The work was produced in 2005/2006 and is based upon the site of Rumbling Bridge in Perthshire, where the painter J.E.Millais painted 'The Sound of Many Waters' in 1876. We spent many months observing and recording this site using high definition video, creating a unique interpretation of the site. The work is available as a 25 minute moving image installation using four framed LCD screens, plus a selection of unique stills taken from the work. It was exhibited in 2006 at the Ruskin Gallery, Cambridge and Art Manchester.
Ruskin Gallery 2006: 4 LCD screens, framed in a custom made walnut case
with gold slip.
The framed work is 1865cm long, 483cm high and 90cm
in depth
The work was originally produced for the opening of the Threshold artspace at Perth Concert Hall, to be displayed across the Threshold framework (a digital canvas of 22 large LCD screens, two projectors , 8 smaller screens and a floor-based speaker system). The main part of the work consisted of a 25 minute sequence of 22 high definition video 'movements' stretched across a digital canvas 22 metres (or 28,000 pixels) wide. See some video clips here or click on the stills below.
Click images to see a larger version
The journey that brought this work together is interesting to relate. In spending over fourteen months in Perth and Perthshire we would spend time walking and observing all aspects of life. One day we noticed a plaque to the memory of John Ruskin who had family connections to the area. As admirers of the writings of Ruskin, we began to explore further his connections to the area. Very quickly the work of the artist John Everett Millais came into focus and his deeper connections to the area, particularly to the environment around the River Tay. These elements of chance discoveries were also linked to the explorative journeys we were making as part of the commissioning process. In particular, we made an exploration to the source of the River Tay at Ben Lui. In journeying there we stopped at Birnam and Dunkeld and discovered the incredible connections to the work of Millais, especially his landscape work. Our interest in the work of this artist, one of the co-founders of the Victorian Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, slowly began to grow in our minds. We stopped at Rumbling Bridge where he had created an extraordinary painting called The Sound of Many Waters (1876), a process which took him many months of observation.
The impact on us at Rumbling Bridge can only be described as one of those mind-altering moments: we knew that this had to be the place.
The image of Rumbling Bridge would not leave our minds. Stopping there again, we arrived as the river was in spate from a dramatic downpour. The site was overwhelming; we raced around like children, drawn and in awe of the images that flooded towards us. In our minds the image of Millais attempting to complete his painting, sometimes after similar circumstances, was constantly with us. The choice had been made.
The work we would create of Rumbling Bridge for the Perth Concert Hall, using the canvas of 22 LCD screens, would be our own deep and sustained observation of this site.
Detail of Landscape Symphony on the 'Threshold Wave' screens
Further writing about this work:
millais, hamilton & ashrowan - an essay by Rebecca Bell
millais & the sound of many waters - an essay by Dr Ailsa Boyd
Quicktime video clips of the landscape symphony installation:
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Threshold 'Wave' (2.4MB) |
Threshold 'Stage' to 'Wave' (5.1MB) |
Threshold Wave close-up (1MB) |
Threshold space environment (2.9MB) |
You will need Quicktime 7 to view these movies. It is a free download. To save the movies, ctrl+click (Mac) or right click (Windows) over the text link and select 'save target as' (Windows) or 'download linked file' (Mac).
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All text and images © hamilton & ashrowan 2006
