Postcards to the Future: Collage and poetry workshop

Oxford has a long history of people bathing in the city’s rivers, in official and unofficial spots. Outdoor bathing places featured in Oxford’s culture through art, poetry, and other creative forms. There are no official outdoor river bathing places left, but with a resurgence of wild swimming and drives to clean up our polluted waterways, what could the future hold for Oxford’s river swimming?

In August 2023, the Museum of Oxford held a workshop where participants visited one of the city's historic bathing places and created blackout poetry and collage postcards to the future of river swimming in Oxford.

The postcards below were those created during the workshop. Click on each of the images to view a larger version.

With thanks to Izzy McLeod (@muccycloud) for facilitating the workshop.