300 Years to Grow

02/11/2015

28/01/2016

Ben Macfadyen

Current Projects

300 Years to Grow

Memory, native to this valley, will spread over it like a grove, and memory will grow into legend, legend into song, song into sacrament.
Wendell Berry

Storyteller Ben Macfadyen joined us in winter 2015/16 to build on the legacy of the White Wood. He responded to the lifespan of the trees, aspiring to create a story that will still be told in 300 years time, when the oaks are fully grown.

Storytelling has always been a fundamental part of human nature. By passing on information and histories, as well as values and beliefs, through the generations we have accumulated a rich heritage that forms an integral part of our identity. With environmental concerns coming to the forefront of the global debate, however, it must be asked if we will be able to continue to build on these traditions. The COP21 Climate Change Negotiations in Paris sought to create a global agreement to prevent the irreversible 2 degrees rise in temperature. The outcome of these negotiations has had a mixed reception and the long term affect this has for future generations’ remains unclear. This uncertainty poses the question, can we create a new aural tradition that can be carried into the future, and if so what kind of future will this be?