Through Kaleidoscope Eyes
a work created by Emily Tracy in collaboration with the West Hill in the Park Children’s Centre, West Hill Primary School and local residents, commissioned by Tideway.
About the work:
This immense artwork is the result of a series of workshops organised by the artist in November 2017, which included an opportunity to work with a local beekeeper, The Wandle Trust, and The Garden Classroom. Participants were invited to create their own collages, generate ideas, and gather facts, thoughts and stories about King George’s Park to help create the final artwork.
Tracy invited people to re-look at the familiar surroundings of the park in a new light, and enter another world through playing with image, mirrors and kaleidoscopes. Ordinary objects when multiplied make compelling patterns, colours and shapes, and yet they remain what they are, a mouse, a leaf or a bench. The kaleidoscope allows us to see the beauty and geometry in our surroundings with a new perspective, and to observe the ecology of King Georges Park, both human and natural, which we might otherwise miss.
Using this idea as a starting point, eight collages were made in response to participants’ views. The artwork incorporates ideas and collages made during workshops of the things that people value in the park. The collages try to include the diversity of activity in King George’s Park – people and objects alongside natural elements of plants, insects and animals, as well as some historical references to the rich history of the park and local area, such as Calico prints and watermills.
