A UNIQUE exhibition has opened in Cockermouth - challenging people to rethink the basis of their relationship with the fells which surround us.
The exhibition, Scree, features film, photography and poetry and is based on a project by Cockermouth writer, photographer and mountain leader Lucy Burnett.
Lucy launched Scree last year.
"The idea was to create a digital guidebook of experimental hiking routes in the Lake District, for all abilities, from hikers to wheelchair users to fellrunners, with associated ideas for writing and making art," she said.
But Scree isn’t any old guidebook.
"Instead of offering scenic walks to honeypot locations, or the latest word in rugged peak-bagging adventures, the routes in Scree are artistic provocations - experiments which playfully ask questions aimed at entirely rethinking our relationship with the Lake District, through writing and art, and walking, running or wheeling," said Lucy.
"The environmental topics explored by Scree are certain to dominate debate in the coming months and years."
The project was inspired by Lucy's concerns about many environmental issues, including erosion, climate change, overcrowding, littering, intensive farming and pollution.
"For over 300 years, we have come to the Lake District fells for recreation, solace and artistic inspiration. During this time the Lake District has become one of the UK’s most loved places, with an average 16 million annual visitors - but averaging 40 million per annum as of late. Yet at what environmental cost?
"Our attempts to protect the Lake District consistently fall short and Scree argues that it will keep falling short, until we entirely rethink the basis of our relationship with the fells," said Lucy.
People were invited to participate and submit work to be published on her website (www.scree.uk).
The project is supported by the Arts Council and the Lake District National Park Authority, and delivered in partnership with the British Mountaineering Council, Kendal Mountain Festival, Kirkgate Arts and Heritage and the National Trust at Wordsworth House.
Wordsworth House will be hosting the exhibition until November. It features film, photography and poetry, with loans from Tullie House Museum and Gallery and the Wordsworth Trust.
Manager Zoe Gilbert said: "Scree is an exhibition which challenges us to rethink the basis of our relationship with the fells.
"Co-created with Lucy, this project encourages us to respond personally to this most loved of landscapes and the impact we as humans have on it."
Scree is running until November 6.
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