Going with the Flow: Gail Pearce in conversation with Jonathan Munro

Abstract

Jonathan Munro: Your work includes a rowing boat that people can sit and row, what was the initial starting point for the project, had this come about directly because of the London Olympics coming here or does it have a longer history?

Gail Pearce: The idea for Going with the Flow came in a response to a call from the Cultural Olympiad in 2010. Royal Holloway is based in Egham, where the campus, as part of the University of London, is to be used as a residential center for the rowers of the Olympics. At the time I knew little about rowing, but a chance overhearing of part of a conversation with a colleague, Kishore Verma, gave me the idea that a rowing installation, immersive and interactive would be possible. I had made interactive installations in the past and enjoyed the direct action of the user on the art.