Our first project on landownership, “Landed (Freeman’s Wood)”, was centred on a plot of land on the edge of Lancaster, known as Freeman’s Wood, where the interests of the local community collided with those of global capital.
This land had been used by local people for decades, and they regarded it as common land, but fencing was installed around it in 2012, together with “Keep Out” signs. Various tree houses, and a complex system of bike ramps which had been constructed by local people, were destroyed.
There was a public outcry and several reports in the local press. The signs were rapidly and creatively defaced, and gaps soon appeared in the fence. Local residents submitted applications for the site to become a Town Green, and for designated public footpaths to run across it. Lancaster City Council imposed a Tree Protection Order on the site.
The land was owned indirectly by a property investment company registered in Bermuda, and its owners were thought to be based in Hong Kong. The director of the UK development company for the site was a polo-playing friend of Prince Charles. So this scrubby semi-derelict patch of land had direct links to global economic, political, and social networks.
“Landed (Freeman’s Wood)” focussed on this plot of land as an illustrative example through which land ownership and its social effects could be explored.
Storey G2 commissioned artists to lead an investigation of this plot, and to produce art works which communicate and stimulate thought about these topics. The commissioned artists were : Layla Curtis, Goldin+Senneby, and Sans Facon.
An important part of the project was to gain information about the history of the use of this plot of land by local people. We talked to local people who have used this land – the dog walkers, footballers, cyclists, den-builders, nature watchers, etc. – and recorded their memories of Freeman’s Wood, and their wishes for its future.
We contacted the people who had made and supported the applications for designated footpaths and town green, and followed up a variety of other contacts, including three academics at the Law School at Lancaster University.
We recorded interviews with over 30 individuals. Here are a few short quotes:
“With a space like Freeman’s Wood you can just make it up as you go along. It’s a creative space for kids to do whatever their imagination tells them they can do.”
“Local BMX fans had modified the footpaths in the wood to make a bike course. They had made artificial hillocks and ramps. They were wonderful, made out of pallets and tree stumps.”
“The fence felt like an insult.”
“We used it as our playground. We used to swing in the trees and bike-ride along the paths. We would act out the film we had seen that week. We would be Tarzan in the trees one week, sword fencing the next.”
THE COMMISSIONED ARTISTS were : Layla Curtis, Goldin+Senneby, and Sans Facon.
I wanted the project to have potential to reach a large audience, so I asked these artists to produce artworks in forms suitable for distribution on the internet, rather than objects for display in a gallery.
Layla Curtis developed an iPhone app called ‘Trespass’ which features geolocated conversations about the site;
Sans Facon created a board game about landownership, called ‘Freeman’s Wood – the Game’;
Goldin&Senneby bought a plot of land and present an estate agent’s sale particulars for it as ‘A3 – The Plot‘.
Some Lancaster-based artists also contributed to the project. Helen Hicks and Rachel-Ann Powers were appointed as Engagement Artists to assist with the project, particularly in contacting and interviewing local people. StoreyG2 provided support to Catriona Stamp for production of a video.
A DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT, ITS DEVELOPMENT AND DELIVERY
The above is an outline account of what was a complex project. A detailed description of the project and its development is available here.
PRESS/PRESENTATIONS ETC
The project received widespread attention, being reported in The Guardian, Art Monthly, Stir to Action, Elsewhere, Landscape Research, various on-line blogs, social media, etc. It was presented at conferences in the UK, Italy, Denmark, Sweden, and Spain. Images were included in exhibitions at Lancaster University, University of Central Lancashire, and Paper Gallery in Manchester. A list of these presentations, exhibitions, publications, talks etc is here.
BOOK CHAPTER
An account of the project was published in a 2018 book entitled “Contested Property Claims : What Disagreement Tells Us about Ownership”. Chapter 5 : “LANDED (Freeman’s Wood) – An exploration of landownership through contemporary art“. That is available here.
The campaign to save Freeman’s Wood is also described in a book entitled Contested Commons – A History of Protest and Public Space in England by Katrina Navickas, published in 2025.
“Landed (Freeman’s Wood)” was funded by Arts Council England, Lancaster City Council, and Lancashire County Council.