As part of his seminar, Charlie Hackett gave us an asignment to produce a short form video exploring some of the topics we are exploring in our MA projects. He wanted to see a critical grounding, so it would be more akin to a presented essay over say a vlog. Here is my first pass at the assignment. It is a “vlog”, however it allows the space to have a first draft at the issues I am tackling within my studio work.
Comments Discussion
I had a interesting discussion about the differences between access in Scotland and the USA with a regular commenter on my channel Jeremy Porterfield. He raised some interesting points relating to long standing behaviours which can be explored in the Scottish example as to how the current situation was able to come about.
Callum Kellie
Thanks for the really thoughtful reply. Even before the “right to roam” came into effect and before the national parks in the Cairngorms were founded, people accessed the wild lands if Scotland that they did not own for their own pleasure. Poaching has always been a no go, but if you were on a hill to take in the hill, frequently (and increaaingly in the last 100 years) you were able to get on with it.
Most of the fencing amd boundaries you find are in actual fact a out keeping game in an estate rather than hikers out. It is an interesting debate but the access, both illicit historically and legal currently, breeds a sense of ownership. Once ground is spiritually communal, its quite hard to put the genie back in the bottle.
Jeremy Porterfield
It’s a really interesting topic and one i’m interested in from a planning/governmental perspective. That’s interesting about the fences – I’ve always thought it awesome about the gates that I’ve seen on your vids and others that have the little stairwells over the side. i think it’s particularly interesting as Britain in a more grasp-able sense has a finite amount of land and a much higher average population density than the states, especially the flyover states.
I’ve heard it said that 10 years in the States is like 100 years in Britain, but 10 meters in Britain is like 10 km in the States – ie the States have space the way Britain has history. However, I think the way we, as humans globally, steward our wild places will become more and more prominent and pressing going forward as populations continue to grow. I think it’s an issue we all (all nations) will have one day, even if I’m not alive to see it.
Callum Kellie
England is a slightly different kettle of fish to Scotland as it doesn’t have universal access. There are trails and bridleways that outdoors enthusiasts can access but there are an equal number on private land. The population density is a good point I hadn’t considered previously. In England is also significantly higher than Scotland, 5million people in Scotland and the majority are in a small number of cities that are mostly in close proximity. The majority of Scotlands real estate is unpopulated.
There used to be a much more even spread of people across the landscape, but in the 18th century the Lairds (land lords) cleared out their tenants to make way for sheep farming. Many went to the coasts and the cities, many went to America. But more recently the land has felt like it belongs more and more to the people.
An example of this when I was a kid, I walked 5 miles to visit a stone circle in a local farmers land. There was a fence, I more or less threw my Labrador over so I could climb after him and we could visit the stones. There were cattle in the field, but I ensured they weren’t bothered by my dog. I can’t imagine that happening in the states from what I have read.
Jeremy Porterfield
Agreed – England is certainly different than Scotland, at least from what I’ve seen in videos of Scotland and my experience in SW England. Self-power, whether walking or cycling, seem to be much more viable as a means of transportation than the States, probably because in large part, the States have been developed post-industrial revolution and the advent of cars, so everything (with a few notable exceptions) is much more spread out geographically.
There are other factors involved in this as well, but they touch political topics I’m purposely avoiding. I also think there’s generally a much more active lifestyle on your side – some of this I think is attributable to climate. In the South US during the summer when it’s 35C most days and very humid, many people have no interest in being outdoors, and part of me doesn’t blame them.
However, it makes even an average mountain biker like me seem pretty extreme to many. I think it’s super interesting to realize the connections between historical realities (the Lairds clearing tenants, American post-Industrial development) and the situations they’ve given rise to in the present day. It’s as if they are “seeds” that have been planted and are now coming to harvest, decades and centuries later. That’s why I’m interested in solutions now, because even though I won’t see it, the “seeds” we plant will directly and indirectly shape the future and I want to remembered as someone who thought about those things.
Anyways, that’s a ton of heady stuff on what started as bike topic lol.
Callum Kellie