Tatton Park Biennial: Sited Commissions
SHANE WALTENER is planning to investigate local birds, asking whether the exotic mix of seeds demonstrated in the gardens has affected wildlife populations. He will be working with various groups to realise a series of bird feeders, baths and tables and to conduct bird watching excursions.
The creation of the gardens and nurturing of plants at Tatton Park has created a rich feeding ground and habitat for birds and other wildlife. Tatton Park is home to a great number of bird species, from resident nuthatches, tits and woodpeckers to visiting thrushes and warblers amongst many others.
With this project, I’ve aimed to celebrate the ‘collection’ of birds that populate Tatton Park as much as the great variety of plants grown in the gardens and parkland. The project was developed and resulted from on and off-site research, and with the support of gardeners and rangers at Tatton Park.
During the biennial, visitors will be invited on introductory tours of the gardens and to participate in a series of workshops where bird feeders, bird baths and tables will be constructed using natural produce and materials, some of it grown and collected in Tatton Park itself. Crafts and techniques such as wreath making with seeds and nuts, basketry and weaving twigs and straw, and casting and modelling fat balls and seeds cakes will be practiced to this effect. The made up bird tables, feeders and baths will then be displayed throughout the course of the exhibition in strategic locations to accommodate the diverse population of resident and migratory birds at Tatton Park.
To capitalise on the increased bird activity prompted by the installation of these items, the house at Tatton Park will be transformed into a bird hide, with sets of binoculars made available for use to visitors to observe the activity of the ‘living collection’ outside. A chandelier made up of various bird shaped feeders and referencing bird species living in Tatton Park will also be hung in the house.
Biography
Shane Waltener (b. 1966)
Waltener’s work draws on craft traditions as much as art history. This manifests itself in the creation of sculptures, installations and events using domestic crafts such as knitting, crochet, lace making, sugarcraft, cooking and gardening.
Increasingly, projects have become participatory involving other artists, gallery visitors, members of the public and community groups in the making of the artworks. Facilitating this communal process of making, ‘crafting’ together highlights the social aspect of these activities, the sharing of stories, anecdotes and memories relating to the history of these crafts and traditions associated with these. Objects made are later exhibited to reveal this history.
Shane Waltener lives and works in London. He is currently an associate lecturer at Camberwell College of Arts. Recent and current projects include Fabric of Myth, Compton Verney (2008), Cooking and Constructing, Platform 21, Amsterdam (2008); Harvest It, Myatt’s Fields, London, 2007; Radical Lace, Subversive Knitting, Museum of Arts and Design, New York (2007); nEUclear reactions, CAB, Burgos, Spain (2006); Cake For Me Bread For The Others, MKgalerie.nl, Rotterdam (2006); What’s For Dinner, MoDA, Middlesex University (2006); Celebration, Pump House Gallery, London (2005); Métissages, MIAT, Ghent, Belgium (2005).