Earth Story: Pam Franklin

Navigating with eclectic, natural instruments – a Polynesian stick chart to read the currents by, a Dogon ladder for the soul, and the whorled casings of seashells or rams’ horns – she offers diptych and triptych works for the viewer to engage with directly.

As we fold and unfold each hinged panel or door, we join her at the thresholds of myriad stories drawn from the natural world. Attending to the flight patterns of house martins (now on the red list), the fruiting of apricots (in danger of extinction), and the turbulence of (altered) ocean currents, we find ourselves celebrating and mourning simultaneously. Franklin gently positions the quiet action of contemplation alongside the overwhelming narrative of climate change – to re-open a radical space for wonder and counteract the passivity of despair.

Read more about the exhibition here.