Heckington church to be focus of new exhibition and performance

A collection of artworks and performances will use digital technology to bring St Andrew's Church in Heckington to life.
Heckington Church. EMN-170414-125434001Heckington Church. EMN-170414-125434001
Heckington Church. EMN-170414-125434001

On Saturday April 29 visitors will be able to experience this medieval church, its history, and its place in local life in new and interactive ways.

‘Illuminations’ will see multiple art installations and performances at St Andrew’s, inviting speculation about the church’s past, its architecture, and its relationship to local life. The project is the culmination of a collaboration between academics, creative businesses, St Andrew’s church and the local community.

During the day an exhibition of several interactive artworks will invite visitors to experience the church in intriguing new ways that continues into the evening, as performances of medieval plainsong and sound explorations accompanied by visual projections encourage visitors to see and hear the building differently. Both the exhibition and the performances are free and open to all.

Simon Bowen, a researcher at Open Lab, Newcastle University’s research centre into human-computer interaction, said: “St Andrew’s church is a fascinating building – visually, acoustically, and historically. We have tried to create artworks that encourage people to explore all these aspects and discover new things about this place and its role in everyday life.”

As well as encouraging visitors to think differently about historic sites and the role of digital technologies in heritage projects, Illuminations will also encourage new thinking about churches. By bringing the character, history, and community of St Andrew’s church to life, the project will demonstrate how such places make a strong cultural contribution and strengthen the connections between people and where they live.

Lesley Pinchbeck, St Andrew’s Church Warden, commented: “This project is the catalyst for which Heckington has been waiting for centuries – where the creativity of the 14th century community meets and inspires that of the 21st.”

Pete Banks, Engagement Team Leader for the church, added: “This has opened our eyes to the possibilities of developing the amazing attractions of St Andrew’s and delivering them in a way that we had never considered.

“In addition, the relevance of this project to all the people in the village, and particularly the young, in this digital age is even more prescient and will help us convince our audience that the building has a wide range of uses and is a place for everyone.”

Simon Bowen, along with other researchers at Newcastle University, including Magnus Williamson, John Bowers and Tim Shaw, has been working with Draw & Code, a Liverpool-based digital design company, and Allan T Adams, an architectural illustrator.

Often, digital technology in heritage sites attempts to accurately recreate what has been lost. But St Andrew’s will use more impressionistic means to evoke elements of ‘lost heritage’ and encourage visitors to make their own interpretations from the evidence provided by the artists and researchers.

Magnus Williamson, Professor of Early Music, explains: “Attending church in medieval times would have been very different to today. There is evidence that St Andrew’s had a rood screen dividing the church in two, but its exact form and precisely how it and other church features were part of choral practices are not known. In this project we are letting visitors see how we are investigating this puzzle using singing, drawing, and their digital integration into the space.”

By involving the Heckington community in creating content for the exhibition, and in activities that will follow it, Illuminations serves as an example of Open Lab’s digital civics research, which seeks to use digital technologies to enable individuals and local communities to directly influence public services and community resources, such as heritage sites.

Several of the artworks will remain in place after the exhibition to support St Andrew’s in continuing to connect the church with the wider community in new ways.