Murmurations at BALTIC
BALTIC, Gateshead; image courtesy David Bolton
MURMURATIONS OVERVIEW
On 26 November 2019, BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art held a special event to celebrate Jane Lee McCracken's Where Did All the Animals Go? project, artists in schools and educators, organised by Vicky Sturrs BALTIC Head of Learning and Civic Engagement, Amanda McMahon of BALTIC Learning, Artist Teacher, Royal Grammar School, Newcastle and project Co-partner, Christine Egan-Fowler and Jane. Following the success of the celebration event documented here, the group Murmurations, led by Amanda, Christine and Jane, was formed for educators to meet at BALTIC, explore making art and discuss cultural capital.
Christine titled the gatherings, Murmurations after the phenomenon known as a murmuration where a huge flock of starlings takes to the air in synchronised flight, and the communication between the birds to achieve this display. Christine said
"each bird is in contact with just seven other birds around them in order to communicate the display. This reminded me of what we are aiming to achieve with Murmurations, the passing on of information between our group and between teachers and children."
Planning for the next Murmurations gathering in Spring 2020 was underway but due to the COVID-19 Pandemic BALTIC closed its doors in March 2020. The succession of lockdowns throughout 2020 and 2021 saw the event postponed. However Christine, Amanda and Jane are currently making plans for the next event which will be added to this menu.
Read about each event here: