The Great North Museum is holding another temporary exhibition, The Long View, and if you haven’t already done so - it deserves a visit.
The exhibition is put together and presented, on a very personal level, by Rob and Harriet Fraser who have spent two years visiting, photographing, sketching and being inspired by seven ‘remarkably ordinary’ Cumbrian trees.
In turn, the exhibition, introduces each tree encapsulating its setting and location alongside the Frasers’ impressive photography, sketches, personal musings and poetry. Aptly suited to the exhibition space, the seven trees span the entire wall length of the Great North Museum, providing the visitor with a visually attractive, colourful and no short of impressive ‘Long View’ of the exhibition.
‘The Long View’ focuses on the importance of walking and pausing during our hectic schedules; acknowledging the environments role in allowing us to do this and to feel peaceful.
Another personal touch is that each tree’s section of the exhibition is identified by a plaque made of the same wood type. The plaque includes the tree’s identifying name, co-ordinates and altitude. After being introduced to the visitor, the trees are collectively considered in a sculptured piece of artwork. The sculpture consists of seven sections, ordered according to the way the Frasers’ walked between the seven trees; each section relates specifically to one tree.
Additionally, each section is made from the same wood type as the tree it relates to, meanwhile, the sections width corresponds to the walking distance to that tree, and the height reflects the highest point of the walk.‘The Long View’ focuses on the importance of walking and pausing during our hectic schedules; acknowledging the environments role in allowing us to do this and to feel peaceful. The exhibition also depicts how the Frasers’ temporarily transformed each of the seven trees in relation to a colour of the rainbow and the Indian philosophy of the Chakra system. The idea is to invite the visitor to think about something familiar in a new way.
The exhibition also depicts how the Frasers’ temporarily transformed each of the seven trees in relation to a colour of the rainbow and the Indian philosophy of the Chakra system.
Additionally, the Frasers’ also examine seven trees situated in Newcastle’s city centre - at least one will be familiar, the willow tree in the Armstrong quad of the university campus. This transforms the exhibition; as the visitor recognises the trees it allows for a more personal reflection on the constant nature of the trees we pass during our day-to-day lives, as the Frasers’ write ‘leaves whisper while the city shouts’.
‘The Long View’ exhibition at the Great North Museum: Hancock is on until 4th March and can be found near the special exhibitions hall.