Waylosing: a Guide to Getting Lost
Sat 2nd Aug, 1pm with Bill Aitchison
Sat 2 Aug, 1pm - Bill Aitchison
Start: New Street Signal Box, Navigation Street, Birmingham B5 4AD
Duration: 5h
Waylosing is a walking tour which explores what it means to lose your way. Some people have a special talent for getting lost, others have a compass-like sense of direction. Rather than viewing being lost negatively, this tour will consider it as a unique state in which places, people and objects all appear detached from their familiar matrix.
The tour will be guided by the ideas and poetics of losing one’s way while at the same time following an indeterminate route through the city. We will use a variety of techniques to take us well off the beaten path. The starting point is agreed and the end of the walk is back in the city centre but where we go between these two points will be determined by just how well we succeed getting lost.
About Bill Aitchison
Bill Aitchison is a performance artist who has presented his performances, sound works and videos in galleries, theatres and festivals in Europe, Asia, America and The Middle East. He has a particular interest in walking tours and holds a practice-based PhD from Goldsmiths College. He has published critical and creative texts in several countries, has made several works for radio, regularly teaches and mentors projects and is associate research fellow at Birkbeck College University of London.
Extra information:
Suitable footwear for urban environment including occasional off-pavement routes
Route may involve steps and narrow pavements
Annoying for children