I was the artist in residence as part of Northern Big Board, a community theatre project in association with Chol Theatre, Slung Low and Emma Adams. My role drew on the stories of the staff and public who work in and use Shipley Pool in Bradford, near Leeds. I spent several weeks collecting stories from members of the public and pool staff, before collecting audio and visual footage, and writing, recoding, editing, and co-producing 6-7 key digital installations along with guides and maps that were exhibited over 2 days at the pool in November 2012. I also produced online audio and video content, and set up the online arm of the project at northernbigboardstories.com where more information on each installation can be found. Read blog posts on it at /northernbigboard
Things members of the audience said:
Really enjoyed! Always good to see art in unusual contexts, great!
I have been coming to this place for 23 years. Both as a aswimmer and mum. This has made me happy and sad. I am going to start swimming again.
“Trust ME” – Fab – and slightly scary. Caught me at a vulnterable time. The voice is so soothing and compelling.
fantastic, innovative use of the space.
GOOD jog super merci à toi :)
[…] used punk songs to re-tell people’s stories about how they feel about where they’re from. Like Northern Big Board, which was a series of 7 games and installations throughout a swimming pool building based on […]
[…] For Northern Big Board Nicklin spent 4 weeks in residence in a swimming pool near Bradford. Government cuts and staffing issues meant the pool was facing big problems. She asked and listened to stories about what the pool meant to the swimmers and the staff. One swimmer named Dave, spoke about what diving means to him. Another man spoke about administering CPR, whilst watching his team support him. Angie had worked at the pool for over thirty five years, she spoke of the pool being like a family member and the cuts being like a family death. Then, Hannah Nicklin created seven different interactive and no interactive installations with the swimmers and pool staffs stories. […]