We were not always an island.
When we connected to the continent.
When the Thames flowed into the Rhine.
The contemplative video art 'doggerLANDscape' is based on Louvel’s search for the remnants of the submerged forest of Doggerland along the Lincolnshire coast. It documents her geological finds of the ancient tree’s remnants appearing at neap tide. After embarking on a walk, she eventually found at low tide a series of tree trunks and stumps exposed at Cleethorpes beach and fossilised trees in clay at Wolla Bank near Chapel Point. From sightseeing and placing herself in the land, she has developed ‘journey-form’ narratives on the lost world of Doggerland, experimenting with sounds, voice and visuals.
Within Doggerland lies a forceful political and environmental dimension at a time when we have deliberately extracted ourselves from the continent. On Christmas eve 2020, Prime Minister Boris Johnson hailed the Brexit deal and declared that we––the United Kingdom––are an “independent coastal state”, to then contradict himself seemingly by saying, ‘we will remain culturally, emotionally, historically, strategically, geologically attached to Europe’. How ‘geologically’ are we attached? And what are the extremities of our island?
Our insularity has emerged over centuries of sea level surging, separating us from the continent and engulfing lives. It seems that our independent British coastal state is only temporary, as we can expect it to be reconnected during future glacial periods. By engaging with both the present and the history of the site, 'doggerLANDscape' contributes to examining our connection to the continent, prompting us to reflect on our identity as British islanders.
Featuring two tracks from the album ‘We Are One Land’ and ‘On The Shoreline On That Day’. The album is available at https://catwerkimprint.bandcamp.com/album/doggerlandscape
A University of Brighton series of events to coincide with Emma Stibbon’s Melting Ice | Rising Tides exhibition at Towner Eastbourne. During this breakfast screening artist filmmakers present moving image relating to the coast, performance and the Sussex landscape.
Also showing:
Marisa Hayes, Kinaesthetic Tides: Transforming with Landscapes in Amy Greenfield’s ‘Dance as Film’
Marcia Teusink, Uncertain Edges (2023)
Olivia Louvel, doggerLANDscape (2023)
Claudia Kappenberg and Julieanna Preston, Shore Variations (2018)
Amy Cunningham, Material + Time (2024)
Joining Doggerland is a mixed-media group exhibition addressing the anticipated flooding set to affect the Fenlands, East Anglia, coastal Britain, and low-lying London in the next five years.
Curated by Shannon Best
With support from Goldsmiths Exhibitions Hub