become frustrated waiting while others listened to the recording. I remember doing an audio walk and this happened, so I would have emailed or messages participants the audio before the walk, if here were more people on the walk.

On the pamphlet was a map taken in 2005 I put there for a purpose, which was to reveal to participants that the factory does not even exist on recent maps. I am not surprised at this because, the owner explained to us in his interview that business people have been pestering him, to buy it so they can knock it down and make other uses with the space.

On the map below I have marked an X to show participants where the factory should be situated on the map. I also got them to compare it to a map I provided them with from 1875 and in the place where the X is the tent factory is situated.

The next location was the Rosemary Gardens, where there is a big contrast in the surroundings. It is a beautiful garden full of green grass, trees and wooden benches to sit and absorb the nature. There is also an old cobble pathway leading into the garden, that was built in the 1800’s. There was also a football/ basketball pitch for people in the area to come together and play sport. Rachel asked her participants to go for a walk around the park for five minutes and get a feel of their surroundings, also to map any memory or observations on the way. When participants returned they had gathered some leaves and Blake had discovered there were gold pins pierced into one of the trees. This give myself and Rachel a confidence boost that our walk was quite entertaining and Solomon and Blake were interested and enjoying it. Rachel shared some of the facts about the Rosemary gardens and we all discussed how nice it was to have that garden amongst a busy, industrialised borough, where residents can benefit from the piece and quiet.

The walk continued to our next location The Rosemary branch, which is a theatre and bar. The pub does not open until so we were unable to go in and show participants around. I was disappointed with this because the owner was happy for us to do this and confirmed it, when we interviewed her on the history of the building. Rachel shared some personal knowledge on the building and allowed our participants to listen to the interview, we had recorded from the owner Cecilia. Our participants were shocked that there was an actual theatre above the bar and so many high-end performances were performed here.

Things we did on the walk to ensure the safety of our participants:

1. Used road crossings
2. All walks on the pavement
3. Stay a safe distance from the canal
4. Being aware of cyclists, and vehicles

We returned to the Proud activist, where we got the chance to watch everyone else’s work. Everybody did a really good job because all the projects were different but inspiring. After experiencing everyone else’s work I was ready to do another guided walk, but no one wanted to participate due to the weather. I had a feeling this was going to happen and it upset me because I feel we put so much work in, for only two people to participate.

What I could of done to prevent this:

1. Recorded the walk so participants could have viewed it in doors
2. Checked the weather and asked for a day that would benefit the walk
3. The day being organised so people leave their projects to do the walk
4. Advertised it better to the public and not relying on class mates so much
5. Everyone agreeing to be a supported participant to each other’s projects, so everybody had an equal amount of attention paid to their work

I am very pleased with the work myself and Rachel produced, it has been an interesting experience and I have learnt so much more about performance. We also had the opportunity to learn so much about an area that is, growing in population and new contemporary architecture. I believe we give an opportunity for people to realise there is so much history and heritage to this Borough and it is important not to forget it, amongst the new contemporary developments.

These are the maps created by our two participants mapping their memory:

A run through of the guided walk with Hilary

It was very good to meet with Hilary today and show her what the project was looking like a week before the exam. When myself and Hilary began the walk she stopped me on the canal and asked me in-depth questions on the information I was providing her. As I stuttered I realised I didn’t know enough information to please participants, or give them a deeper knowledge. As the walk proceeded Hilary stopped me again and said I am explaining the 1800’s but it does not feel realistic. She said you are a performer paint the picture, bring that time to life, use descriptive words and actions to build a picture in participants mind. Me enthusiastic and fun when presenting it, to keep my audience interested. When giving facts about locations be ready to answer participants question on, why? Who? Where and how?

I explained I was trying to think of games for my participants to do to make the experience more entertaining, but Hilary did not think this was relevant, she insisted that I really think about what I want my participants to get out of the walk. We discussed the safety of participants, so when they are guided on the walk, we take them along the pavement and use road crossings.

Things to do:

1. Research buildings around the Canal what they were used for and why
2. Make sure I have names of the people involved with the construction of the canal
3. Do a rehearsed walk so I know the time I have to explain and create my atmosphere
4. I want to as them to map their memories on a map provided about any memories that they retrieve, from the walk. I feel this is important for me the stories people share.
5. Be sure to have a fun clear, confident revised script to let the walk flow in a natural manner. This will insure to keep participants interested
6. Leave participants time to explore and find their own findings.

Pamphlets designed for each location

Regents Canal

Thomas Briggs building

Rachel Johnson designed

Rosemary Branch

Rosemary Gardens

These are my notes for the walk

Rosemary Gardens

Rosemary Gardens was built on the site of the ‘Islington Vauxhall’, the name given in 1836 to the popular pleasure gardens of the Rosemary Branch. A tavern of that name had existed here from the 16th century.The park is also on the site of a 19th century Independent School, a factory and various small residential streets; fragments of the north wall of Carmarthen Street, and cobbled streets remain in the park. The park was extended in 1976, and tennis court were added in 1983, to bring the younger generation of the community together.

The public park was designed and opened to the public in June 1960 by Edwin Bayliss, Member of the LCC for East Islington. The ‘Islington Vauxhall’ site was taken over in 1783 for white-lead works with two windmills erected in 1786 and 1792, later supplanted by steam and no longer in use by 1835 at which time the mill pond was dry. A new tavern was rebuilt nearby next to Islington Common and had popular tea gardens, a pond supplied by the New River, elevated terraced walks and entertainment included pony racing and tightrope displays. The park has notable trees in the north-east corner of the ground; the south-west area is hummocky with scattered trees. Phased improvements have taken place in Rosemary Gardens, with phase I opening in late 2007 to provide new sports facilities, with funding from Islington Council, Barclays Spaces for Sport and Arsenal Football Club. In spring 2009 phase 2 was completed, providing further improvements such as new planting, paths and benches. This was funded by Islington Council and the Department for Children, Schools and Families, and was undertaken with schools and community involvement.

Sources consulted:

Eric Willats, Streets with a story: The Book of Islington, (London,1988); Ben Weinreb & Christopher Hibbert, ‘The London Encyclopaedia’ (Macmillan, revised ed. 1993)

The Rosemary Branch Theatre

This theatre was was built in the 1555, where it started out as a Victorian music hall, that reportedly hosted names such as Marie Lloyd and Charlie Chaplin. In 1992, the popular pub theatre, which is nestled on the border between Hackney and Islington, was taken over by the current artistic directors Cecilia Darker and Cleo Sylvestre, who refurbished the 67-seat venue.

The history:

1. 1555 Archers used to meet, practising their archery
2. 1641 meeting place for the levellers, they used to wear a bit of Rosemary in their hats, to denote they were Oliver Cromwell followers, as opposed to being true to the king
3. There have been a few Rosemary Branches due to some being burnt down in fires, from the war.
4. In Victoria times it was a minor musical, Murray Lloyd sang there and Charlie Chaplin played there
5. Late 20th century it was a theatre on and off
6. In the 70’s it was a fringe theatre
7. When bought in 1992 by a couple, owners said it was a squatters place and had one light bulb
8. In 2014 they won the off- west end award for the Most welcoming theatre, best food and best theatre bar in North London
9. The theatre and pub support each other
10. The wings on the roof are a gift from the artists who were using the Thomas Briggs building across the road.

The Rosemary Branch now sponsors a diverse range of dramatic and
musical theatre, and prides itself on supporting emerging talent in all areas of production. Year-round, audiences can view anything from Gilbert and Sullivan to Oscar Wilde, stand-up comedy, and a panto recreation of Beowulf. The Rosemary Branch also has a popular restaurant and bar serving a range of food and drinks amid quirky décor.

Thomas Briggs building

This building is a Georgian factory built in the 1700’s and was one of the first to be built on South-gate road. Throughout the first and first and second World War this factory was a tent manufacturer, for the Army until 1950’s. After this date, It was always a business that carried heavy canvas goods. The factory relied massively on the canal, to import the industrial goods they needed. The factory closed down in the 1960’s as it struggled for business, due to the canal not importing goods anymore and other factories and more contemporary buildings, were being constructed around it.

I have visited this building many times and spoke to the owner, who informed me that the building has had little refurbishment, and still has all of it’s original brick work on the outside. There is a small section to the right of the building that has been converted into a furniture shop. It is called the 2&4 that opened in 1997 and is known as a luxury, cool local coffee and sandwich shop, which also sells 20th century furniture. They also sell one off mirror and lighting designs and believe, where they are situated their services are a happy distraction for locals to unwind and forget about work. They take pride in providing some interesting well crafted designs and a good turnover of well priced vintage furniture. In 1997 other parts of the building were split into small units for artist and other rooms are rented to live in. I come across a resident who was walking his dog and he explained that the rooms inside the building, have not been refurbished.

The meeting and rehearsal walk with Hilary

The walk with Hilary was very helpful because her observations on what needs to be excavated more in depth, on our chosen sites, helped me to decide the structure on how the information is delivered to participants.

Tasks for next week:
1. Get relevant information and design a pamphlet with a clear content of the sites, we will visit for example, Regent canal, Rosemary Gardens, Thomas Briggs and the Rosemary Branch Theatre.
2. Create a script detailing the points we want to make about certain points along the walk, allowing us to improvise on it.
3. Work out a structure on who will lead on delivering certain information. I do believe both artists should bounce off each other when delivering the information, so it provides a more natural feel and not too rehearsed.
4. Create a number of activities for participants to take part in on the walk, to make it more fun and exciting. This will enable participants to explore with the site more in-depth.

Previous to this lesson I have researched and found a lot of history on my sites, so now I need to transfer and structure this information into a pamphlet. I want participants to be able to map their own memory on this walk so, I will provide a map that allows them to add any past or present memories. It can be any memory that the canal, Rosemary gardens or the theatre may retrieve. They can mark their memories on the map any way they would like to for example, it can be a symbol, drawing or written words.

History of the Regents canal

The Regent’s Canal, built between 1812 and 1820, was of later date and built to a much higher standard of construction and engineering technology. The provision of twin locks along the canal‘s length made for speedier journeys. Some trade was lost to the railways in the mid 19th century and after the First World War to the roads, but the canal remained a commercial waterway until 1950. By the 1950s much of the central and eastern sections were run down and derelict. The severe winter of 1962-3 when canals throughout the country were frozen for weeks, broke inland water freight forever, as cargoes transferred to the roads and never returned. From the 1960s onwards campaigning by groups such as the Inland Waterways Association, British Waterways and local amenity societies has done much to improve the canal as a leisure and environmental entity and to regenerate industrial and residential premises adjoining the canal. Throughout much of the length of the canal in Hackney, to both the south and north banks are extensive public housing estates, especially between Actons Lock and the Kingsland Basin.

The Regent’s Canal in Hackney is used well by the local community, boaters and commuters who use the towpath for cycling, socialising and walking to work. Along some sections of the canal and on the basins are surviving 19th and early 20th century warehouses and industrial buildings, many formerly associated with the furniture and building trades, which dominated the canal-side wharves of Hackney at this time. There is great pressure on the traditional characteristics and uses of the canal. It is no longer used for freight and despite pleasure craft using the waterway, the industrial nature of the canal and adjacent buildings has been lost. A growing trend is the total or partial demolition of old factories and warehouses on sites beside the canal and their replacement with new housing developments. Often large in scale, as on the former Gainsborough Studios site adjacent to New North Road, these new developments are altering the character of the Regent’s Canal and that of its immediate environs.

The most significant changes that have occurred beside the canal are relatively recent. Since the late 1980s and especially since the mid-1990s there has been change in use of former industrial buildings beside the canal into residential accommodation. An example of this is the former Royle Card Factory beside Wenlock Basin which now comprises desirable waterside lofts (Figure 4). A tandem trend can be also observed, which has seen the demolition of semi-derelict and unused canalside industrial buildings and their replacement with new housing developments, on these Brownfield sites. This trend seems likely to continue. Market research has shown that waterside developments increase development values by more than 20% – it is therefore unsurprising that the Regent’s Canal in Hackney is under pressure given the proximity to the City of London and the completion of the East London Line extension to Dalston by 2010.