21 Days in the Cairngorms
Hamish Fulton came from Canterbury and walked across the Cairngorms in Spring 2010, starting from Huntly’s town square.
The Cairngorms are one of the last wilderness areas in Europe and few other places offer the possibility of several days walking without human interference. Huntly is situated in the foothills of the Cairngorms but not within the geographic and political boundaries. Taking you from the town square of Huntly up the Clashmach and into the Cairngroms, Hamish’s footpath is oblivious to such boundaries. His work asks the question: can the act of walking be a political and an artistic action?
Walking, one of the most basic human activities, has long been the inspiration and subject of exploration for artists. In his walks, Hamish actively tests himself and his body: he has undertaken a full week of walking without sleep; walked from one side of the country to the other, and refrained from talking for a full week while walking. The physical involvement of walking creates receptiveness to the landscape and this accessibility opens up the potential for any individual to take part, to make one aware of the environment, and of oneself.
While exploring the physical and psychological connotations of Huntly’s motto, Room to Roam, Hamish tried to make a geographic link between Huntly and the Cairngorms National Park. Hamish’s walk from Huntly’s square lasted 21 days and ended at Glenmore Lodge, after roaming around the Cairngorms with only one rucksack, no shops and no B&Bs. The project has now established a new walk that links Huntly with the Cairngorm National Park. It was organised in conjunction with Huntly’s walking festival.
In addition, Hamish organised two ‘choreographed walks’, one in Huntly- a 2 hour walk around the block- and one in the Cairngorm Mountain Railway Car park, where people were asked to walk 3 metres in one hour. Both emphasised the flexible and subjective nature of walking through community participation.