FINGER TALK

Cathy Mager - Wellcome Collection

'Finger Talk' is a new British Sign Language (BSL) artwork by Cathy Mager that invites visitors to step out of a hearing-centred world and into a space shaped by deaf perspectives.

Bringing together archival films, contemporary performance, animation and sound, this free installation foregrounds BSL as a living, evolving language with a rich cultural history.

At the heart of the installation is a circular space where visitors are surrounded by a projection in which performers sign a simple story of loss, loneliness, discovery and kinship.

Their movements are expressed through Visual Vernacular (VV) – a type of storytelling that combines sign language and mime. The animated lines in the backdrop are from audiograms donated by deaf people. Audiograms are visual representations of the clinical test for hearing, and the results have significant implications for a deaf person’s life.

The installation reproduces illustrations from early finger spelling alphabets in booklets, dating from the 17th century onwards, that were drawn, printed and distributed by deaf people.

Rare historic footage from the British Deaf Association shows early depictions of people using BSL while socialising at picnics and sporting events. These clips provide insight into the history of the British Deaf community in a way that has rarely been seen.  

A soundscape created by deaf and disabled musicians features a combination of natural sounds, vocals, percussion and wind instruments. It has been created with sensitivity for hearing aid wearers and people with tinnitus. Vibration vests that translate sound into vibrations are available to add to the multi-sensory experience of the installation.

Curator: Laurie Britton Newell

3d Design: Studio Saava

Consultant design: Chris Laing - Deaf Architecture Front

2d Design: Sara De Bont & Luke Gould

Build: Exib Ltd

All images Courtesy of Charlie Swinbourne / Wellcome Collection.