Pai Nosso | Our Father
Trish Scott, Dan Scott & Rodney Schofield carried out a multi-voice and multi-perspective project exploring the encounter between an English Catholic priest, the people of the Gralheira massif and ourselves as contemporary artists. With the aim of precipitating a debate that crosses the traditional boundaries between contemporary art and religion, we invited Father Rodney Schofield (theologian and Catholic priest from the United Kingdom) to work with us. Father Rodney has a long-standing interest in topics related to inculturation (this being the subject of his doctoral thesis and subsequent publications) and our project will document Father Rodney and how he examines the meaning of inculturation (specifically the value attributed to local traditions within the context of faith) in intergenerational relationships in the region.
The methodology was to visit families in different villages (with mediations to be carried out by members of Binaural/Nodar) and then follow Father Rodney’s journey, as he starts conversations and gathers material. We will document sounds and conversations and develop a travel narrative that incorporates different voices. Through the documentation of Father Rodney’s journey we will create a narrative in the form of an installation incorporating film and multi-channel audio, based on the materials and results obtained. This work will also function as a sound work and will also be part of a proposed mass to be celebrated by Father Rodney in one of the churches or chapels in the region.
Trish and Dan Scott form an artistic partnership based in Kent, UK. His practice incorporates the respective areas of performance, sound art and video art, exploring narratives of places, in a playful way and using institutional methodologies, such as ethnography, archeology, management consultancy or literature. Previous projects include Change Management, an experiential coaching course linked to brownfields in Kent, Herring Quest, an exploration of the declining herring industry in northern Iceland. The products of his projects range from installations and live performances, to audio guides, artist books and short films. Trish and Dan have a background in Social Anthropology, and have both been involved in practical research based at the University of the Arts, London.
Father Rodney Schofield has a long and varied experience in the context of the Christian Church. Raised as a Methodist, he was ordained an Anglican priest in 1972, serving in English parishes and teaching in African seminaries (in Lesotho and Malawi), before becoming a Catholic priest in the diocese of Plymouth in 2006. He studied theology at Oxford University and more He later obtained a doctorate from the University of Wales, Lampeter.