A moving sculpture that playfully reroutes audiences as it journeys across Bodmin, connecting Flamm sites and locations by mapping ways to get from A to B to C to D from the perspective of young people who live in the town.

Collaborating with dancers from leading community organisation KBSK, this project by Small Acts and Kitty Hillier fuses sculpture and performance, people and place to explore navigation, roots and connectedness.

Informed by creative walking and drawing practices and GPS mapping, the shape of the sculpture also references the vast network of tree roots that connect everything under the surface of the streets.

During the festival, residents and visitors will be invited to help carry the sculpture, find a dance performance in the hidden heart of Bodmin, and explore the town through the eyes of teenagers via a specially created map.

The full journey between festival venues will be repeated twice a day, with a dance performance at The Space on Saturday 28th February.

Co-commissioned with FEAST and Experience Bodmin

Small Acts work with people and places locally, nationally and internationally to create live participatory artworks and performances that bring individuals and communities together in unexpected and joyful ways.

Often playful and always inventive, Small Acts projects both create and celebrate face-to-face human connection. They are often made with participants in the places where people informally connect outside of home or work such as pubs, community gardens, markets and other ‘third’ places. Based in Cornwall, lead artists Katie Etheridge and Simon Persighetti have developed a multi-layered collaborative practice that explores the intersection between architecture, community, place and performance.

Small Acts projects have been commissioned by organisations including Compass Live Art, Creative Peninsula, Art Centre Penryn, National Trust, University of Exeter, Prague Quadrennial (CZ), Country Arts (AUS), Live Art Development Agency and Lancaster Arts.

Kitty Hillier’s work is rooted in a fundamental belief that all things are connected. Seeking this out both above and below the surface of what she sees in nature, biomorphic forms are distilled, overlapped and reconstructed through various means and approaches. The results are playful images and sculptures that reflect these observations.

Kitty studied Foundation Art at Falmouth and specialised in BA Fine Art Painting at Bath Spa (2007). Working out of her studio at Art Centre Penryn, Kitty has developed a multi-faceted practice that celebrates collaboration and is underpinned by ongoing research into the divided human brain, communication and plant intelligence. She creates workshops for organisations including St Ives School of Painting, encouraging participants to engage in slow-looking, material experimentation and using all the senses.

She has recently exhibited at Newlyn Art Gallery & The Exchange, Exeter Phoenix 333 Gallery, Morgan’s Falmouth and ALMA, Newquay. Her work is held in private and corporate collections internationally.

KBSK is a Bodmin-based performing arts and youth organisation that supports children, teenagers and families through accessible dance, creative activities and community programmes. It focuses on building confidence, wellbeing and positive opportunities for young people, particularly those facing disadvantage. Through its workshops, performances and its dedicated youth space, KBSK provides a safe, supportive environment where young people can express themselves, develop new skills and feel part of a caring community.