Eilean na h-Óige (Eriskay - a photographic study)

Sara, Rob (2024) Eilean na h-Óige (Eriskay - a photographic study). In: 26th Arts Research Initiative: Art as Resistance: Creative Practice in Austerity Britain, 20 November 2024, Stanwix Theatre, University of Cumbria, Carlisle, UK. (Unpublished)

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Abstract

Resisting forced emigrations, clearances, economic isolation and existing on the peripheries of politics and opportunities, the communities living the Western Isles of the Outer Hebrides have grown thickly bonded, both to each other and the land on which they have depended. Affectionately known as the Island of Youth, Eriskay has undergone considerable cultural change and challenge since the construction of a causeway and establishment of a ferry route, connecting it to neighbouring South Uist and Barra in 2002. Adapting to and embracing the shift in the definition of the Island, has been accredited with ‘saving the Island’. The old school is being developed into a heritage and community centre, initiating reflections on what to share, to say, to celebrate and highlight about its past, present and possible future. The research project has sought to both trace the historical infrastructure, social narratives and changing land use, but also to invite participation in a photographic study that echoes and contributes to the community. My Father came to study its population, geography and social fabric in 1958, as the crofting culture and a traditional way of life was in inexorable decline. The report he made has informed and motivated my methodology and brings a comparative model to our documentary processes.

Supported by University of Cumbria IRF and Impact Funding.

‘The local is the international, the national is the parochial’ (Leonard). The focus of this University of Cumbria Arts Research Initiative (ARI) conference is to explore the role of creative practice as a form of socio-political engagement, with a focus on the evolving intersection of art, ideology, identity and place within the neoliberal world. Set in the context of North-West England, this conference brings together artists, writers arts organisers and academics to interrogate how creative practice responds to, reflects, and challenges the received conventions of the so-called therapeutic institution. Presentations and discussions will address how creative practice engages critically with issues and notions of economic migration, place, climate, authority and social class. Situating creative practice within both local, regional and national contexts, the conference seeks to enable a critical dialogue on its relation to communities, both real and imagined, within the neoliberal epoch.

Item Type:	Conference or Workshop Item (Lecture)
Departments:	Institute of Arts > Graphics and Photography
Depositing User:	Anna Lupton
Date Deposited:	27 Nov 2024 11:20
Last Modified:	28 Nov 2024 10:15
URI:	https://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/8498

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