| We're Here Because We're Here | |
|---|---|
 Participants at Kings Cross station, London | |
| Artist | Jeremy Deller |
| Year | 1 July 2016 |
| Type | Event |
| Subject | Battle of the Somme |
| Website | becausewearehere |
We're Here Because We're Here was an artwork in the form of an event, devised by Jeremy Deller, that occurred across the United Kingdom on 1 July 2016, the 100th anniversary of the Battle of the Somme, which it commemorated. [1] [2] [3]
Throughout the day, some 1,600 volunteers, all men, dressed in replica British army uniforms of World War I, appeared in groups at railway stations, shopping centres and other places. [1] [4] Each volunteer represented an individual, named, soldier who died on the first day of the battle. [1] When approached, they did not speak, but instead handed cards to members of the public, bearing the name, age and regiment of the person they represented, and the hashtag #wearehere. [1] Deller described these cards as "like small tombstones". [4] From time to time, the volunteers would sing the recursive refrain "We're Here Because We're Here..." to the tune of Auld Lang Syne , as sung in the trenches before the battle. [1]
During planning, the event was kept secret, and it occurred with no advance publicity. [1] Nonetheless, many pictures subsequently appeared on social media, with the advertised hashtag. [1]
Deller was assisted by Rufus Norris, artistic director of the National Theatre, who came up with the idea of asking the volunteers not to speak to each other or the public. [1] The event was produced by Birmingham Repertory Theatre and the National Theatre, [5] and the volunteers were trained in conjunction with a number of regional theatres. [1] [6] The project was commissioned by the UK's arts programme 14-18 NOW, which was set up for the World War I centenary. [3]
The public's reaction was overwhelmingly positive. Journalist Simon Ricketts described the project as having: [7]
the power of art, of human tribute, of sombre significance. #Wearehere is a deeply uplifting action that was much needed.
and Creative Review called it: [8]
one of the most meaningful UK public art projects of recent times
On the evening of the day of the event, Deller and Norris discussed it on BBC Radio 4's Front Row programme. [9]
A documentary, Jeremy Deller: We're here because we're here was broadcast on BBC television on 13 November 2016, Remembrance Sunday. [4]
Deller and Norris's book, with 100 photographs of the event, was published on the battle's 101st anniversary. [10]
Locations included: [1]
The Battle of the Somme, also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place between 1 July and 18 November 1916 on both sides of the upper reaches of the Somme, a river in France. The battle was intended to hasten a victory for the Allies. More than three million men fought in the battle and one million men were wounded or killed, making it one of the deadliest battles in human history.
The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. Internationally, it is known as the National Theatre of Great Britain.
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Jeremy Deller is an English conceptual, video and installation artist. Much of Deller's work is collaborative; it has a strong political aspect, in the subjects dealt with and also the devaluation of artistic ego through the involvement of other people in the creative process. He won the Turner Prize in 2004.
Heaton Park is a municipal park in Manchester, England, covering an area of over 600 acres (242.8 ha). The park includes the grounds of a Grade I listed, neoclassical 18th century country house, Heaton Hall. The hall, remodelled by James Wyatt in 1772, is now only open to the public on an occasional basis as a museum and events venue.
The Mametz Wood Memorial commemorates an engagement of the 38th (Welsh) Division of the British Army during the First Battle of the Somme in France in 1916.
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The BBC World War I centenary season was the marking of the centenary of the First World War across the BBC. Programming started in 2014 and lasted until 2018, corresponding to 100 years after the war. The BBC season included 130 newly-commissioned radio and television programmes which lasted over 2500 hours, including more than 600 hours of new content. The programmes were broadcast on over twenty BBC television and radio stations.
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We're Here Because We're Here may refer to:
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Shrouds of the Somme is an artwork by British artist Rob Heard which commemorates the 72,396 servicemen from the British Commonwealth with no known grave, whose names are recorded at Thiepval Memorial as missing presumed dead at the Battle of the Somme. It is estimated that more than three million men fought in the battle, and more than one million men were wounded or killed, making it one of the bloodiest battles in human history.
Barney Norris, is a British writer.
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