What Legacy Now

Interview with Paul Paschal. 2023

Paul:

How did this project come about, and how did you start working with this figure of Christopher Wren?

Hamish:

I visited St. Paul's Cathedral as a child, which Wren designed, and I had some awareness of him being involved in the formation of the Royal Society, but I didn't know much until I started working at the Old Royal Naval College in 2019. That was also designed by him in the late 1600s, so  I learned a little bit more about him at that point, but only really the official history of where I work.

For the 300th anniversary of his death, The Old Royal Navy College was planning some events, and my manager, who knew I was an artist, invited me to propose something. 

I did a bit more research about him, and discovered that as well as all the famous buildings he designed, there was this significant, less intangible legacy to his work in many different fields. A whole culture of research that he was part of. I think because of my background in choreography, that felt quite interesting to me; I’m curious about traditions that are passed on that aren't objects. 

Related to this, I had been working at the College for about three years as a visitor experience assistant, and had been wondering about the relationship between these massive buildings, and all the people who have invested their time to sustain, restore and animate it for hundreds of years

Around the same time, I had been working with flatbed scanners as part of my photography practice. A friend had suggested that I try scaling them up really big. I test-printed one at size A0, which was the first time I got to see it larger than a screen, and enjoyed seeing all the detail. It had this mysterious and painterly quality to it, which reminded me of the huge English baroque paintings at the College in the Painted Hall. So I thought there might be a fit with this invitation to propose something.