I spent a lot of time drifting through fields as a child; sometimes with others, but often alone. Growing up in the countryside in the 1980s children had the benefit of space to wander- concerns about the safety of children playing out alone for hours were less prevalent than today, whilst fences and other physical barriers to free movement were either not present or fairly malleable. Added to that we didn’t have digital technologies and social networks to augment our hours, so the lengthy stroll in the landscape was a common pursuit for rural kids- at least it was for me.
Ruined structures in which to spark a furtive childhood imagination were in no shortage on these rambles: the most common were long derelict two storey farm houses and ruined cottages, many of these deserted buildings were used as livestock barns. Some were the result of a legacy of migration from rural Ireland, changes in agricultural production practices, or simply the vestiges of time, growth, change, decay, and renewal. No matter the cause, I loved these spaces- they were entrancing, full of strange bygone objects, brand-names no longer in existence, old withered photographs and letters, archaically fashioned furniture and fittings.
statesofvacancy 