Lend Me Your Words and I'll Give You Mine
A Poem, A Picture, A Post-Box of Stories
About the Artwork...
"Lend Me Your Words..." is an interactive community artwork which focuses on the act of giving, specifically giving words and stories. This piece is a decorated post box, covered in clips from Northern magazines (such as NARC and The Crack) and my drawings from Northern themed projects (such as Trailways, celebrating the 200 years of Darlington to Stockton railway). There are illustrated poem prints to be freely given away to visitors, in exchange for a piece of writing of their own. There is a pen and blank postcards that participants can use to write/ draw anything they want and give it back. Sometimes they provide a small drawing, a heart breaking poem, or something strange and funny. Either way, they lend me their words, and I give them mine.
Where the Post-Box has been...
This artwork has been used in both Stockton and Middlesbrough briefly, as part of Pineapple Blacks final exhibition and the two day "Love Letter to Stockton" project by ARC & Wellington Square. The post box has been filled with the words of both resident of, and visitors to, the North. It celebrates the community and the power of conversation.
The Poem...
This is a section of "We Are Northern", a spoken-word piece created for Middlesbrough Town Hall is Curious in 2021 with Curious Arts. I wrote it as a celebration of the Tees Valley, of everything that we are. I want to give these words, words of pride and cultural identity.
We are More Than. We are Northern.
