Walsall sits within the Black Country UNESCO Global Geopark, where layers of rock, industry, and movement lie just beneath the surface. Quarries fill with water, canals cut through labour-shaped ground. Vegetation slowly reclaims what was forced into place
This was made possible by DYCP funding support from the Arts Council England last year and is part of FotoFest Walsall and MakerFest Fringe. "The Exhibition runs from 4th May - 27th June 2026, which I have now been asked to extend, by the Church" said artist Jude Hanley. "There is a Meet the Artist Day on Saturday 16th May 11am - 1pm if you can make it that would be amazing. If not than do pop in I would love your feedback and any advice on progressing the projects visibility, and audience interaction. I am also happy to collaborate on projects and facilitate workshops.
My practice explores the interplay between natural systems, human intervention, and cycles of regeneration in post-industrial landscapes." explained Jude Hanley who is a member of the Walsall Society of Artists.
"Vibrations of Resilience brings together moving image, sound, and suspended analogue film stills to create an immersive environment that invites viewers to slow down, observe, and reflect on the subtle natural rhythms. Using found and expired 16mm and sheet film, hand-processed using organic materials found in the landscape."
"I allow the image to break down, light leaks, chemical traces, stains, fragments that refuse to settle" explained Jude.
"These are not errors but evidence, of time, exposure, and environmental pressure. The landscape behaves in the same way: unstable, shifting, unresolved. Sound enters as vibration. Contact microphones pressed to stone, hydrophones submerged in canal water. What is recorded is not always heard in the usual sense, but felt. A resonance held within material, revealing the hidden ecosystems and interconnected energies that sustain these landscapes."
The installation moves between surface and depth, visibility and sensation. Light shifts across translucent forms, echoing circadian rhythms. It resists fixed viewpoints, asking instead for time and attention. Through scale, colour, and layered sensory experience, the installation encourages reflection on memory, environmental change, and the delicate balance between the fragility and resilience in the natural world.
"This is not an empty landscape"said Jude Hanley. "It holds Voices from the Shadows, embedded histories of labour, migration, and stories of lived experiences, quietly present, shaping the ground beneath our feet. They do not announce themselves directly, but remain present, embedded, carried. I am interested in what emerges when we begin to look, and to listen.
This work was made possible through support from the Arts Council England.
