Still from The Earth is Turning Mural, Dani Watson
The Earth is turning
A new poetry collection informed by experiences of migration.
In 2016, Dani Watson participated in Young Europeans, a programme led by New Writing North, and supported by D6. In the lead up to the European Referendum, young writers in the North East were invited to creatively respond to, ‘Should we stay or should we go?’ - an alternative public campaign.
Dani explored the reductionist nature of the ‘Leave’ campaign and how it targeted migrants across the region. She produced two new poems ‘More Than A Feeling’ and ‘I Read the News Today, Oh Boy’ capturing the zeitgeist.
This marked the beginning of Dani’s journey with D6, as the inaugural Writer in Residence from May 2017 and August 2018. During her residency, Dani spent time with artist Henna Asikainen, participating in her artist-led commissions Forage and Delicate Shuttle. The commissions, supported by D6, stemmed from Henna’s own experience of migration from Finland to the North East of England and invited newly arrived individuals, families and groups met through the Kittiwake Multilingual Library English Language Conversation Group to participate in ‘cultural foraging’ walks. In her words, her practice is “an attempt to understand what it means to leave and to arrive, to lose and to find, to be uprooted and to make a home.”
Through her own observations and participation, Dani produced The Earth Is Turning, a new collection of poetry which stands as a continued reflection informed by her own conversations with participants, who themselves embody a wealth of first-hand migration experiences. It is their valuable contribution, response and feedback that has informed Dani’s new collection.
"The Earth is Turning was inspired by stories and experiences of migration. The poetry revolves around themes of home and displacement. At a time of great political division, the collection attempts to explore the subject of migration through the perspective of those who have left, lost or became uprooted from their home country." - Dani Watson
Please click here to view the work, presented through our interactive digital platform Mural, and use your mouse to scroll down the page.
Credits:
The Earth is Turning was produced by D6: Culture in Transit and has been kindly supported by New Writing North and by public funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England.
Special thanks to Henna Asikainen and the Kittiwake Multilingual Library English Language Conversation Group.
In 2016, Dani Watson participated in Young Europeans, a programme led by New Writing North, and supported by D6. In the lead up to the European Referendum, young writers in the North East were invited to creatively respond to, ‘Should we stay or should we go?’ - an alternative public campaign.
Dani explored the reductionist nature of the ‘Leave’ campaign and how it targeted migrants across the region. She produced two new poems ‘More Than A Feeling’ and ‘I Read the News Today, Oh Boy’ capturing the zeitgeist.
This marked the beginning of Dani’s journey with D6, as the inaugural Writer in Residence from May 2017 and August 2018. During her residency, Dani spent time with artist Henna Asikainen, participating in her artist-led commissions Forage and Delicate Shuttle. The commissions, supported by D6, stemmed from Henna’s own experience of migration from Finland to the North East of England and invited newly arrived individuals, families and groups met through the Kittiwake Multilingual Library English Language Conversation Group to participate in ‘cultural foraging’ walks. In her words, her practice is “an attempt to understand what it means to leave and to arrive, to lose and to find, to be uprooted and to make a home.”
Through her own observations and participation, Dani produced The Earth Is Turning, a new collection of poetry which stands as a continued reflection informed by her own conversations with participants, who themselves embody a wealth of first-hand migration experiences. It is their valuable contribution, response and feedback that has informed Dani’s new collection.
"The Earth is Turning was inspired by stories and experiences of migration. The poetry revolves around themes of home and displacement. At a time of great political division, the collection attempts to explore the subject of migration through the perspective of those who have left, lost or became uprooted from their home country." - Dani Watson
Please click here to view the work, presented through our interactive digital platform Mural, and use your mouse to scroll down the page.
Credits:
The Earth is Turning was produced by D6: Culture in Transit and has been kindly supported by New Writing North and by public funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England.
Special thanks to Henna Asikainen and the Kittiwake Multilingual Library English Language Conversation Group.