Abstract
In the mid-twentieth century British folkloric beliefs, rituals, and practices were declining. The classic ‘folk horror’ film trilogy (Witchfinder General, 1968; Blood on Satan’s Claw, 1971; and The Wicker Man, 1973) indicated strong interest in folklore among filmmakers and artists, but it was not until the COVID-19 pandemic that artist Ben Edge’s Ritual Britain Exhibition (2021) and a revival of the ‘slow living’ practice of making zines – many about folklore and sacred landscape – revived interest in folk practices and traditional beliefs among non-rural people experiencing lockdowns and travel restrictions. Edge has since made films about British folklore and a range of traditional culture inspired merchandise. I argue that the community supporting the folklore revival in contemporary Britain is environmental (and focused on sacred landscape and sites like Neolithic monuments), identitarian (it is concerned to foster commonality between like-minded people who are bound by aesthetic preferences), yet healing and determined to avoid/ reject racialist politics (much in the way that the ‘Two-Tone’ movement among ska and rock-steady fans in the 1980s sought to avoid the racist skinhead stereotype attached to certain music sub-cultures), and proposes a new way of building culture: based on the past; artisanal; creative; and fuelled by love and the desire for connection. Folklore, which was consigned to irrelevance in the twentieth century has risen triumphantly in the twenty-first century, with antiquarianism pointing the way to a transformed future.
Presenters
Carole CusackProfessor of Religious Studies, Studies in Religion, University of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
Religious Community and Socialization
KEYWORDS
Folklore, Britain, Landscape, Zines, Music, Covid-19, Community, Art, Environmentalism
