“What line did the river first write in the valley?” – the work of Richard Skelton

richard skelton - limnology

As I am about to go on a trip to the Lake District and I’ve been meaning to write a post about the elemental work of Richard Skelton, who has produced music and texts inspired by the landscape and dialect of Cumbria, it seemed like an appropriate time to post this.

His practice takes in research of the language, topography and sound of the remote landscapes of Britain and Ireland. The outcomes take the form of experimental music, typography, assemblage, poetry, book publishing; most importantly the outcomes seem to bubble up through an immersion in the natural environment, so the form they take seems less important than the connections they make.

Everything seems very connected to nature in a relaxed and effortless way. Even the connections between the music and texts, often presented together in the form of book accompanied by CD, are clear but not forced. The human element manifests itself through an interest in place names and their relation to topography and folklore. This gives an insight into the history of places and man’s relationship with nature, making the work more profound while still being open-ended.

As with most artists whose work I relate to, there is an understated confidence and focus to his work. This interview from one of my favorite music blogs The Quietus, gives a good insight into his preoccupations. You can buy music and publications from Corbel Stone Press which is the publishing company he runs with his wife Autumn Richardson.

richard skelton - limnology Richard Skelton Sightings richard skelton - assemblage01 richard skelton - becomeaford *AR - succession

Leave a Reply

  • (will not be published)

XHTML: You can use these tags: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>