Resilience

Runs until Sunday 4 Jan 2026

An evocative, multi-media exhibition on the resilience of Cornwall’s coastal communities past, present and future.

Be drawn in by the suspended glass buoys at the centre of the gallery and their faint buzz of sound. Come closer and the volume increases so you can hear the voices from those connected to Cornwall’s coast.

The exhibition explores how coastal communities have responded to changes within living memory, and how those past events influence people today. It will uncover the pressures that a life connected to the ocean can bring.

Please note, this exhibition is designed as an immersive, interactive audio-visual experience. It has multiple sound sources which some visitors may find overwhelming. 

Resilience has been created in partnership with Kaleider and the Universities of Exeter and Southampton.

About the Resilience of Coastal Communities (ROCC) research project

This exhibition is the result of the work undertaken by the Resilience of Coastal Communities (ROCC) research project, bringing together a group of researchers with a shared interest in improving the marine environment for nature and people. The ROCC project explores the past and present management of marine environments to help people make better management decisions in the future. In their work to better understand the past resilience of individuals, the team undertook interviews and archive analysis to explore how coastal communities in Cornwall and Devon responded to changes within living memory, and how those past events influence people today. The lived stories of resilience and change, recorded as part of the research, form the origins of the ideas found in the exhibition.