CCA Event Highlights January 2015

Feature by Kate Pasola | 06 Jan 2015

Feeling a stitch overwhelmed by the hurricane of arts and culture hitting Scotland this month and unsure where exactly to begin? Fret not ye post-festive mess, we’ve had a flick through Glasgow CCA’s first programme of 2015 and are going to pluck you right out of that cerebral lethargy by circling all the bits of their January and February line-up we think you’ll appreciate most. Just like a thoughtful pal with a crush on you. Aren’t we lovely?

A first mention goes to Dancing in a Circle is a Reminder We are Part of a Whole; an exhibition summarising the individual and collaborative processes underpinning the work of artist and choreographer Romany Dear. Culminating from a series of dance workshops which make up Glasgow Open Dance School, the interactive, three-part exhibition uses participant interaction, rehearsal and shared dialogue to experiment with notions of gender, athleticism, democracy and community, framed within a narrative which demonstrates the fragility of these circular themes. Get involved in one of the sessions running from 31 Jan-5 Mar, at 1pm and 5pm from Tuesday through to Saturday.

If gigging’s your thing, might we suggest heading down on 9 Feb for a night with The Wave Pictures? The returning Wymeswold trio are fresh from a collaboration with Billy Childish on their new LP Great Big Flamingo Burning Moon, the first single of which was released on 1 Dec last year (Pea Green Coat). Have a listen to them waxing some wittiness and squealing out guitar solos in the CCA Theatre next month (18+).

Scotland’s first queer film collective Lock Up Your Daughters will be continuing its workshops on 15 Jan and 12 Feb, grating all the celluloid zest of the Glasgow cinematographer scene. The monthly meetings are aimed at all levels of expertise and age-groups, so novice or know-it-all, you’re welcome to get amongst it.

If you’d prefer to be in front of the big-screen, we’ve got our eye on Ken Loach’s critically acclaimed Land and Freedom, showing at CCA, presented by GMB Glasgow General APEX Branch (12 Feb). Released in 1995 and set against the historical context of the Spanish Civil War – a bookmark in the history of socialism – the film follows an unemployed young man, driven by disenchantment to leave his home-city Liverpool. Straddling issues from political infighting to love, loss to the leaving of legacies, it’s a historical adventure and quite the stunner for a range of audiences.

If Valentine fever lands you in the mood for something headier, maybe try Absurdistan, screening on 14 Feb. A tea-stained picture book of Constantinople and constellations, Mongols and warriors, the original Silk Road and sexual empowerment, Veit Helmer’s latest filmic tapestry is as timely as it is timeless, and an original fairy-tale with grade-A smarts. If you like your flicks to fuzz the line between reality and fantasy, this one will probably win you over.

And to close, moving swiftly to sculpture, we’ve picked out the work of Rachel Levine as one not to be missed in Feb. Levine is interested in the differing significances laced within various materials, and manipulates these associations to create textured and jarring 'narrative environments.' Her demonstration of power structures and historical perspectives sinks a certain hook into a public climate increasingly prickled with political and economic complaint. Concerning the medium of sculpture both as a medium and method of research, she elegantly exploits an art-form well suited to illustrating economic and political structures. If that doesn’t convince you (it is baltic outside, after all), consider her victory in January as this year’s winner of The Skinny and Glasgow CCA Award at RSA New Contemporaries. Get your cardie on and head down between 21 Feb and 14 Mar to check it out. Sorted!