The Ballad of Albatross Way
Video, 6mins

Commissioned for RelayThe Ballad of Albatross Way traverses multiple narratives as it approaches a blind spot, a point at which the end can only be seen after turning the corner. As with all oral traditions, as lines are forgotten and replaced and the narrative alters, parts of the narrative are displaced en route providing escapes from its personal, localised landscape. This displacement simultaneously provides access for historical, economic, migratory and literary incursions. 

At the same time, as the narrative moves back and forth between restricted and open spaces, the visual is constrained to a single circular pan in which traces of architectural structures emerge from the murk of an dimly lit interior. Again, returning to the balladic tradition, where the tale is always re-told in an intimate space, its content extends far beyond the confines of its performance; opening up vistas of risk from the security of a cosy interior. 

These manifold movements disrupt the interiority of the ballad whilst reinforcing those aspects of the narrative that increase psychological pressure as the tale reaches its turning point. 


Clare Gasson is an artist who lives in London. Her exhibitions include a solo show at Parker's Box, New York, proposed, as part of the sound exchange project, with The Showroom, London. 

Film Credits

Bevis Bowden – production manager/camera
Guy Brinsdon - post production
Gernot Fuhrmann - audio recording and editing 
Joe Schneider - accordion