Votive at Southwark Cathedral

Exhibition | Votive | Sat 1 – Sat 29 Sep, 8am – 6pm | Southwark Cathedral | Free

As part of the Totally Thames Festival 2018.

The act of offering Votives into water is known in many cultures and throughout history from early Neolithic times. Water is seen as life giving and curative, it has a liminal capacity, connecting one realm with another. Votive offerings maybe around commemoration and remembrance, linked to death and departure, they can also be around cleansing and disposal, a ritual act to engender change and hope for the future.

Votives are often given in dedication or as a consequence of a vow, a performance undertaken in uncertain times and in thanks for subsequent relief. Visitors to the exhibition and performance will be encouraged to personally engage and reflect upon their own experiences of ritual and belief, their wishes for change and the role of the Thames in this ‘liquid hope’.

The Associated Clay Workers Union (ACWU), alongside ceramic students from Morley College, will produce work around the theme of votive offerings, to be displayed in Lancelot’s Link.

Totally Thames 2018

Totally Thames is an annual season of surprising, diverse and accessible arts and culture throughout the month of September. The programme is curated and managed by the Thames Festival Trust, with activity taking place on, beneath, and along the River Thames.

Launched in 2014, Totally Thames emerged from the idea to expand and replace the hugely successful two-day Thames Festival along the South Bank and Bankside that ran from 1997 -2013.
The month-long programme runs along the 42-mile stretch of the Thames through working collaboratively with artists, local communities, river interest organisations and businesses.

For further information please visit www.totallythames.org