Offering from the River

For GLOAM, Sharples presented: Offering from the River, an exhibition that surveyed a microcosm of spiritual and scientific ecologies, speculating on the permeability of biological and machinic matter through site-specific performances, laboratory readings, and a collection of artifacts. The exhibition was accompanied by an artist talk where Sharples shared their thoughts on human and non-human ecologies, interdisciplinary practices and how ethics underpins collective approaches to making.

This output was presented at GLOAM as part of the Sustainability Weekender at Out & About: Creative Weekends in the Cultural Industries Quarter (CIQ), and as part of the Sheffield Showcase Festival. In the Summer of 2022, cultural activities were held across four Weekender events in Sheffield’s CIQ. The programme was funded through Sheffield City Council’s economic recovery fund and led by Site Gallery alongside additional partners: The Showroom Workstation, Yorkshire Artspace and Bloc Projects. Sharples’ exhibition & artist talk also featured as part of the Sheffield Showcase, a collaborative festival that supports cultural activity across a number of arts spaces in the city.

This output contributes to Sharples’ ongoing research into site-specific necro-ecologies and architectures, specifically for this exhibition: Pashupatinath Temple and the Bagmati River, Nepal. The exhibition featured interdisciplinary work and a series of artifacts co-produced by artists, industry partners, and scientists working across the UK and Nepal (Leeds Beckett University, York St John University, Leeds University, SGS Laboratories, Kathmandu University). To make this research as accessible as possible, Sharples’s artist talk allowed space for further dialogue about death practices, materiality and sustainability.