WORDS FOR THE LIVING, 2021
Live Performance | Beth Derbyshire | WERK
Words for the Living is a live performance in which an individual speaker, communicates a series of words and phrases through a megaphone in public space. The words are commemorative excerpts by loved ones for so many of the key workers who have tragically passed away from Covid 19. The poignant and celebratory recital of words is a living memorial, describing the qualities of these incredible people who lost their lives whilst saving others and is intended to pay homage to loss, whilst inspiring the living through their bravery. The performance will be filmed and presented in the digital space of Into the Parade.
Into the Parade is an online web encounter and live project that explores how arts organisation and practitioners across the Midlands are engaging civically. The digital ‘Civic Centre’ is both tangible and metaphorical concept to explore the role of cultural practice in a civic context. Into the Parade is a cultural intervention that undertakes projects that have online and real-world anchors points and has been initiated by Beth Derbyshire and developed with students from the MA Arts and Project Management course at Birmingham City University.
BETH DERBYSHIRE
TRANMISSIONS 2026
Transmissions is a new body of work exploring connections between ancient rock formations, the architecture of electricity within our landscape, and space exploration and communication.
From the ancient origins of Lewisian Gneiss to landscapes illuminated by electricity and the exploration of distant planets, the work traces a continuous narrative of Earth’s resources enabling technological progress.
Minerals formed billions of years ago are now integral to advanced sensors, antennas and communication technologies, connecting our geological past to humanity’s ambitions for the future. These technologies enable navigation, observation and the transfer of data, connecting us both to outer space and to one another.
The new work brings together image and text across concrete and plaster panels, drawing these narrative strands together and exploring the relationship between deep geological time, material resources, technological infrastructure and our desire to communicate beyond Earth.