Voices in the Forest

4th day: Sun 24 June, Talking Forest, Dean Heritage Museum

Dean Heritage Centre’s programme: ‘Talking Forest’

The Heritage Centre celebrated the voices, rhythms and sounds of the Forest as part of its contribution towards the Voices Festival 2007. Not only were visitors able to listen to some of the Museum’s oral histories, collected over the last quarter of a century but they also ‘made history themselves’ by contributing to our Forest ‘sound box’ – linking generations, past and present.

‘Talking Trees’ Unveiling of a new audio-visual installation; a collaborative project between Coalway Junior School and local chainsaw artist, Clayton Ryder, supported by Creative Partnerships. Two tree sculptures inspired by Forest history and designed by Year 6 students from Coalway were unveiled as a new ‘Living History’ exhibit. A mix of oral recollections and a special historic sound ‘scape recorded by the students add an audio dimension to these figures in the wood.

Chloe, Midnight Storyteller had the audience on the ‘edge of their seats’ with her tales about the ancient ‘wildwood’. Smell the woodsmoke, feel the chill, see the shadows closing in…

Forest History, past and present

Throughout the day there was the chance to add your voice to the ‘museum of voices’ by stepping into our special sound booth to tell us why you like the Forest? What makes it special and unique? This collection of contemporary Forest voices  form part of a new exhibit for the Museum – a collage of Forest Faces, past and present making up a ‘wall mural’ alongside which visitors can hear Foresters (native and incomer) talking about their the home and what the Forest means to them. *Visitors will be asked to bring in photographs – as part of this new exhibit. Moving Voices

The special audio tour allowed visitors to enjoy a selection of shared memories and recollections from the Museum’s oral history archive, as they walked around the galleries and woodland site, listening to the sounds and rhythms of Forest folk.