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I have been drawn to the local phenomena and old legends of the Moodus Noises, the thunderous underground sounds unique to the East Haddam region and that are attributed to seismic activity. Stories over the centuries attempting to understand and explain the strange and unpredictable noises involve Native American deities, colonial witches altercations and the wild legend of Dr. Steel, who believed a carbuncle blocking a cave’s entrance/exit to be the cause of the bizarre cacophony. The layers of myth and hearsay reveal themes of duality: old gods and new, worlds underground and above, battle and peace. The site of the Moodus Noises itself is at the confluence of two rivers. In my installation/performance, I am integrating many of the impressions of the varied stories into a poetic and allegorical melding of image, sound and action — the eccentric house of Dr. Steel, rumbles and clanking, hidden rites and flowing rivers. I am working with materials and iconography characteristic of my art over many years — trees, earth, stone, wool, dwelling spaces, pits and flowing pathways. |
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