Muntjac (2024)
Fleeting correspondences on invasion, invitation, ill-logics and brown bodies
Muntjac is a project inspired by a series of personal encounters with the ‘invasive’ muntjac deer across the woodlands of London which have offered a surprising and generative vessel to think through and reckon with England’s relentless hostility towards, enclosures of and alienation of the brown body across the UK. At the heart of the work is a series of journaled correspondences elicited from this little brown deer which are activated by a series of offerings which explore what the Muntjac may have to teach us about invasiveness, immigration, xenophobia, ecological imperialism, Britishness and conservation bias.
Gatherings: A cosy chat with Becky Lyon and Barney Pau, Thursday 1 August 7-8pm
In place of a private view, join us for an intimate thought-wander across themes of deviance, the absurdity of the native’n’natural, more-than-human wisdom, making theory material, healing strategies against hostility to bodies, disturbance, ecological imperialism, scape-deering among other thing accompanied by teas and Japanese knotweed champagne…
A Pesty, Pesky Tea Party Saturday 3 August 11.30am-1pm
Muntjac touches on big, messy, personal, bramble-thorny themes - British imperialism, invasive species, nativism, border control, nationalist conservation projects and more. Join me for a gathering of play, plotting and pestiness channelling our energies into heart, humour and humility. Expect collective zine-making, unruly reading and a tea and biscuit breakfast…what else?!
Songversations: Falling Back in Love with England post-Brexit, Tuesday 13 August 7pm-8pm
I am honoured to have the wonderful Hiranya de Alwis Jayasinghe close our programme of gatherings with “Songversations”. Hiranya was born to Sri Lankan parents in rural England. In 2018, she solo-hiked the Welsh Coastal Path. Her experience of race post-Brexit broke down her sense of self, and of country. She moved from England, through Wales, to Scotland and back. She journeyed through grief to love; finding healing in the land. In Songversations, Hiranya will share her story and songs, punctuated by sips of accompanying teas, she invites guests to explore race, belonging and home in a spirit of curiosity, vulnerability and connection.
