This wonderful exhibition brought together many artist, sculptors, singers and poets. We are grateful to

Teena Gould  (Ceramic & Public Artist) for allowing us to show some of her work on our web site. You can see her work 'in use' on this link from the Save the Teifi Facebook page.

She said "Water is central to our lives.  It courses through all the channels of our body.  It runs from source to sea, just as our lives flow in that direction. Water sustains life.  When we pollute our bodies, we became sick.  When we pollute our rivers they too become sick. As a ceramicist and public artist, water in all its forms frequently informs my work; both material and contextual."

As you can see from the FB video her work was interactive and included these suggestions:

POST YOUR TEIFI DREAMS AND FEARS.

Take a moment to focus your thoughts, feelings and experiences of our River Teifi. Gaze into the water in Deep Pool.

Now ask yourself - 

• What is it that is harmful and potentially destroying our river? What does that look and feel like?
• What would you like to see being brought in to the present and future of our river? How does that feel and what might it look like?

To let go of the negative write and post your response in the Closed Vessel.

To bring in the positive, write and post your response in Rock Face (the open vessel).

Your postings will be collated and sent to the Teifi Collective.

Many thanks.  Teena

Responses/Postings.

Finding Nature along a tributary of the Teifi

In this recent course: 'Finding Nature', led by Yusef Samari, centred along the river in the Piliau Valley.

Participants walked slowly and meditatively along the river, stopping to jot down thoughts and feelings. Some deep and beautiful words transpired from that process.  

We are again gratefull to Teena for sending us some of the responses from that group, which you can read below.

Teena Gould

Sparkles on a cow pat that will nourish the ground.

Releasing a song, a burble, a rustle, without intention; it is given freely.

Letting go; giving up, allowing change into the unknown.

The seen and the unseen – they cant be stopped.

An  energy draws it to the moment of action: it is unstoppable.

I feel, I respond, I notice, I experience.  What does the water, or a blade of grass feel, notice, respond to and experience?

Nothing is as it seems; it carries the imprints of past experiences.

Can the water ever own itself” it abandons itself to everything in comes into contact with, and yet it is the earths most vital lifeforce.

Do I ever leave anything behind, or just move on?

Imprints of happenings, of journeys past; there is barely any present.

___________________________________________________________________

Helen Gibbard

The River bends. 

A warm, elbow curve, flowing around my head, 

Dazzling swoosh of silver hair, 

Water lines and body lines. 

An invisible flow, dancing a dark change into peace, 

Fruitful enclosure of security, 

Water layers and air layers. 

A mesh of branches, filtering the uncatchable, 

Flowing lines without unravelling, 

Leaf dancing and leaf symphony. 

Pouring a jug of life, 

There are miles to go. 

___________________________________________________________________

Vanya Constant

Eddying dark whorls, ripples caressing stone 

Then sudden shift into the light 

Stream flows fast trailing molten silver  

Into secret darkness then its ripples slowly reach banks of tumbling debris 

From overhanging branches dangling red berries over the glistening stream 

Shingly shallows confuse it's movement and sudden swirls pick up speed around grass strewn mudbanks

Quieter now, deeper throwing itself on sodden banks

Long flowing tresses of grass are caressed by watery fingers

A gentle musical rippling soon gives way to surges of energy

Spurting, bubbling, tripping over a fallen branch bridging the bank

So clear and clean, my eyes drowning in it's myriad movements through gleaming light and mossy shade 

Am I becoming lost in this ever changing hypnotic journey around  bend after bend widening,  devouring the land at it's leisure carrying whatever falls in it's path 

Moving away I separate myself from it's influence and strange music that entranced me 

_____________________________________________________________________

Simon Whitehead

Dark pool Slow water

The chill in the shade of the bend

The feeling of a meander - a leaning in, a falling out

There is always a little resistance in the flow

What happens here changes everything (downstream)

A woody weir with spikes, troubling the water

Leave us a river

In the PV for 'Art on Troubled Waters' there was a performance of Matthews & Piers song 'Leave them A River'. See the Facebook reel below. Below that is a the Singing Village choir performance from Aug 11.