The Museum of Dartmoor Life have opened with their new exhibition for 2025, titled ‘A Shroud for Mother Nature’. The centrepiece of the exhibition is this intricately embellished shroud, felted by local community groups under the guidance of textile artist Yuli Somme. Made with the aim of showcasing the beautiful flora and fauna of Dartmoor, much of which may be under threat due to climate change and other pressures, the shroud is simultaneously a warning and a sign of hope. The shroud is a poignant symbol of the connection between humans and nature, as Yuli regularly makes these felt shrouds for human green burials.
Yuli Somme describes her eco-friendly burial shrouds: ‘A Bellacouche felt shroud is made from 100% pure British wool felt which is at least 5mm thick. People find the cocoons comforting and approachable, and many remark how the shroud has helped them feel much more connected to the person who has died. This sense of deeper connection can be of great benefit to our overall acceptance of death and help us to live more comfortably with our grief. In a traditional sense, a shroud (or winding cloth) is usually made of a fine fabric of woven wool, linen, hemp or cotton, but can also be silk or other woven fabric. This tradition shows the shape of the body and can cause a quiver of a challenge to our western sensibilities, and to protect us from our squeamishness around death it has become commonplace to put the shrouded body in a wooden coffin. This has had an impact on our forests on the one hand, and on the other has added to a feeling of disconnect from the fact of death and the cycle of life.’
Our CEO, Tom Usher, attended the private viewing, as one of the various local groups which contributed answers to the three questions which the exhibition posed. Responses from various charities and community groups are displayed around the exhibition, either on boards or as letters. Visitors are invited to confront the question, ‘is Dartmoor dying’ in a nuanced way, that encourages engagement with both environmental challenges and success stories. There is also an opportunity for visitors to pledge time to the charities represented and volunteer to to do something positive for Dartmoor, such as joining the DPA for one of their conservation workdays.
Museum Manager Kristy Turner says: ‘In 2024/25 it will be 30 years since the UK published their first biodiversity action plan working with government agencies and NGOs to start a more unified process to conserve species and their habitats. Now seems to be the perfect time to share with you all the vital works that are carried out on Dartmoor by individuals, associations, landowners, commoners, charities, trusts and national bodies. The Museum of Dartmoor Life, thanks to funding from The Royal Society’s Places of Science project, has created a neutral space where community partners, working on Dartmoor, can address the threats to the moor, its people, traditions and its biodiversity, showcasing their ongoing works to conserve or regenerate the landscape, flora and fauna. We are not experts but we have brought some of the strategies of our knowledgeable partners together in one place to improve everyone’s understanding of the situation.’
Partners were invited to answer the same three questions:
- Is Dartmoor dying?
- What are you doing to save it?
- How can the public help?
The exhibition will be open throughout the summer. Visitors are encouraged to fill in a form and give their own answer to the question, ‘is Dartmoor dying?’ after reading the various answers on display. We are delighted to have been invited to share our own thoughts, as a charity, especially to the question ‘How can the public help? as we run regular impactful conservation workdays and are involved in numerous projects which seek to help Dartmoor become more resilient and biodiverse.