Courting Power: An Arts Videographer in Newcastle Captures Justice, Silence, and Sound in the Historic Guildhall
As an arts videographer in Newcastle, I’m fascinated by the hidden stories that lie dormant in the city’s historic spaces.
My latest art installation film documents Courting Power—a haunting and innovative piece by artist and researcher Johannah Latchem, staged in the magnificent courtroom of Newcastle’s Guildhall.
Being an arts videographer in Newcastle means I’m constantly surrounded by opportunities to create films that explore how art interacts with place. Creating an art installation film like Courting Power allowed me to delve into both the visual and sonic textures of a unique historical environment.
Built in 1655, the Guildhall is one of Newcastle’s most significant heritage landmarks. Over centuries, it housed the Assizes, Mayor and Sheriff’s courts, and an Admiralty court, playing a central role in the civic and judicial life of the city. Its grand courtroom, spanning over 92 by 30 feet, features oak-beamed ceilings, ornate panelling, and period paintings that once witnessed the weight of justice—and at times, social unrest. In 1740, a crowd of 3,000 rioters stormed the Guildhall during a grain riot, shattering records and leaving a lasting imprint on its walls.
It’s the perfect stage for an art installation film like Courting Power, a work that delves into how architecture, sound, and ritual shape power dynamics and determine whose voices are heard—or silenced—in spaces of law. As an arts videographer in Newcastle, I’m always inspired by how artists use these historic spaces to explore modern questions about society and identity through the medium of the art installation film.
Latchem’s installation centres on the real-life case of Margaret Hebbron, tried in this very courtroom in July 1834. Margaret was sentenced to 14 years’ transportation to Van Diemen’s Land (now Tasmania, Australia) for receiving a silver watch. Historical newspapers recorded that as her sentence was pronounced, Margaret’s screams rang through the hall—a moment of raw human emotion that Latchem set out to explore both artistically and scientifically, making it a compelling subject for an art installation film.
In Courting Power, Margaret’s scream is transformed into an eerie siren-like tone, projected from the dock. This sound was designed using acoustic analysis to replicate how a woman’s voice would have carried from precisely that spot in the room. As visitors stand within the dock, they’re enveloped by underwater sounds recorded at an actual prison hulk mooring site in South Shields, evoking the ships that would have transported prisoners like Margaret into exile. Soft whispers drift through the courtroom, punctuated by the sharp crack of a judge’s gavel—elements that made filming this art installation film both technically challenging and creatively rewarding.
Tim Shaw, a sound artist from Newcastle University’s Culture Lab, collaborated closely with Latchem to craft this immersive sonic environment. The installation’s layered soundscape shaped my approach to creating an art installation film as an arts videographer in Newcastle: capturing not only visuals but also the subtle emotional textures created by echoes and silences within the historic chamber.
Equally crucial to the piece was Gianluca Foschi, an archaeologist whose meticulous 3D scans of the courtroom revealed how its architecture affects acoustics. His research exposed how certain voices—particularly those of women—might have been either amplified or stifled by the design of the space. This level of detail brings an added layer of depth to an art installation film, transforming it into more than documentation—it becomes a piece of interpretive storytelling.
While filming, I focused on the Guildhall’s intricate details: the carved wood panelling, the play of shadows across historic paintings, and Latchem’s newly crafted oar mace, referencing the courtroom’s Admiralty past. The building’s neoclassical façades and turbulent history added yet another layer to the narrative, connecting the past’s civic functions with the present’s artistic explorations. For an arts videographer in Newcastle, projects like this showcase how the art installation film format can bring forgotten histories vividly back to life.
Projects like Courting Power remind me why I love working as an arts videographer in Newcastle. They bridge art, history, and technology, giving voice to the silenced and revealing how spaces themselves can be agents of storytelling.
For me, being an arts videographer in Newcastle isn’t just about recording visuals—it’s about crafting an art installation film that captures atmosphere, emotion, and the layers of meaning embedded in places like the Guildhall. Working on installations like this allows me to collaborate with artists, historians, and scientists, creating films that document artworks while preserving the spirit of curiosity and innovation that fuels them. It’s incredibly rewarding to shine a light on overlooked narratives and help audiences experience the past and present in new and unexpected ways. Each art installation film becomes a journey into hidden corners of our shared heritage, reminding me that film has the power to connect people across time, space, and culture.
If you’d like to explore more of my art installation films and other projects documenting artists and installations, you can see them here.