Scottish Art Exhibitions & Opportunities: June 2018

Exhibition highlights

It’s that time of the year again – summer is officially here, and how do you know? The sound of art students across the country popping corks of off-brand prosecco fills the air as it’s Degree Show Time! Both the Glasgow School of Art and Edinburgh College of Art are opening 2 June, while Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design and Architecture had their exhibition in late May and Gray's up in Aberdeen have theirs 16-24 June. We’ll have more information about the Degree Show highlights from across the country on theskinny.co.uk/art and in next month’s issue, so stay tuned to find out more.

Also celebrating a year of concentrated artistic development, from 12-18 June, the Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop unveils After Party, this year’s exhibition of the work created during its unique community outreach primary schools programme. Well over 100 pupils spent a year learning and collaborating with some of the most exciting artists in Scotland (including our Art editor, natch) to create a diverse body of sculptural, performance, video and sound work.

Hidden Door wraps up in the first week of June in Edinburgh. The ever expanding and innovative festival will be presenting work from the likes of Silas Parry, Zoe Griffin and Jennie Bates. With performance art, sculpture, painting, printing, video art and the weird and wonderful in between – there’s plenty to get your teeth into. Also in Edinburgh, Arusha Gallery are presenting an exhibition by Scottish-based artist Kirsty Whiten: personal transformation and mythical inspiration will be the focus of mesmerising, large-scale portraits, 8-25 June. Elsewhere in the capital Talbot Rice Gallery will play host to 'a new type of student exhibition' Trading Zone, an eclectic mix of artists trading knowledge to create themes connected by ideas based around data, human behaviour and ecology runs until 23 June.

Up the coast, Dundee Contemporary Arts (DCA) are presenting the first major European exhibition of American artist Eve Fowler. Fowler’s work will fill DCA’s expansive galleries over the summer and also reach beyond the walls of the institution to appear in public spaces across Dundee and further afield, punctuating the Scottish landscape with feminist cries 9 June-26 August.

While in Glasgow, the Centre for Contemporary Arts be sure to see Jonas Staal’s The Scottish-European Parliament (16 Jun-29 Jul, CCA). Read more about the two-year project in our interview with him this month online.

Programme announcements

Edinburgh Art Festival have revealed their commissions programme including Shilpa Gupta, Ross Birrell & David Harding, Ruth Ewan and Adam Lewis Jacob. Get your art-hungry hands on all the info at edinburghartfestival.com

Awards, funding and calls for entries

There’s an opportunity for artists of any medium to win some big bucks with Wells Art Contemporary, Visual Arts Competition as well as exhibition, mentoring and artistic development opportunities with the organisation. Deadline: 2 July

Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire based artists are invited to apply for The Barn’s micro residency programme, which takes place over four or five days in July. Artists working in any medium are able to apply so long as they are wishing to undertake periods of research, develop their practice or project idea in a supportive environment (aren’t we all?!) Deadline: 22 June

Also offering a series of micro residencies is Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop which aim to enable artists to develop ideas, learn new skills and produce work supported by the resources of ESW – open to artists of any background, not just sculpture, this is a fantastic opportunity to immerse yourself within an incredible organisation over six weeks, and have access to their facilities year round. Deadline: 9 June

Wasps Studios have several residencies available to artists in some beautiful and remote places such as Shetland and Skye, with a variety of application deadlines from early July until the autumn – be sure to take the time to apply to this brilliant series.

In the capital, Magnetic North are looking for Scottish-based artists with a significant track record from any art form to focus on a new development in their work – previous awardees include the ever impressive Hanna Tuulikki so don’t miss out on your opportunity to apply. Deadline: 9 June