Landmarking Surrey's Cultural Lives

Open to all, this event will encompass a variety of opportunities to reflect on how we landmark our lives in the beautiful setting of Leith Hill Place in the Surrey Hills including:

• Storytelling, poetry and live music exploring the intricate relationship between place and identity performed by multidisciplinary artist Rosie May Jones.

• Participatory workshops exploring how stones can become landmarks, create moments of reflection and embed our stories in time. Led by archaeologist Elise Unwin and Rosie May Jones.

• A talk on composer Ralph Vaughn Williams (who lived in Leith Hill Place) from Catherine McCusker and the opportunity to explore other Surrey lives through the Surrey Cultural Lives map with Beth Palmer.

Timings for the day:

House Open: 10am - 4pm. The cafe will also be open for refreshments. 

All day activities:

Surrey Cultural Lives Interactive Map: Share and learn about people who made a cultural impact on Surrey with the University of Surrey

Stones That Remember: Exploring how stones can become landmarks, create moments of reflection and embed our stories in time. Activities include:  Cairn Building with dry stone wall builder Emma Yates,  Discussion & Artefact Handling with researcher and archaeologist Elise Unwin, Stone Painting Workshop

Tread Carefully Exhibition: An exhibition celebrating the role of invertebrates, by local artists and students from University of the Creative Arts Surrey.

Landmarks Video Poem: Screening a new spoken word video by Leith Hill Place artist in residence Rosie May Jones, exploring the relationship between identity and landscape.

Talks & Performances:

12 midday: The Man Behind the Music: a talk on Vaughan Williams by Catherine McCusker

3pm - 4pm: To These Hills Live Performance: with poetry from Rosie May Jones & folk music by D’arcy Duo

A free minibus will pick up from Dorking main train station at 10:30 and 13:30. Return journeys will depart from Leith Hill Place at 13:00 and 16:15.

The minibus will do a further pick up from Cranleigh leisure centre at 11:15 and the return journey will depart at 2:30.

To guarantee a space on the minibus please contact b.palmer@surrey.ac.uk

If travelling to Leith Hill Place by car, please use postcode: RH5 6LU for Rhododendron Wood car park (nearest car park). Please note that blue badge holders can park at the house itself at Leith Hill Place, other vehicles should use the Rhododendron Wood car park. The ground floor of Leith Hill Place is accessible, but there are steps to the first floor and cellar.  For further details on accessibility please see National Trust Leith Hill Place website.

This University of Surrey event is part of Being Human Festival, the UK’s national festival of the humanities, taking place 7–16 November 2024. Led by the School of Advanced Study, University of London, with generous support from Research England, in partnership with the Arts and Humanities Research Council and the British Academy. For further information please see beinghumanfestival.org.