We are delighted to let you know that A River Full of Stories exhibition and film is now open in Hull Maritime Museum. The free exhibition showcasing both Open Bridges and A River Full of Stories films is on display from Saturday July 6th and will run until the end of September. You can see the films on continuous loop throughout the museum opening times, Monday – Saturday, 10am – 4.30pm, and Sunday, 11am – 4pm. Find out more on this clip from That’s TV Humber:
The memory sharing sessions we held at Hull Maritime Museum and on board vessels on the river were fascinating and uplifting. We heard and recorded first hand stories and memories of people’s lives and what it was like over the years. This important aspect of Hull’s history has often been overlooked and it has been amazing to learn about the skills and dangers, the mishaps and side lines, the home life as well as the working life on the river.
We were welcomed on board beautiful historic vessels the MV Syntan, sloops Spider T and Amy Howson, and the Humber keel Comrade to meet the people who have restored and sail them. We learned about the River Hull’s rich history of many uses from small pleasure craft and racing scows to commercial vessels with hundreds of tonnes of cargo. We met people whose families worked on the river for generations, and told us about the times when barges and other vessels filled the river
The memory sharing sessions have all been filmed by Humber Film Creative Community and transcribed for the book by Hull based author Russ Litten. The stories and photographs gathered will be featured on the Open Bridges website and in the presentation book which will available in all Hull and East Riding libraries in the autumn.
The exhibition at the Maritime Museum features both Open Bridges and A River Full of Stories films on continuous loop. The original Open Bridges film, made by Humber Film Creative Community and selected by film festivals in the UK, Africa and Asia is a multi-camera aural and musical documentary, edited by Phillip Codd. It features a musique concrète soundtrack by BAFTA winning composer John Stead, composed using sounds of Hull bridge mechanisms and the surrounding environment that John recorded and manipulated to create a dynamic soundscape.
The 35 minute River Full of Stories films can be seen for the first time as part of the exhibition in Hull Maritime Museum as well as the original 20 minute Open Bridges film, screened again especially for the exhibition. Both films will be on continual loop throughout the exhibition.
Rich & Lou Duffy-Howard
Open Bridges made history when for the first time all 13 of the bridges over the River Hull in the UK’s City of Culture 2017 raised, swung or closed simultaneously splitting the city of Hull in two at 20:17 hours on 22nd September 2017. Historic vessels sailed down the River to be met by 21st century tugs.
Open Bridges is an independent Hull/East Yorkshire based project.