"Jem Southam : Clouds Descending"
2009-12-12 until 2010-02-28
Tullie House Museum and Art Services
Carlisle, , UK United Kingdom

The Cumbrian coast played an important role in the work of LS Lowry who explored the landscape from bases in Whitehaven and Aspatria, where he stayed with Sheila Fell. In 2007, photographer Jem Southam was commissioned by The Lowry in Salford to make his own response to the Cumbrian coastline. Retracing Lowry’s steps, Southam walked the 50 mile stretch of coast from Maryport to Barrow-in-Furness and produced a series of photographs that focus on the relationship between the landscape and manmade remnants of the region’s industrial past – including harbours, plants, chimneys and slag heaps. For sections of his journey, the photographer was joined by the walking poet, Harriet Tarlo; art historian, Nick Alfrey; photography writer, David Chandler; Lowry expert, Lindsay Brooks; ornithologist, Math Southam and geologist, J Hamlyn.

Clouds Descending presents Jem Southam’s series of photographs alongside a selection of paintings by LS Lowry and contributions from each of Southam’s fellow walkers. For the exhibition at Tullie House, objects from the museum’s collections of fine art, social history and natural sciences will also be used to illustrate how a single view can hold multiple meanings.

©Jem Southam, 2007

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