A Poem for Dead Ships

Documentation of performance at Bowling Harbour Ship Graveyard, reading out a found poem made collaboratively with the community who live there.

 

‘Please take a piece of paper and write on it a word or sentence that represents either your feelings towards this particular place (Bowling Harbour) or a response to the exhibition around you. If you are stuck for ideas why not look at the mind map on the wall or have a look at some of the books and text resources on the tables. A feeling, a thought, an idea, a colour, a smell, a texture, a reflection. I will be collecting these together to create a collaborative found poem, that is, a poem made by putting together all your responses to create one piece of text. I will then speak this poem to the Ghost Shipyard, to remind dead ships there are still voices at the harbour.’

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A quiet corner, 

 

of creativity.

Bowling

now re-lives 

 

damp, biting, cold

 

Wee histories

Tiny shells

Gloopy creation

sticking mud

 

Pain 

in every joint

Serenity

aching

industrial in nature

 

You know;

when it’s been raining in Glasgow

Only a wee half will help.

 

A found home

journey, now woken

sleeping ships

breathing space

 

community 

connections made.

safe, grounded

surrounded

by the elements

your boat rises