Thamesmead Texas is proud to present ‘Bits and Pieces – Odds and Sods’, a multi-media exhibition of art, film, oral histories, archives, photography, and installation. The exhibition is an accumulation of research made by artists Scully and Scully for their Thamesmead Community Archive residency.
The impossibility of Thamesmead as a single narrative lead to the idea of the town being a marketplace of ideas. After 18 months of meeting people, and asking the question “How did you come to Thamesmead?” it was clear that there is no single, linier story to be told about Thamesmead.
“The encounters all happened quite organically” said Liam, of Scully and Scully. “It helped that we also live in Thamesmead. We would be outside walking the dog or taking photos and people would stop and strike up a conversation about the breed of our dog, or the type of camera we were using”. The multiple encounters resulted in the making of genuine friendships across different cultures in Thamesmead. “We found ourselves getting to know people by experiencing their cultures” said Vanessa, of Scully and Scully. “We attended a car boot sale, a Christmas church service and even a Nollywood film premiere! We met people’s friends and family, together we cooked and ate, and above all shared hopes and aspirations”.
Between interviews Scully and Scully have been filming bits and pieces of Thamesmead, from the ancient Abbey Woodland up to the Thames pathway. They have used various cameras from Go Pros to digital camcorders and analogue equipment to collect unique perspectives of Thamesmead, sometimes from unseen vantage points. These bits and pieces will form the basis of a new film which Scully and Scully will be working on during the entirety of the exhibition.
A final question to all interviewees from Scully and Scully asks, “what are your hopes for Thamesmead?”. This hypothetical question is explored further throughout the exhibition, with the shop front being shared with local people. It acts as a place to imagine and collaborate. Expect a TV shop set up displaying Nollywood films, a Nepalese Food Market and a Traveller’s trading space.
When Scully and Scully asked local Traveller Chris Trimmings what he was selling at the Birchmere park car boot sale, his jovial response “Bits and Pieces, Odds and Sods” inspired the title of the exhibition. “The title intends to invite viewers to browse the former Beaumont Beds Shop and contemplate the fragments of information and multiple points of view on offer.” says Scully and Scully.
Thamesmead Texas’s archive residency has been funded by Heritage Lottery Fund and Peabody, and extracts from their stories and finding will be presented on the archive website
