Since January 2023 Katy Lee, lead artist and Creative Producer, has swum, walked and canoed the River Taw speaking to experts, gathering stories and worked with seven different community groups who use/depend on the River or are geographically linked to it. Going on Taw is an 18-month storytelling & poetry project that travelled the length of the River Taw from Source to Sea – culminating in an exhibition at the Museum of Barnstaple and North Devon.
During the project poems written by participants travelled up and down the river, gathering in size as a pen-pal scheme grew between Chulmleigh, Umberleigh, Bishops Tawton Primary Schools & Sunrise Diversity. Katy Lee worked with over 170 participants, from primary schools situated along the length of the River Taw, Barnstaple Memory Cafe, Barnstaple Youth Centre & ESOL students at Sunrise Diversity.
This exhibition is the last phase of Going on Taw, and will feature Katy’s hand built canoe, which was built to travel along the Taw. The participant’s thoughts and imaginings about the river were written on the canoe Katy paddled down the Taw and have helped to shaped the content of the project alongside Katy’s own writings. Live professional riverbank storytelling & poetry performances, 7 podcasts, 7 short films and this exhibition are all part of the wider project.
Katy has worked with composer David Smale, filmmaker Jessica Pearson and photographer and canoe builder, Vince Large.