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# Project Description A Miner's Guide to Collecting Ghosts Meli Varley Summary Final work Meli Varley has recently completed a Foundation Diploma in Art and Design on the Sculpture pathway. She will begin studying Fine Art and History of Art at Goldsmiths, University of London in September 2025 Meli Varley has recently completed a Foundation Diploma in Art and Design on the Sculpture pathwa... College School of Pre-Degree Studies Course UAL Foundation Diploma in Art and Design Graduation year 2025 Through an interplay of sculpture, drawing and writing A Miner's Guide to Collecting Ghosts seeks to weave a narrative about the journey from organic to synthetic from physical mining processes to bodies which become, increasingly quickly, mechanised- mere ghosts of their fleshy pasts. Hidden forces, unseen but powerful, run through the project often using magnets or water to build unstable structures. Unpredictable and heavy, water caused problems in the making process, tipping over, spilling out, and damaging structures which became integral to the work. Despite our attempts to organise it and manipulate the material, it will erode, spill and flood. The transformative nature of water came to reflect the way that humans have, in places, taken the role of water to transform landscape through mining causing flooding or indirectly through using fossil fuels which lead to global warming and make water act out of character and in cruel ways. The project ultimately aims to reveal the fragility of systems- natural, mechanical, and human- and the persistent presence of what cannot be contained or erased. Final work Tommyknocker 2025 Tommyknocker noun Pronunciation: /ˈtɒmiˌnɒkə/ Plural: Tommyknockers Definition: Folklore: A small, gnome-like creature said to dwell in mines, particularly in the folklore of Cornish and American miners. Generally described as around two feet tall, wearing traditional mining clothes and sporting white whiskers. Believed to be mischievous spirits known for hiding tools, stealing food, extinguishing lanterns, and causing minor disruptions underground. Some miners considered them helpful, interpreting their knocking sounds as warnings of cave-ins or signs leading to rich mineral seams. In some traditions, thought to be the spirits of deceased miners who remained in the mines to protect or haunt those still working there. Note: Mocking, laughing at, or ignoring a Tommyknocker was considered dangerous and disrespectful, potentially bringing misfortune to the offender. wood, steel, expanding foam, plastic, acrylic paint, water, fish tank pump, plastic tubing, organza, orbeez, pulley, chain, copper, string A Miner's Guide to Collecting Ghosts zine Closeups of Tommyknocker 2025 Sea Potato 2025 Sea Potato (noun) : a colloquial term for polymetallic nodules- potato-sized mineral deposits scattered across the ocean floor. These nodules form over millions of years as metals precipitate from seawater and accumulate around small objects like shark teeth or bone fragments. Rich in manganese, cobalt, nickel, and copper, they are considered valuable for the production of batteries and other technologies essential to renewable energy systems. Environmental concerns accompany their extraction, as these nodules serve as habitats for diverse deep-sea organisms, and mining them may significantly disrupt fragile oceanic ecosystems. magnets, iron filings, steel, water, ink, perspex vitrine, chain, found car part Research and process View Gallery View Gallery View Gallery Share this project Through an interplay of sculpture, drawing and writing A Miner's Guide to Collecting Ghosts seeks to weave a narrative about the journey from organic to synthetic from physical mining processes to bodies which become, increasingly quickly, mechanised- mere ghosts of t... A link to this page has been added to your clipboard Browse related work Climate Emergency Nature & Environment Body Materiality Histories Story & Myth
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