duMaurierland

duMaurierland was an experiment, a pilot programme to think through heritage in Cornwall. Daphne du Maurier was the touchstone – a woman who made it her own in a place where birthright often overrides the opinion of immigrant. But duMaurierland is not about Daphne du Maurier. Nor is it a history of her home in Menabilly or the Fowey environs even if these elements started and achors the intervention(s). It is an experiment in accessing lives and identities. It is a question about how location, imagination, and history forge desire and belonging.

Daphne du Maurier’s imagination guided the journey: the novels House on the Strand and Rule Britannia, her autobiography Myself When Young, and her two pictorial memoirs, Enchanted Cornwall and Vanishing Cornwall. Flight of the Falcon and Don’t Look Now’s offer some guidance. And, much like the eponymous character of Rebecca, you may find some leads hauntingly missing.

duMaurierland is an infinite loop with walks ranging from 9km – 14km. Though an itinerary is prescribed, you can pick up and drop off anywhere comfortable. It was never fully developed into zines, but the maps provided here are easy enough to follow …