Neolithic Cannibals
Neolithic Cannibals: Deep Listening to the Unheard is a socially engaged sound art project and exhibition from the young people of Whitehawk and East Brighton, artist Simon James (who was born and raised in Whitehawk), and Class Divide.
Explored through the deep time history of the Neolithic in East Brighton and the contemporary soundscape of Whitehawk, the Neolithic Cannibals exhibition mixes archaeology, psycho-geography, sound art, and activism. The work will transport audiences to a place where imaginative and fantastical sounds invite deep listening to an area that is hidden and unheard.
Through a series of workshops, young people in Whitehawk have listened to the contemporary environment of East Brighton using the Whitehawk Hill Neolithic Camp, discovered in 1929 through a geophysical listening technique known as Bosing, as a focal point and inspiration for their sonic explorations.
Neolithic Cannibals will recreate the Neolithic Camp - a place of communion, celebration, and ritual, as a compassionate listening space inviting audiences to discover Whitehawk's richness, joy, playfulness, and hope, empowering local voices through rarely explored sonic expressions.
Audiences will leave with a deeper appreciation for empathetic listening, and consider the power of collective effort and the part we all play in addressing complex and current social issues
Simon James was supported with an Elektrouši and a pair of basicUcho microphones.
