Emeka Ogboh - Folkestone Triennial 2025

Filmed and edited by Oliver Parkin

What does the English Channel sound like? What does it taste like? In Ode to the Channel, Emeka Ogboh transforms this familiar stretch of water into a powerful sensory experience - one that can be heard, tasted and felt.

At the heart of the work is a multichannel sound installation, shaped by scientific research, oral history and lived experience. Inspired by the work of geologist Dr Sanjeev Gupta, the piece begins with the Channel’s dramatic birth - a prehistoric flood that cut Britain off from mainland Europe. From there, it flows through centuries of crossings by migrants, pilgrims, invaders and those in search of safety.

Structured in lyrical verses and choruses, the music builds like a tide. Voices rise and fall with emotion, telling stories of hope, fear, exile and return. The work also reflects on the Channel’s wartime past - from Roman fleets to World War II - swelling with tension, remembrance and courage.

But Ode to the Channel is more than sound. Ogboh invites us to experience the Channel through taste and texture. A specially brewed beer, Doggaland, evokes its salt and mineral depth, while Coastal Drift ice lollies recall the shoreline - cold, tangy and earthy, like a memory you can hold in your mouth.

Through sound and sensation, Ogboh turns the Channel into a living archive - not just a border, but a space of connection. His work asks us to think differently about the water that surrounds us - as something that carries our histories, our movements and our shared humanity.