Longyearbyen, Svalbard 23-04-10

Heading back to Sweden this morning after a two week stay here in Svalbard. We were staying in Longyearbyen and talking to specialists either working or who’d worked in the field to the east of here on Edgeøya and Kong Karls Land about the denning habits of the polar bear

For 19 years Jason Roberts has been based here as an independent filmmaker working as field assistant and producer for a number of high profile BBC productions including Polar Bear Special and the Ice Worlds episode for the Planet Earth series with David Attenborough. He has specialized in the filming of polar bears and has had more experience than most in the observation of bear activities in and around dens. We recorded an interview with Jason and agreed to work together towards the development and realization of the Matrix project

Whilst in Longyearbyen we also spoke with Birger Amundsen, the editor from Svalbardposten who spent much time documenting dens in the ’eighties with the legendary Thor Larssen for the Norwegian Polar Research Institute in Trømso. In January this year, an article about our project appeared in Svalbardposten together with a drawing by Birger made on site during one such expedition, including detailed measurements of the various chambers and passages

Tors Punsvik from the Sysselmann (the Governor of Svalbard’s office) was helpful in giving us the background to human/polar bear encounters in the Archipelago and a clutch of new leads for our research

Thanks to all and those others that we met who made our stay so inspirational – and thanks to stunning Svalbard

Yesterday Mark left Gothenburg after a great weekend in which we connected with artist friends both from Gothenburg and London. On Saturday we had an evening in Nefertiti the local jazz club. As always when you spend some time in the city you become seduced by the many culturally related opportunities. Questions arise about options and the proximity that the city offers to more social and casual art related events. Art is unique in the way that it likes to link you with the place you live. Even today where so many of us are constantly on the move and connected virtually, the importance of place is still of significance for the art scene. We find real meaning in being where we are in the neutral and not insignificant space we have created in which to work and think. Sometimes traveling to and fro can be difficult and Mark must have felt so after his long, almost 24 hour journey back on Sunday (which turned into Monday) but then there are images like this that await you on your return. A clear message about having arrived - the body and mind under big skies...

This is where we live, where we have our studio in the middle of a farming community in Cumbria. It takes a lot to make the decision to live in the middle of nowhere - 'in space' so to speak - and conduct an active art practice. It involves constant traveling and there are responsibilities, sharing our home as we do with two dogs, (Cora & Curtis), 3 cats (Taz, Topaz, Perla) 6 hens, 1 cockerel and 3 geese - under these circumstances, good neighbours and willing 'friends in residence' are essential. We are also host to those visitors less dependent on us – in the winter and spring the roe deer, fox and the mink make appearances, along with moles, various rodents and (in the river adjacent to the meadow) there are otters. The heron likes to stride around our small pond which has plenty of toads and frogs. Buzzards, wagtails, a great spotted woodpecker, goldfinches, barn and tawny owls are also regular visitors. Not only do we make work inspired by human and animal relations but we also spend much of our time negotiating space with them, both ours, the neighbouring farmers' and those we encounter on our way to and from our home.