Footfalls

Sound Installation

Skoki, an agricultural village approximately 50 miles from Poznan in central Poland. A large house built at the turn of the century and standing in landscaped gardens. Originally owned by a professor from Poznan Academy of Art and occupied by the Nazis during the Second World War, reputedly used as a training school for the Hitler Youth Movement and later taken over by the Red Army.

It is late, about 21.30h and very dark. Wind gusting from North. Two large speakers, set out of sight, stand on balcony. Lights flicker in the small arches of the balcony balustrade, source unseen. No other lights showing – house in complete darkness. Sound begins softly – boots walking slowly on a creaky wooden floor – sound increases, fades, increases, fades, pauses, resumes. Continues as lights flicker and begin to extinguish randomly. The sound is of walking, but no one is there. A sound stuck in time, a presence, a feeling, unable to escape. The sound begins to fade, the lights gradually flicker away. For a moment, darkness and quiet. Still. House lights back on.