‘With one foot in the old and one foot in the new, the old being folklore, mythology and tradition, the new being things that blow up that tradition; things that are radical, this project was an opportunity to  explore the relationship between the two –it’s made me much more appreciative of my local area, but also to look differently about making art.’ - YP

Performance Butty was a floating art school responding to the Mon & Brec canal through performance, sound and text. Led by local young people (aged 16-25 years) and artist Stefhan Caddick, with invited collaborators including Teddy Hunter and Sam Hasler, our community  boat activated sites along the towpath as the group journeyed from Brecon to Pontymoile over the course of a week in Summer 2020. Workshops included; creative writing where we insulted the canal, challenging the idea of leisure and romanticising; sound - imagining what is beneath the surface; creating motion-sensor cameras to explore nightlife; sculpture - creating listening devices which we attached to the bow; performance - choreographing movement responding to the water. The week ended with an event led by young people, who mixed sounds live from the hydrophones as the boat travelled, creating soundscapes which were channelled through a series of headphones for attendees who walked alongside the boat as it travelled. Performance Butty was part of a larger project, called Hinterlands Wales - made up of planting commissions, walk, talks, growing, making. You can find out more about the three-year initiative HERE

‘We’ve had the physical space – along the canal, and the mental space, to grow our ideas from the techniques and guidance the artists have shown us. They are definitely things I will carry on with….’ - YP

Image credits: Vaida Barzdaite