Swinging the lantern: flocks was produced in conjunction with Jenny Cuthbert’s research in spatial narrative within visual art. Literary narratologists have long argued that narrative was not as present in the visual arts as in literary texts due to the lack of linear, temporal sequences.

The exhibition demonstrated that visual material can create narratives equal to those found in linear narrative by connecting elements of painting, sculpture and installation. Each element, in combination with the images selected, contributed to a dense spatial montage. The spatial montage lead to spatial narrative, and thus provided a narrative viewing experience for the audience as they responded to the work.

That the works were intrinsically narrative contributes to the question of how audiences interact with art objects, without the distraction of anterior narratives which often dictate how the work should be viewed.