Showing papers in "Journal of Writing in Creative Practice in 2015"
TL;DR: This paper explored the significance of contemporary waste management within an archaeological, ecological and geological context and described the psychological and aesthetic impact of rubbish, and described some of the challenges faced by a writer trying to describe an object that contains so much contemporary, ephemeral material culture.
Abstract: ‘On ungrounded ground’ reflects upon a writer’s yearlong ‘residency’ at a landfill site and resource recovery facility. The article explores the significance of contemporary waste management within an archaeological, ecological and geological context. It reflects upon the psychological and aesthetic impact of rubbish, and describes some of the challenges faced by a writer trying to describe an object that contains so much contemporary, ephemeral material culture. How should they begin to decipher this monument constructed from the dark matter of late-consumer capitalism? The article suggests that the dump ultimately passes beyond the power of metonymic representation and remains other to the text that tries to represent it. It also asserts that the dump is an intense combination of natural and man-made processes. Referencing Val Plumwood’s concept of the ‘shadow place’, it identifies the dump as a hidden landscape upon which our celebration of natural landscapes and places depends. Quotes from interviews with staff and visitors to the dump are included, and, despite the impossibility of representing the dump, an attempt is made to give a taste of the physical, emotional and intellectual impact of spending time at the site.
TL;DR: In this paper, a group project focusing on the Merseyside-born writer Malcolm Lowry (1909-1957) has been described as a "re-placing" project.
Abstract: This article focuses on a group project that the author has been involved with since its inception in 2009, centring on the Merseyside-born writer Malcolm Lowry (1909–1957). The article outlines the background to the project, how it developed, what it has involved and the ways in which it sits within the context of an arts centre and a university. It focuses on the importance of place, both in relation to the project’s aims and in relation to Lowry’s own writing. The overall aim of the project can be stated in terms of ‘re-placing’ Lowry: raising his profile on Merseyside (and more widely) as a writer for whom Merseyside remained a significant imaginative resource, making his life and works accessible to new audiences/readerships through a wide range of activities, and establishing Merseyside as a centre for an ongoing programme of work, ideas and events related to Lowry.