This exhibition is part of a programme that GroundWork Gallery is presenting this autumn, all around and about The Wash. Twenty seven artists in residence have been involved, alongside a whole range of different subject experts contributing to their insights and knowledge.

What is emerging and continues to develop, is a remarkable series of interpretations through exhibitions, performances, writings, films, and sound works, of this extraordinary subtle region. It is constantly changing and changeable, full of fragile ecosystems and interpenetrations between water, land and sky, What we have seen and strive to represent often arises from its contrasts, fluctuating between the need for control and desire for freedom.  For a land which is largely below sea level, these range from imperatives to cultivate the land, limit access to it and control the flow of water, to the enjoyment of its wildness, rampant nature, free flowing water and the limitless flight of millions of birds. 

Emerging from the GroundWork Residency 2026, this exhibition showcases work shaped by collective research and creative engagement with the Wash Estuary. Artists have responded to its shifting landscapes, histories and ecologies through a wide range of practices. Together, these works offer fresh perspectives on an under-recognised environment and its cultural significance.