The installation combines sculpture with digital technology and tells a story of women in global society through the lens of ancient mythology
Sirens is an audio-visual installation that premieres at Freedom Festival, Hull on Friday 26th August and runs until Sunday 4 September.
Combining sculpture and digital technology, this interactive experience examines representations of women in global society through the lens of ancient mythology and brings the conversation back to modern day slavery.
The piece features a series of interactive stone sculptures in the formation of the Pleiades constellation, and includes a symbolic representation of the number of recorded cases of survivors of trafficking in 2021. The stones represent all women who have been displaced, illustrating strength in community as despite going through adversity they now stand together in solidarity.
“Creating work that has a strong message of social action or change at its core, has to be done in a way that people can access on their own terms. We make work which carries important messages but we do it in a way which is engaging and even playful. We want people to be curious; not just in the way they interact with the work itself, but also in what they do with its message after they leave. We want the choir’s voices to resonate with audiences long after the festival is over.” Louise Cole, Artist & Creative Producer, Liminal Creative.
The experience of walking through the stones will trigger the sounds, layering them in a way that means no two experiences will be the same. The sound will affect lighting states that mimic the ripple of water and a suggestion of the sea and there is an additional, vibrational element to add an extra layer of accessibility.
The audio element includes a soundscape composed and performed by the Amies Freedom Choir, a collective of female survivors of trafficking based in London as part of Pan Intercultural Arts’ social change projects.
“It makes us feel really good because these are our words, it’s what we are feeling […] I was excited. I think doing something like this has really empowered us, not to just sing, but to go beyond singing.” – Amies Freedom Choir participant
Sirens refers to the mythological figure of the siren, a recurring representation of women as otherworldly and dangerous for men, and takes inspiration from the myth of the Seven Sisters, a story of women who had to flee to find safety. The women in this myth were turned to doves and became the constellation of Pleiades.
A triptych of spoken word podcasts about representations of women in mythology, contemporary fiction and global society called Sirens: Transformations, will be available on the festival website. Linking together themes of change and adaptation, the series will explore the way that trauma can influence transformation and supports the narrative behind Sirens.
The podcast will feature researcher Laura Skinner, author Sarah Hall and Amies Freedom Choir director Adwoa Dickson.
Sirens has been created by Liminal Creative, Neurodivergent artist collective from across the UK, in partnership with Pan Intercultural Arts, a London based charity delivering creative projects for the most vulnerable people in society.
Sirens is commissioned by Freedom Festival Arts Trust, funded by Arts Council England and supported by The Wilberforce Institute and The University of Hull.
The installation is available to tour from Autumn 2022. For enquiries you can contact Liminal’s Creative Producer Louise Cole at info@liminalcreative.co.uk.
“We’re very proud at Freedom Festival, to be able to support work by artists that highlight and empower the voices and narratives of those whose stories to be heard. By placing this work in public and easy to access spaces, we work to make sure that as many people can encounter these artworks as possible.” Mikey Martins, Artistic Director & CEO of Freedom Festival Arts Trust.
For more information, please visit https://app.freedomfestival.co.uk/app/lineup