Russell Mills: Darkness Visible

An exhibition at Abbot Hall pairing Russell Mills's shifting audio-visual installation with displays on blind Kendal philosopher John Gough.

Russell Mills's installation presents a slowly changing montage of film and sound, with randomised combinations of visual and auditory impressions that evoke how a blind person might experience an unknown environment, so no two visits are alike. It is partly inspired by John Gough, the blind Kendal-born natural philosopher (1757-1825) who developed acute senses of touch, smell, taste and hearing after being blinded by smallpox aged two. Alongside the installation sits a curated exhibition on Gough and the pioneering Westmorland natural philosophers of the 18th and 19th centuries. The exhibition is open daily, 10:00-16:00.