SHIFT

2005

In 2005 we worked at a second National Trust for Scotland property called Newhailes, at Musselburgh, near Edinburgh. Here we made a site specific installation and a series of connected events, in response to the villa’s rich history and environment.

The connection between the villa and its surrounding landscape was an important influence on the work. The gardens at Newhailes were created to stimulate the senses, the intellect and the emotions. We hoped to echo this sentiment.

On our initial visit to the house, we were immediately struck by the use of shells as a recurring motif throughout the house. The contrast between the opulence of the main house and the damp and dingy servants’ quarters also made a strong impression.

We made the first part of our work in the servants’ scullery - a carpet of gold-leafed and gold-painted shells, based on designs taken from carpets in the rooms above. In its extraordinary opulence and impracticality it highlighted the inequalities between the lives of those living above and below stairs

A gloomy servants’ corridor links the servants’ quarters with the outside world – here a gentle evocative sound installation could be heard as visitors moved through the space. A reminder of the activity of earlier years, it is in fact a recording of ambient sound from outside the corridor.

On certain evenings throughout the summer visitors were invited to Newhailes as darkness fell, to follow a path lit by candles through the gardens. This led to the wonderful shell grotto, its sense of mystery enhanced by the use of lighting, water and projections to create a contemporary interpretation of the sort of activity that might have taken place here in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Projection of shell carpet on the wall of the shell grotto, reflected on water.

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