It was an absolute delight to secure a place on the ‘Lunch Break Artists Special’ at Porthmeor studios with Phil Smith. And a delight to join his ‘Mis-Guided Wander in St. Ives’ in the afternoon.
Never heard of Mythogeography before?
Well, don’t feel embarrassed, neither had I until Phil’s talk on the subject.
Mythogeography describes a way of thinking about and visiting places where multiple meanings have been squeezed into a single and restricted meaning (for example, heritage, tourist or leisure sites tend to be presented as just that, when they may also have been homes, jam factories, battlegrounds, lovers’ lanes, farms, cemeteries and madhouses).
Mythogeography emphasises the multiple nature of places and suggests multiple ways of celebrating, expressing and weaving those places and their multiple meanings.
According to Phil there is always more than one story to any place. There are a multiplicity of objects and environments around surrounding us which generally remain unnoticed unless you are prepared to look more closely. Paying extreme attention to everyday textures and their relationships highlights the creativity of nature in a landscape or urban environment and forms its own narrative. It’s walking with a whole different perspective. Letting your mind wander is essential and creating narratives from what you discover is imperative.
On our wet and windy walk around St Ives, we found many quirky, normally unnoticed objects. We took our time to closely observe them taking great delight in discussing their relevance, beauty and raison d’être.
I don’t think a simple walk will ever be the same again!
