THE EDGE of forever, 2022
The Edge of Forever (2022) part of Atomic Light
The film centres on two questing children seeking to unravel the mysteries of a damaged world in a landscape loaded with symbolism. Their journey begins at Cuckmere Haven, Sussex, with its cliffs formed from the remains of plankton from100 million years ago, continues to a Cold War era observatory and concludes with their visions of the cosmos.
In this work, Blandy investigates connections between specific sites, personal histories and geopolitical events to reflect on our place in the world. These ideas are tackled through the lens of his grandfather’s experiences interred in Japanese POW camps during the Second World War in Singapore and Taiwan, merging the personal with larger shared histories.
Stills from The Edge of Forever, David Blandy, 2022, Camera: Claire Barrett
These histories are intimately tied to the South Coast of England; from the abandoned telescopes of Herstmonceux Observatory in Hailsham and the winding meanders of Cuckmere Haven, a landscape steeped in the history of World War Two; to the sci-fi of HG Wells that preempted many of our technological advances.
David Blandy - Atomic Light, John Hansard Gallery
11 February 2023–6 May 2023
Installation view: Atomic Light, David Blandy, John Hansard Gallery. Photo credit: Reece Straw
The Edge of Forever was part of Atomic Light, David Blandy’s most ambitious solo project to date and expanded on his Artist Residency at Towner Gallery, Eastbourne in 2022. Featuring four newly commissioned films, it builds upon his continued interest in history, the legacy of empire and the climate crisis.
The tales interconnect through the story of Blandy’s grandfather, a British soldier interred in Singapore as a Japanese prisoner of war, who believed that the horrific atomic bombing of Hiroshima saved his life. The Edge of Forever and Empire of the Swamp were shot on location and feature the landscapes of the UK and Singapore. Archival footage is used in Sunspot, where two Observatories both detect the same sun on the day an atomic sun was made on earth; the Hiroshima bomb that killed 100,000 people. Similarly, in Soil, Sinew & Bone a history of war and a history of agriculture are mirrored, the fertile earth of phosphates and nitrates reflected into weapons of war.
Atomic Light was co-commissioned by John Hansard Gallery and Towner Eastbourne, with support from Arts Council England, Screen Archive South East and Elephant Trust.
With thanks to The Observatory Science Centre, Herstmonceux; Herstmonceux Castle Estate & Sussex Film Office
Artist Residency at Towner, Eastbourne
As part of the artist’s residency at Towner, two new video works were created, The Edge of Forever & Soil, Sinew & Bone. Alongside this Blandy presented his research into the relationship between food production and weapons development, space exploration and ecological disaster.
Installation view of David Blandy: The Edge of Forever
Artist Residency & Exhibition at Towner Eastbourne, 20 September to 2 October 2022
Photo credit: Fraser Marr
The exhibition also included a collaboration with Fine Art students from East Sussex College Lewes. The students worked closely with Blandy to create an outsized children’s fantasy. Together they reimagined key scenes from the film, enlarged and built out of cardboard, from observatory domes, mangrove roots to figures, all rendered in the style of theatre flats, that populated the ground floor studios.