Geraldine Pilgrim’s CHAIR! Brings Public Space Revolution to UK Festivals

In an era where public seating has gradually disappeared from our communal spaces, renowned installation artist Geraldine Pilgrim poses a profound question with her newest participatory performance: “When did our public seating disappear and what would happen if we brought it back?” Her latest creation, aptly titled “CHAIR!”, will debut at two major UK summer festivals – the Norfolk & Norwich Festival on May 9th and the Brighton Festival on May 23rd and 24th. The performance imagines a world where public spaces once again prioritize human connection and comfort, inviting audiences to reconsider how we interact with our shared environments. As Pilgrim simply but powerfully states, “Everyone has the right to sit down” – a statement that carries surprising weight in our contemporary urban landscape where public seating has often been designed out of existence or made intentionally uncomfortable.

Set in a dreamlike atmosphere, CHAIR! transports viewers to an alternative reality where public spaces are designed with genuine care for human needs. The performance begins with caretakers sweeping away litter from an empty public area while a woman dreams of these longed-for communal spaces. What follows is a series of evocative scenes featuring both everyday and surreal objects – with chairs taking center stage as symbols of rest, community, and democratic access to public space. Professional performers Sarah April Lamb and Nelson Holtz anchor the production, joined by locally recruited participants who help bring each location’s unique character into the performance. The entire experience is enhanced by an immersive soundscape that further blurs the line between reality and imagination, inviting audiences to envision what our shared spaces could become if designed with human connection in mind.

Pilgrim’s approach to site-specific art long predates the current popularity of immersive experiences. For decades, she has specialized in what she terms “site-sympathetic” performances that respond directly to the architecture and history of a place – both its factual past and its imagined possibilities. Her work consistently transforms not just physical spaces but also affects the communities and individuals who experience them. Rather than imposing her vision onto a location, Pilgrim’s method involves careful listening to what each space suggests, resulting in performances that feel organic to their surroundings while still challenging viewers to see familiar environments in entirely new ways. This sensitive approach has established her as one of the UK’s most respected installation artists, creating work that resonates deeply with both regular arts attendees and those who might never typically engage with contemporary performance.

The artist’s impressive portfolio includes several landmark projects that demonstrate her unique ability to transform spaces through performance. In 2015, “Well” breathed new life into Dagenham’s abandoned Sanofi pharmaceutical factory, while 2016’s “Flight” at Lake Windermere in Cumbria (created for the 14-18 NOW WWI centenary art commissions) reimagined historical narratives in a powerful natural setting. Her 2017 work “The Missing Passenger” for the National Railway Museum in York similarly wove together place, history, and imagination. Perhaps most notably, her participatory performance “Handbag,” originally commissioned for Battersea Arts Centre’s Grand Hall, has transcended its original context to tour sites across the world for thirteen consecutive years – demonstrating the universal appeal of Pilgrim’s artistic vision despite its site-specific origins.

CHAIR! represents a natural evolution in Pilgrim’s ongoing exploration of how shared spaces shape our experiences. By focusing specifically on public seating – something so ordinary it often goes unnoticed until it’s absent – she highlights how seemingly minor design decisions profoundly impact social interaction, accessibility, and community cohesion. The performance will run multiple times each day at both festivals, with all performances offered free of charge to ensure maximum accessibility. This commitment to free public art aligns perfectly with the work’s central message about democratic access to shared space. As part of the Without Walls program, which has commissioned ten new outdoor arts pieces premiering across UK festivals this summer, CHAIR! exemplifies the organization’s mission to bring “extraordinary outdoor arts for all” to diverse audiences throughout the country.

For those wishing to experience this unique performance, CHAIR! will first appear at West Garth (behind St Andrew Hall) during the Norfolk & Norwich Festival on Saturday, May 9th, with three performances scheduled throughout the day. The Brighton Festival will then host the production in Market Square on Saturday, May 23rd and Sunday, May 24th. All performances are completely free to attend, though specific times have yet to be announced. Potential attendees can find updated information through the festivals’ respective websites: nnfestival.org.uk and brightonfestival.org. As with all of Pilgrim’s work, CHAIR! promises to transform not just the physical spaces where it’s performed but also how audiences perceive and interact with public spaces long after the performance ends – encouraging us all to reimagine what our shared environments could become if designed with genuine human connection at their heart.