Travelling slowly

I think a lot about travelling slowly.

I have a project, Paths of Desire, which has been running since 2004, off and on.  Paths of Desire is about walking.  About the Dérive, wandering, exploring, choosing where you want to go instinctively rather than following set routes.  We try to explore the unexplored, to wander across dug up land and find the edges not yet touched by town planners.

Walking is about travelling slowly.  When we take our walks we spend more time noticing, appreciating the small things.

Just the other day I heard artist Grayson Perry interviewing a neurologist who said that when we are being creative the brain's neurons make its connections more slowly.  Like Grayson I love the idea that creativity is about being slow.... it happens when your brain is relaxed.

Travelling by train suggests an oxymoron to me.  The train moves incredibly fast, and therefore I as a passenger am moving incredibly fast too, but as I stare out of the window at the blurring world it seems that I slow down.  My mind drifts and wanders, I have more creative thoughts.  Unlike on a walk I cannot dwell too long on one thing as each image I see lasts only as long as a blink before being replaced.
Train travel jumbles up images, one blurs into another, throwing together visual connections in random fashion.  A collage.

Paths of Desire is exhibiting some of its routes around the edges of Corby on Saturday 24th and Sunday 25th July.  Pick up a map from Corby Swimming Pool and follow a walk through the woodlands to find our images.