The work of Hamish Fulton is marked by a central collection of topics: nature and the experience of nature by human beings. Since the end of the 1960s, he has conducted extended hikes on foot on all five continents. He works with the resulting experiences in his creations on the basis of drawings that he has made during his hikes. The goal of Hamish Fulton is, as a walking artist, to transfer the original and direct relationship of the human being to the earth in all of its diversity and variety into a general form. In the Salzkammergut region, he will go down a number of historical paths in order to refer to their significance and to give them the attention that they deserve. In the summer of 2022, Hamish Fulton researched the region and developed a walking art performance from Salzweg in Gmunden to Steeg, in 7 consecutive days, for the Capital of Culture Year 2024.
His concept of his second walk is one of contrasts: he walks from Steeg to the glacier, over mountain paths above the lake back to the Gosaukammbahn: “The salt trail must be contrasted with the glacier. The human story with the ice age. Today, man has caused the glaciers to melt. The Salt Trail is not to blame for the melting of the glaciers, but it is an early example of human commercialization that we need to relate to nature.”
The walking artist Hamish Fulton was born in London in 1946. He has created works since 1972 that are based on the experience of walking. He has translated his hikes into a variety of media, including, amongst others, photography, illustrations, texts as well as wall texts. His works can be found in many major museums, amongst others in the Tate Britain and the MoMA. He lives and works in Canterbury.
