Nature Calling

In 2023, the National Landscapes Association secured funding from Arts Council England (as part of the Lottery funded Nationally Significant Project stream) and Defra to deliver Nature Calling. Nature Calling is designed to amplify new voices and create innovative artwork in collaboration with communities close to National Landscapes, building to a national ‘season’ sharing the work between May and October 2025.

The aim of Nature Calling is to listen to our communities and ensure our landscapes are a place for everyone. It will engage new audiences across England and inspire the whole National Landscapes family, whilst bringing the Special Qualities of our National Landscapes to the fore. Nature Calling will deliver ambitious art projects, inspired by brand new writing commissions.

The Mendip Hills National Landscape Team is delighted to be one of the six ‘hubs’ delivering Nature Calling in partnership with Super Culture. The project locally is called ‘View In View Out (VIVO)’ and is a collaboration between composer and lyricist Gwyneth Herbert, sound artist Jason Singh, and nature interpreter Chris Howard (produced by Sound UK). Together they are working with local communities in Weston-super-Mare to create a multi-disciplinary commission of lyrics, songs and sound recordings based in the town and Mendip Hills.

Since being commissioned, the VIVO team have been working with the Mendip Hills National Landscape Team and Super Culture, spending their time meeting, gathering and listening with a variety of groups across Weston. The project launched with an “Eat and Greet” in the Aller Parade Community Hub – a chance for them to connect with the people of South Ward in their neighbourhood – drawing, chatting, sharing tunes, food and words.

Since then, they have been leading walks and workshops to explore nature on the doorstep and share ideas of what nature is – what it isn’t – and what it might mean to the people of Weston.

Their next creative chapter opens back in South Ward in early 2025 with a group of young people to co-create an anthem that celebrates their community. There’ll be more trips into the Mendip landscape, along with interviews, field recordings, research trips and writing sessions – culminating with the weaving together of all they have gathered and learnt later in the year.

 

Find out more about the project and our writers and artists on the Nature Calling website: naturecalling.org.uk

Visit Mendip Hills National Landscape website: mendiphills-nl.org.uk