Sensing dark places : creating thick descriptions of nocturnal time and rhythm

Griffiths, Rupert and Dunn, Nick and De Bezenac, Elisabeth (2023) Sensing dark places : creating thick descriptions of nocturnal time and rhythm. In: Dark Skies : Places, Practices, Communities. Routledge, London, pp. 94-104. ISBN 9781032528021

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Abstract

Darkness is not simply the absence of light—it offers a nuanced understanding of the self in relation to the environment and others. The nighttime qualities of light and sound, for example, create embodied experiences of environments that differ markedly from those of the day. How though can we capture the nuance and value of darkness and to what end? Drawing from fieldwork in Cumbria, UK, this chapter brings together walking, photography, and unattended sensor methods to create a thick description of darkness that moves between systematic environmental observation, environmental and bodily rhythms and sensation, and imaginative interpretation and fiction. This allows us to capture a situated understanding of place that relates the landscape to the lived experience of humans and non-humans. Such practices could inform urban design strategies that consider the urban environment as a more-than-human ecology and approach the night as a place in its own right.