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Symposium at Clearwell Caves, one of the country's oldest iron ore mines

30 March 2018

Cecilia Wang, 3rd Year Geophysicist, reports on "Deep Material Encounters" symposium which brings together researchers and artists from across the arts and science

At Clearwell Caves, one of UK’s oldest iron ore mines, in the Forest of Dean.

'Deep Material Encounters' was a symposium held at Clearwell Caves, one of UK’s oldest iron ore mines, in the Forest of Dean. It brought together speakers from across the arts and sciences to discuss the development of colour pigments in art and in culture from history to the present, the poetic significance of colour, caves, and earth materials, the implications of regional geology and mining techniques on materials, and the future of our relationship with earth resources and waste. 

Presenters included faculty from UCL Earth Sciences such as Dr. Ruth Siddall, who spoke about the iron ochres there in the Forest of Dean and how they were especially durable, Prof. David Dobson, who spoke about the formation of earth materials like iron, and researchers from the Slade School of Fine Art.