Storm-Cloud: Observations of the Sky

On 4 February 1884, Victorian polymath John Ruskin delivered his controversial public lecture ‘Storm-Cloud of the Nineteenth Century’, highlighting the disastrous results of nineteenth-century industrialisation, the human impact on the environment, and the effects of air pollution, a ‘plague-wind’ on our health.

Led by interdisciplinary artist Dr Tom Payne (Sheffield Hallam University), Storm-Cloud is a collaborative programme of research, performance, community engagement and exhibition that invites contemporary re-imaginings of, and creative responses to, Ruskin’s prophetic lecture. The initial stage of Storm-Cloud sees several separate events;

• First, the initial performance event, held at the Crucible Playhouse, Sheffield, on the 19^th June 2024;
  • A contemporary staging of John Ruskin’s prophetic public lecture ‘Storm-Cloud of the Nineteenth Century’ (1884) was performed at the Crucible Playhouse, Sheffield – it was directed by Dr Tom Payne, with motion design by Jake Goodall, photography by Becky Payne, original composition by David John Brady, illustration by Billy Hughes and Penny McCarthy, dramaturgical focus by Terry O’Connor, digital media production by Anne Doncaster and Richard Mather, and archival research by Ashley Gallant.
• Second, the dialogue event, held at the Millenium Gallery, Sheffield on the 20^th June 2024;
  • A special dialogue-event hosted at the Millennium Gallery, Sheffield Museums, following the performance of ‘Storm-Cloud: Observations of the Sky’ at the Tanya Moiseiwitsch Playhouse on the evening of 19 June. The dialogue event featured a vibrant mix of invited artists, community organisers, and researchers, engaged in collaborative discussions that helped shape the next steps of Storm-Cloud.
  • Dr CH Wendy Tsai and Dr Christina Smith – Space Technology Leads working on the UK-EONS and GreenSpace projects within the Space Hub Yorkshire team – were two of the invited speakers at the dialogue event, where they offered their contemporary research perspective on the climate crisis, specifically from an Earth Observation perspective.
• Third, the second performance event, ‘Thrown into Form’, at the Sheffield and District African Caribbean Community Association, on the 12^th October 2024;
  • An immersive performance in a former steel factory in Sheffield, blending live action, projection, and a weather-inspired soundscape, which furthers the collaboration of the first two events in defining an evolving performance that aimed to inspire further research on the climate crisis.

Space Hub Yorkshire, as well as its funded projects UK-EONS and GreenSpace, offered in-kind sponsorship through David John Brady (SHY Centre Coordinator) and Felix Barr (SHY Cluster Development Manager) offering their time and expertise on co-curating the first two events as part of the planning committee. In addition, Dr Tsai and Dr Smith gave their time to prepare and present at the dialogue event on the 20^th June. UK-EONS (UK Earth Observation Network for Sustainability) offered cash sponsorship, to help use the Storm-Cloud platform to build the UK-EONS network and visibility, specifically with a range of new audiences included the arts, which is expected to offer new avenues into utilitisng Earth Observation technologies for sustainable and environmental goals.

Or you can download the report directly here: Storm-Cloud Event Report Form – External