Urban Wyld – More Information
Urban Wyld
By Laura Spark
Urban Wyld is a new commission for Light Up Lancaster.
In a dark corner of the city, life begins to burst through the cracks…
Journeying through the seasons, Urban Wyld is entirely composed of plants that are regulars in our urban streets, parks and gardens. You might recognise spring’s first snowdrops, and flowers such as daffodils and poppies, but there’s also saxifrage and herb robert, that grow in the cracks of pavements, and nettles and goosegrass that fill empty lots. There’s bindweed and buddleia that grow in-between bricks, forcing buildings to crumble, but provide the most beautiful flowers for wildlife. There are edible and medicinal plants that grow by the roadside, like plantain which is anti-inflammatory and pineapple weed that tastes like pineapple and can soothe an upset stomach. There’s also poisonous ones – never eat anything you’re not sure of!
There’s so much plant life around us if we take notice, what can you spot in the animation that you recognise? What have you not noticed before that you can look out for?
Part non-human ritual, part rewilding spell, part childhood potion, Urban Wyld celebrates the presence of common plants in our towns, and gleefully considers plant life beyond the human experience – when we no longer inhabit man-made environments, nature finds a way of creeping back in.
The models for Urban Wyld are made with paper, plasticine, fabrics and wire frames. They have been animated individually by hand and then digitally layered to create the final piece. Much like celebrating wild plants in city spaces we wanted to celebrate hand-made arts and crafts in and alongside digital creativity. Particularly with the rise of AI we want to keep inspiring people to craft and sculpt, play and make a mess!
More about the artists –
Urban Wyld is created by Laura Spark with music by Jonathan Hering.
Laura Spark applies animation across performance, installation and theatre using a mix of stop motion, puppetry and digital techniques. Layered in both texture and meaning, her work seeks to explore new dialogues between space, stage and screen, taking inspiration from curios, mythos and folklore and ecology. Laura has created AV work for York Mediale, Flatpack Film Festival and Abandon Normal Devices. Her films have played in festivals worldwide, including Above All – Inside the Littlewood’s Dream Factory, commissioned by Liverpool John Moores University and Metal. Her theatre credits include Video Design for Dundee Rep and Video Associate for imitating the dog.
Jonathan Hering is a composer and performer based in Liverpool. Previous commissions have included works for Turner Contemporary, Full of Noises and Bluecoat. Jonathan has performed internationally and is a member of the band Ex-Easter Island Head. He has also released an a cappella vocal album, Carmina Chromatica, on Brawl Records.
The flower and foliage models have been made by
Laura Spark
www.lauraspark.co.uk
Instagram @laura.spark
Ruta Staseviciute
Instagram @ruta_creative_design
Tilda Teekens
Instagram @tildateekens
Paper sculpted mushrooms by Laura Brownhill
www.laurabrownhill.com