Eco-warriors have long been lobbying against extraction of natural resources in the UK. Think back to Swampy, the tree-hugger in the 1990s who spent a week in tunnels attempting to stop the extension of the A30 before he was arrested. In 2019 he took part in an Extinction Rebellion protest at a fuel refinery in Pembrokeshire, for which he was fined (The Face). There have been many protests over the years. But maybe there is a better way to lobby for change? Like extractivism – a quiet form of environmental activism communicated through art.
The Groundwork Gallery in King’s Lynn, Norfolk is one of a kind.The building itself is a sustainability project. It is a repurposed 1930s building, extended to high eco-standards using as much recycled material as possible. It is an award winning conversion, winning the Mayor’s Award in 2018.
The gallery specialises in the environment and they practice extraction activism in an unusual way. It’s an inspiring space that works quietly to communicate the issues around extraction and the damage we are doing to the environment to an ‘artistically conservative’ local community. One of the ways they do this is their three annual art exhibitions, which bring artists into the area and engage with the community.
For the last four years, Groundwork Gallery has run an extraction-related residency programme. The project allows artists to explore, research and learn about extraction. Alongside local geologists, ecologists, and quarry owners they visit local sites of interest and investigate the issues affecting the local area.
The gallery won the Community Award in the Blue Patch Sustainability Awards in 2024 for their involvement with local communities. They were awarded the prize for opening the door to the local community on ways to understand and engage with sustainability. Entries for this year will open soon – keep an eye on our Sustainability Awards page.
This year, eight resident artists are working on projects for the exhibition Ground Water, which opens on the 12th of July. The connection to extraction is driven by the concern about “what we pull, dig, drill out of the earth or sea, what we do with it, what we ought to do about it and how we should be communicating more widely with more people about it.”
Myka Baum looks forward to extending her photography work and learning from experts about extraction and environmental stewardship. Myka will be exhibiting three interconnected works; ‘Hold The Line’ a suspended landscape chromatograph made from soil samples, ‘Grab Your Luck’ looped videos of diggers on the beach, and ‘A Void’ which is a rock revetment made of precious chromatographs.
Rebecca Hearle is working towards a PhD in Fine Art. Her research investigates the formation of a deep connection with landscape. ‘Fleet Lynn Creek Washes’ uses mixed media combining linocut images of water with letterpress printed narration.
Helen Kilbride makes films that explore class, gender, sexuality, archive, activism, and ecology. ‘Looking for Barbara’ won the Iris Prize for Best Short Film in 2022. She will be making a film of her exploration of the Wash.
Anna Marris is exploring how art can make visible the movements of mined minerals. ‘Ocean Systems’ will be a montage on paper reimagining a forensic investigation of historical materials like quartz found in the marsh and paired with scientific research in the Atlantic.
Hilary Powell, the Leverhulme ‘Alchemist in Residence’ tells global stories about renewables and the materials we need for them, extractive and generative processes and the issues around these processes. ‘[Extracting ourselves from] The Edges of England: A drama in 10 Acts’ will be a series of salt print photographs of characters from the history of Norfolk.
Kate Sayers Green is interested in the environment, sustainability, bio-diversity collapse and climate change. She sketches and photographs for her abstract work. ‘Noah’s Woods, The Wash’ explores global flood myths and the cyclical aspect of materials washed up on shore.
Franek Wardynski explores and observes the landscape for his sculptures, films, sounds and performances. ‘Phase’ is a film exploring erosion and extraction, shot mainly on Cromer Beach, showing the houses, coastal erosion and tidal debris.
Caroline Wheeler moved to Norfolk three years ago. Her existing work on sand depletion, land measurement, bauxite mining, and aluminium feeds into four pieces of work for the Ground Water exhibition. ‘Falling From Grace’ is a handmade book, ‘Microbial Chains’ combines chain, cotton rag paper and bacterial swamp pigment, ‘Notch’ is a metal sculpture on the notching of breeding age lobsters so they are not extracted, and ‘Precious’ (working title) a pop up installation showing scenes from the residency questioning how we place value on material elements.
Ground Water runs from 12 July to 6 September. For more info visit www.groundworkgallery.com