This Week in Scottish Art: Paradise, Integrity, and the Festival

GENERATORProjects has just opened its Suitcase Installation Project, working with Philadelphia-based artist Francine K. Affourtit. Taking a cue from Mary Poppins, Affourtit has carefully filled a suitcase with large scale wood cut prints. When unfurled they make an installation, which is starting in Dundee before heading to Weimar, Venice, Berlin and London. It’s at GENERATOR ‘til Sunday.

Now for lots and lots about Edinburgh because Edinburgh Art Festival is here! With it comes a haze of special events, one-offs and blockbuster shows – it officially kicks off on 30 July, so let’s begin with a run-down of the openings and conversation events this week in Edinburgh.

A bit before the main start date, on Wednesday The Fruitmarket are celebrating the Phyllida Barlow exhibition and the new accompanying publication from 6-8pm. Barlow’s latest exhibit Set continues her large scale works, and exploration of raw and simple materials like plaster, fabric, cardboard and plywood. Also ahead of its official kick-off, on Thursday 30 July from 3-3.30pm Ingleby present a conversation between worldmaking artist Charles Avery and Director of the National Gallery of Modern Art Simon Groom.

Then it’s off to Stills Gallery for the wonderful kennardphillipps’ opening from 5-7pm. Taking no notice of the artworld, their work is pitched to the general public. They have developed a methodology to address live issues while current by running open workshops with community and support groups and supporting participants’ work in collage and photomontage. They also gave an amazing interview which features in our bumper August issue, available from today at all the usual places.

All bias up front, The Skinny Showcase in Hill Street Design House is into its second year and has been set up as an exciting handpicked selection of four selected artists, one from each of this year’s four degree shows across Scotland. The preview takes place Friday 31 July from 6-8pm – the exhibition runs throughout August.

Dennis and Debbie's EAF show opens this Friday at CodeBase

Staying in Edinburgh, this Friday at 4pm, the festivities in Talbot Rice Gallery begin with a curator’s talk regarding the magnificent Hanne Darboven exhibition. Slightly later in the day from 5-7pm in the Festival Kiosk (9-11 Blair Street), EAF marks its inaugural edition of new emergent artist exhibition Platform 2015. From 6-7pm in Edinburgh Printmakers, Derek Michael Besant presents his text on photographic portrait works. In CodeBase in Argyle House, the Dennis and Debbie club are putting on the opening night for their computer animated spectacular The Strip from 6-8pm.

Then in Rhubaba it’s playfully experimental drawing and collage, with the magnificently titled e e e e o ee e i a a e a, previewing from 7-9.30pm. Also on Friday, at Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop from 6-8pm, Thresholds by Toby Paterson opens with a talk from the curator from 6-6.30pm.

In a clever move, The Number Shop have scheduled their opening to follow the rush, taking place on Saturday 1 August from 6pm. A younger gallery (both in its members’ stage of career and the gallery itself, which has just opened), it will be showcasing the artists who have their space there.

Looking forward to a week today, on Tuesday 4 August there will be a panel discussion in Dovecot Gallery on the work of Bernat Klein, coinciding with his major retrospective A Life in Colour. Late Serbian Klein (1922-2014) was based in Scotland, from where he supplied avant-garde fabrics to haute-couture around the world from the 60s. Tickets are £10/8 and include a glass of wine. Guests are encouraged to arrive by 5.45 pm.

Now, on to Glasgow! On Thursday night, The Common Guild host a roundtable discussion on the recent immersive installation works of Anne Hardy, with contributions from artist Sarah Forrest, the artistic director of the Glasgow Sculpture Studios Kyla McDonald… and you. (If you can make it.) It’s free, there’s wine and good chat. 

Proudly hosting the Integrity Painting Prize, the Glue Factory will present an opening event from 7-9pm on Friday, with an afterparty downstairs. The Prize itself is a tongue-in-cheek take on the painting prize, positing itself somewhere between “the British Petroleum Portrait Prize and the Great British Bake Off”. It’s got exciting artists, and a sense of humour to boot.

A bit of a clash this week between Integrity and Paradise (isn’t that always the way?) as the Paradise exhibition has its opening event in the Poetry Club from 7pm, followed by afterparty at 10pm. Taking its title as its theme, the young artists on show will be exhibiting their work and between them giving a multitude of takes on what constitutes “Paradise”.