This Week in Scottish Art: CCA Common Guild & more

Throughout this week there is an exhibition in the Glasgow Project Room, entitled Peacetime Resistance. This is a new presentation of an exhibition first held in Bærum Kunsthall, Oslo. Peacetime Resistance brings together four artists from Iceland, Norway, the UK and Singapore. Though working in different media and disciplines, they identify a common ‘belief in the ability of material surfaces and gestures to perform psychological disclosure through physical belief. With quiet works, and an emphasis on the ‘as-yet unarticulated’, it is for this reason they align with a kind of ‘quiet resistance.’' Open throughout the week, from 12-5pm. Glasgow Project Room is located upstairs within the Trongate 103 complex on Argyle Street.

As part of the current Ripples on the Pond exhibition in Glasgow Gallery of Modern Art, there is a screening of the work of Glasgow-based artist Karen Cunningham. Also contributing is Edinburgh College of Art lecturer Dr Angela McClanahan, who will offer an interpretation of the work, with a special emphasis on its relevance to documentary, anthropology and poetry. In themselves, the moving image and sculptural works of Karen Cunningham engage the landscape, the travelogue, ‘the artist, her terrain and the sublime.’ The moving image works will be contextualised within the broader group exhibition and particular works of paper. This event, presented by the Modern Edinburgh Film School, takes place in the CCA at 6:30pm on Wed 2 Dec; admission free but booking is advised.

The next day, it’s the first of the new monthly Room for Reading days in the Common Guild. Throughout the later Thursday opening hours (from 12-7pm), the gallery invites the public to use the library for personal research. Designed by artist Andrew Miller, the unique library shelves are worth a visit. Now open for almost 10 years, there is a healthy library with a broad representation of contemporary artists internationally. Tea and coffee is provided, and this event is set to continue on the first Thursday of every month.

After a good read, Thursday also sees an opening from Glasgow School of Art's MLitt Sculpture Students, as part of the Delaying Tactics exhibition at House for an Art Lover. The broader exhibition includes artists interested in diverse subjects, like ecology, reading communities, and linguistic communication. For Thursday’s event, the GSA Masters students present works completed in House for an Art Lover during a short residency. Curated by participating artist Birthe Jorgensen, Delaying Tactics is on until 17 January.

A little later on Thursday, there is the Winter Exhibition Opening at Six Foot Gallery from 6pm (they also promise a Christmas tipple). Then at 7pm, David Dale hosts Watch Yourself, part of the Video Art Network Lagos programme, one of the projects organised to coincide with the 2014 Commonwealth Games. Four artists are taking part, including Rachel Maclean and Zoe Williams – enjoy this video chat with Rachel Maclean talking about her complicated, sharp and deft video and print work in this Skinny video:

This Friday in Edinburgh’s Rhubaba gallery, Lucy Parker takes an interdisciplinary look at the subject of endings. Input will come from legal academic Dr Chloë Kennedy, bassoonist and artist Faith Limbrick, and film programmer Peter Taylor. Discussion of legal resolutions will have some closing motifs as musical interludes and Taylor will screen a collection of film endings. Softening potential spoilers, soup and popcorn will be served. This Friday, the event begins at 6.30pm.

More exhibition-related screenings on Saturday in Dundee. With his work on display at Generator now, Christopher Macinnes presents the documentary Manufactured Landscapes, relevant to the topic of the show, from 4pm.

You might have read our pick of December’s Christmas market days, and the fine art and design shops across the country, and adding to those this Sunday in the Glasgow Project Room is a smaller presentation of artwork for sale by Sally Hackett. Primarily selling her sculptural work, her clay interpretations of OK Magazine and X Factor contestants have an off-kilter and out of proportion cartoon humour about them. Sunday 6 Dec, from 3-6pm.

This Sunday at 6.45pm, Artist Moving Image agency LUX Scotland present Who Needs a Heart by the Black Audio Film Collective. This controversial work records a forgotten and fringe history of British Black Power ‘through the fictional lives of a group of friends caught up in the coutner-cultural anti-hero, activist and charismatic social bandit Michael X.’ CCA director Francis McKee will introduce the film. Tickets are available from the box office and GFT website, and are charged at usual admission.