Tag: mudlarking

Thames, River of Rubbish

Published on 14th September 2023

Drawing on objects found in the Thames, mudlark and author Tom Chivers will explore the history of the river as a dumping ground for London’s waste. You will have the chance to hold artefacts from the city’s past, from Roman pottery to medieval jewellery, and hear Tom share early research from his postgraduate project, In the Flow of Things: Encounters with the Mudlarks of the Thames Foreshore (QMUL/MOLA). Tom will share reflections on pollution, sustainability and the Thames, and propose mudlarking as a kind of alchemy which reconceptualises London’s river of rubbish as a source of treasure and delight. Find out more/book Presented by Team London Bridge as part of its programme for Totally Thames – Thames Festival Trust

Treasures of the Thames at Southwark Cathedral

Published on 08th September 2020

Discover mudlarked artefacts from the shores of the River Thames presented at Southwark Cathedral, alongside the work of two contemporary artists, Raewyn Harrison and Liz Willis. Challenging our concept of rubbish these fragments of the past tell stories of London’s first farmers more than 5000 years ago, Roman invaders, and Medieval saints. They paint pictures of fun and frivolity at Southwark’s Tudor inns and theatres and darker images of prison ships and slavery. Many of the objects on display feature in Lara Maiklem’s bestselling book ‘Mudlarking: Lost and Found on the River Thames’. Responding to the locations and finds that Lara has written about Raewyn and Liz have made work specifically for this exhibition, showing that these lost and forgotten objects can be transformed into something new and beautiful. Find out more