Local Senses is a collective of individuals who have varying levels of sight.
The group was formed in 2017, after I initiated the first creative making workshops to be held at the Royal National Institute of Blind People in Kings Cross. In 2019 we gained new members, and founded Local Senses. We began investigations into navigating outdoor space and somatic relationships to site, following a collective desire to take our practice to the streets.
Local Senses: Mapping in Lewisham
2021-22
‘Local Senses: Mapping in Lewisham’, is a commission for Liberty Festival 2022 and Lewisham Borough of Culture.
Throughout the autumn of 2021 the group engaged in an intensive process of research and development. We explored the area between Deptford Station and Deptford Creek through the use of sensory walks and workshops as a means of capturing the environment in ways that might facilitate further participatory sense making. Striking out into new and familiar territory, we reflected on the ways in which space becomes place, the unknown becomes a route, and a sense of belonging is established.
We presented our research via a film screening of 'Mapping in Lewisham' and live performance at a Lewisham Borough of Culture Symposium at The Albany in January 2022, and again in July 2022.
As part of Liberty Festival 21 - 24 July 2022, Local Senses led a series of participatory walks, workshops and performances across Deptford.
Mapping in Lewisham
Local Senses: Mapping in Lewisham Directed by Natanya Mark, filmed and edited by Nathan Bather, 2021 Running time: 5mins 25secs
Local Senses, Liberty Festival
Local Senses, Liberty Festival 2022 Filmed and edited by Nathan Bather, 2022 Running time: 3mins 27secs