We found Desborough an intriguing place, so much so that we decided to take a second walk there. We were joined by one walker, Bob, who had heard about our walks from the first group we walked with but he hadn't been with us on Walk 1 and it was great to have a local walker with us, who proved to be a mine of information. Our other walkers came from Kettering, Corby and Northampton. We met at the Revive Cafe, a formerly derelict building which now runs as an excellent community cafe.
Our first intervention took place outside Holy Trinity Church which was originally built for a Methodist congregation. Holy Trinity was purchased and re-opened as a Catholic church in 1972. The church seats approximately 120 people. We were fascinated by the engraved memorial bricks and assume that they were part of the fund raising drive for the original construction. This practice continues to this day in many types of public building project. We were also struck by how quickly names can erode and disappear.
Plaque - Any flat, thin piece of metal, clay, ivory, or the like, used for ornament, or for painting pictures upon, as a slab, plate, dish, or the like, hung upon a wall; also, a smaller decoration worn on the person, as a brooch.
- A piece of flat metal with a writing on it, attached to a building to remind people of a person or an event.
The object of this intervention was to create a personal commemorative statement.
We discussed where the intervention should be installed and whether it should be left or removed.
After trying out a variety of possible locations, Pam suggested that we should install the intervention behind the wall, out of view from the road and only to be seen by people leaving the church door. This seemed an excellent solution and created an intervention that was both public and private.
We will be uploading a gallery of all the interventions created at a later stage of the project.
Intervention 2 - "Record"
We wanted this walk to be one in which people were encouraged to really engage with the details of the areas they were walking through as we had noticed that the town had an unusual approach to planning its public and domestic spaces. There was evidence of a rural past, an industrial past, a railway, The Cooperative Society had had a huge role in the development of the town and a visit to Desborough Heritage Centre gives an indication of the many changes that have taken place.
Record - Any instance of a physical medium on which information was put for the purpose of preserving it and making it available for future reference.
Invervention 3 - "Monument"
During our scoping walk we followed our feet into a garden which had furniture and scrap metal stored in various states of renovation and some "come and see me" out-buildings. The owner came out to greet us and told us that the buildings had once been part of a dairy. During our first scoping walk we had spotted an inspirational location, opposite a factory, and thought this would be an ideal site for a sculptural intervention. We told him what we were planning and he very kindly donated elements for our Monument Intervention.
Whilst creating this intervention with the group, we formed such an unusual site that a local Police Officer stopped to enquire whether there had been an incident and if we required assistance!
Monument - A structure built for commemorative or symbolic reasons, or as a memorial; a commemoration.
- An important site owned by the community as a whole.
- An exceptional or proud achievement.
Intervention 4 "Gallery"
Gallery - A building, an institution, or a room for the exhibition of artistic work.
- A collection; an assortment.
During a walk through an urban area that is in the process of change and decay it is easy to close our eyes and walk past without wondering or observing, we tend to block out what offends our eyes. Our final intervention was created to counteract this and draw attention to an assortment of the features of Desborough...
- before a very welcome stop in Lucy's Tea Rooms after so much exhausting creativity!
