One of Rory Middleton's earliest memories is of a childhood holiday
with his family. This isn't unusual in itself, except for the fact that
his free-spirited parents never booked any accommodation in advance,
but would wing it once they reached their destination. One time they
arrived in Greece at around two in the morning, and, with Middleton in
tow, ended up sleeping in a graveyard. Once they did find somewhere
with a roof over their heads, misunderstandings due to the language
barrier saw them wind up in a kitchen full of chickens.
Exposure to such environments has clearly fed into Middleton's own
adventures in imaginary landscapes, the latest of which, The View,
takes its audience on a bus trip to Cove Park in Argyll as the latest
in the Cryptic company's Cryptic Nights series of one-off events. Where
previous Cryptic Nights have explored works in progress in the CCA's
state of art auditorium, The View gets back to nature with a panoramic
architectural installation, as Middleton explains.
“It was originally conceived in the Rocky Mountains,” he says, already
in residence in Cove Park following a three-week recce. “I was looking
at the forest, stripping things back until I focused on this one
particular view. Then I built this frame, which gave things this
strange hyper-reality, and I did lots of field recordings as well, so
the forest became amplified both in terms of sound and vision, and it
became this kind of meditation. As it got to dusk, this view literally
did glow. There was something about the forest that had its own
mystique, and I think I've found somewhere equally special in Cove
Park, although it's going to be a lot different here.”
As well as the Rocky Mountain version of The View, previous works by
Middleton have included an infinity swimming pool on the terrace of a
sixth floor building in Zagreb, while he's just completed a six month
residency in the far snowier climes of Fogo Island in Canada, where he
created something resembling a house made of ice. Projected onto the
back of the structure was an out of focus sunset.
“Fogo was really dependent on the weather,” Middleton points out, “and
there ended up being this massive snowstorm, and I went out one day and
the entire construction had gone.”
Middleton has also been working on a film that follows the flight of an
eagle through a modernist building.
“Everything I do is site-specific,” he says. “It's not just about
transferring a work from one place to another. I never like to repeat
myself in that way. Each work develops into something else as it goes,
and tries to highlight something that's already there, but which people
might never notice. It's very subtle, as if you're turning up the
volume on something by one notch, but no more.”
As his conversation suggests, sound too is integral to his work, and,
as in the Rockies, the Cove Park version of The View will incorporate a
live score. Where the Rockies incorporated electric guitar loops into
its atmosphere, Cove Park will utilise percussion played by drummer
Iain Stewart of Bronco Skylift and The Phantom Band.
“He's going to be in the woods,” Middleton explains, “responding to the
surroundings with a lot of amplified sounds. In the Rockies the
electric guitar created a kind of wall of sound that gave an industrial
context in this forest environment, but in Cove Park percussion feels
right. I would actually like Iain to be completely hidden, so people
don't realise that it's a live drummer that's attempting to create a
lot of echo in the valley. Again, it's all about creating an atmosphere
that allows people to focus on what they're seeing and hearing.”
Middleton came to art relatively late. After leaving school, his
dyslexia led him away from word-based pursuits. He worked first as a
joiner, then went to Israel, where he ended up working in a zoo. On
moving back to Glasgow, he worked in a bar for a while before realising
he wanted more, and decided to become a painter. That grew less
attractive when both he and the carpet would end up covered in paint.
It was only in his foundation year that he discovered sculpture.
“That was a real eye-opener,” Middleton says today.
Opting to train in Falmouth in Cornwall rather than Glasgow helped
shape his work even more.
“Glasgow would've been great on one level,” he says, “but Cornwall gave
me the space to develop my own style, which is large-scale. It's quite
difficult to find opportunities to do what I do, so you have to stick
with it. But this is something I always wanted to maintain, having
control over environments.”
On paper, at least, Middleton's work sounds akin to Angus Farquhar's
epic manipulations of open-air spaces with his NVA company. While
Middleton knows them by reputation, he's never actually witnessed any
of Farquhar's work, so is unable to confirm or deny any similarities.
“The pieces I've heard about sound really magical,” says Middleton,
“but I can't really say that I've been inspired by them or anything,
simply because I've never seen anything they've done. I get the
impression, though, that they're getting people to work in 360 degree
landscapes, whereas I'm trying to get people to look at something more
specific. ”
Inbetween creating environments, Middleton maintains a sideline as a
carpenter, something he's kept up since leaving Falmouth, when he went
to London and worked at Pinewood film studios. After working eighteen
hour days, he was on a train to Glasgow when the call came from
Pinewood's construction manager asking him to stand in for him for six
months. The first thing Middleton built on his return to Pinewood was a
house.
“That was a massive learning curve,” he says.
The house was used, appropriately enough, in construction workers
abroad drama, Auf Wiedersehn, Pet. Middleton also worked on BBC costume
dramas before returning to Glasgow, where he gained his Masters of Fine
art degree with a sculptural structure of a mountain with a house on
top.
“That was when I discovered it was landscape I was interested in, but
making my own landscape,” he says. “I want them to be on a scale where
I can use the whole environment, so, rather than try and adapt my ideas
for a gallery, you've got a much bigger place to work, where you don't
have to worry about a white box, but have this space to think about
things.”
Beyond The View, there are already plans afoot for Middleton to create
a new work in Calgary, again in Canada. Again, this will see Middleton
react to the great outdoors in his own particular fashion.
“Working outside is good because there aren't any real boundaries,” he
says. “If you're sensible about things, there are no real health and
safety issues either, whereas if you're working in a space with
windows, that completely changes any atmosphere you're trying to
create. But I don't know if there is an ultimate environment. I'm just
happy wherever I am.”
The View, March 29-30, Cove Park. Bus departs CCA, Glasgow. 6.15pm.
www.ccaglasgow.ticketsolve.com
www.crypticnights.org.uk
The Herald, March 29th 2012
ends
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