BRICKFIELDS PROJECT

This is an initial round-robin to artists and colleagues on a project MERZ is sounding-out to explore developing the remains of Sanquhar’s former brick workings. The area very loosely encircled in red on the map comprises a couple of remaining buildings (fewer than shown on this early map) with some rough grass land with a few trees leading to two clay quarries running northwards from a raised former narrow gauge rail line.

This project extends the work started by Derrie Pearson the MERZ ‘artitect’ in residence with the ‘Changing Places’ exhibition and film shown during the 2022 Sanquhar Arts Festival. Further work in Spring 2023 by Kristin Powers developed a workable pottery clay from the clay from the site resulting in work shown at Impressions of Sanquhar at the 2023 Sanquhar Arts Festival, with tiles made to surround the MERZ doorway by Kirkconnel Activity & Resource Centre.