Preparing the Ground

Over the Winter of 2022, nine small packages containing personal and everyday objects were buried at various locations near to me. Some are hidden in woods, near water and on the edge of the moor. A few are situated in gardens and allotments. The packages are to remain buried until needed. That will be at least a year, probably two or three. Whatever comes out of the ground will constitute a major part of a new piece of work.

Unlike the transformative energy of fire, which is a predominately a sensory experience, you can see it, hear it, feel it etc. The process of interment is invisible. Everything occurs below the ground and in the imagination. What is common however is the unpredictability, the ‘out of your control’ nature of the process, also, the long periods of waiting; the passage of time is so important in both.

The sites are sometimes revisited. Occasionally, in the more public areas, people can be seen roaming about, standing on the spot, completely unaware of what is buried 60cms below them. In the remote locations only nature and the seasons visit. The rock marking the exact spot has not moved an inch. The ground is much drier. Bracken and gorse enclose the spot that is both concealed on the surface and underground.

The rational part of the brain asserts, that the levels of moisture, changes in temperature, the insects, and bacteria etc. will be the main engines of transformation. Perhaps that might be the case. However, the reverie of dreams and the imagination conjure up other possibilities, other unknown forces. The invisible Telluric energies for example or the great Orphic mysteries and stories of the Hellenistic Underworld. Only time will tell.

June 2023

Some of the packages have now been disinterred after having been buried for over a year. The process of drying and preparation has begun. Some debris has been removed from the surface and potential ideas are beginning to evolve.