Greenwich Pumping Station, London
Greenwich Pumping Station: Reflection, Edwin Mingard
Year
2018-2024
Client
fereday pollard for Tideway
Artist
Edwin Mingard
Service
Commission Management
Location
Greenwich Pumping Station, London
A graphic artwork for the hoarding at Greenwich Pumping Station
Through a range of events, and in collaboration with local residents, organisations, artists and historians, Edwin Mingard developed Reflection; an 80-metre graphic artwork which explores and celebrates past and future relationships to the River Thames and Deptford Creek. Combining text and digital contour drawings, the artwork catalogues what is unique to Deptford, and important to London as a whole.
“So informative and fascinating. I’ve lived here for over forty years and have learnt so much!”
Drawing inspiration from encounters and conversations with local residents, Reflection is a quasi-encyclopaedic ‘dictionary’ featuring significant local heroes such as the campaigner for health and education reform, Margaret McMillan (1860–1931) and the radical anti-racist activist Chris Braithwaite (1885–1944) as well as important historical moments and pivotal activities of the area.
The work also features an excerpt from The River's Tale, a poem by Rudyard Kipling about the British Empire. ‘…For they were young, and the Thames was old, And this is the tale that River told:’ Wishing to critique the sentiment of the poem, Mingard aimed to create a narrative more in tune with the area now – if the river really did tell a tale, of our past, present and future, what would it look like?
The artwork was de-installed in 2024.
“For me, the best part of making the work was the research process, which was as enjoyable as it was informative. I travelled up the Thames by boat, talking to older residents about their memories of the past and hopes for the future; I waded up the creek with residents, collecting samples and drawing pictures; we watched films together, and people submitted valuable local knowledge for inclusion. Conversations were intimate, insightful and personally rewarding. ”
Edwin Mingard works in moving image, artists’ film and installation. He often produces artworks within a specific community or interest group where he celebrates and makes the filmmaking process visible, and explores its value as a tool for individual and social change.
Mingard studied philosophy at the London School of Economics and is a Fellow of Teesside University’s Digital Cities programme. He undertook an Artist Film Maker Residency at the Albany theatre, London (2015), a Digital Artist Residency at Ben Uri Gallery/Somerset House, London (2015) and at the Museum of Oxford (2017). He was the recipient of an artists' film award from the British Film Institute (2015) and was commissioned by Channel 4's Random Acts strand (2016). Mingard founded Deptford Cinema and is Artistic Director of the artist-led production company Satellite.
For more information see:
www.tideway.london