Getting started in Scotland's art scene

Breaking into Scotland’s visual art scene can feel like a daunting task, especially if you have no direct contacts to show you the ropes. Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to get your foot in the door and find your arts-loving community across the country.

Make an exhibition of yourself

If you’re motivated to develop an exhibition practice alongside your studies, established curatorial collectives might just inspire you to find your niche. Take Glasgow-based 16 Collective, for example. 16 Collective have established themselves as a curatorial powerhouse with a feminist edge – they’re focused on spreading the love for experimental contemporary art and redistributing power, with particular attention to female-identifying, LGBTQ+ and working-class artists. Curatorial platform FEMME has also caught our eye for its queer, feminist and DIY approach to exhibition making.

Scotland is a haven for grassroots, artist-led exhibition spaces. Among them are Generator Projects in Dundee: a non-profit, collaborative and membership-based space dedicated to fostering creativity. While their funded programme is not available to full-time students, their Takeover projects allow members to run events or exhibitions in the Generator galleries or Community Space. Best of all, it’s free to become a member and to run a Takeover project – though if you’re in the financial position to do so, you can donate to support their programming.

In Edinburgh, Sett Studios and Embassy come to mind for grassroots exhibition opportunities. Sett Studios provide a financially accessible and safe space for artists to make, prioritising those from financially and socially disadvantaged backgrounds, while Embassy supports early-career artists through an exhibition programme and commissioning opportunities in a non-hierarchical setting.

Write like no one’s watching

Here at The Skinny, we receive several lovely emails a day from students on the hunt for their first journalism gig. Nothing shows initiative more than someone who writes keenly for their student newspaper, or runs their own Substack devoted to art observations. We’re looking for evidence that you can translate that niche academic interest into a timely and original piece of arts journalism.

Creative Scotland’s Opportunities tool is about to become your best friend. Keep an eye out for emerging writer schemes, residency or mentorship opportunities which will support you to hone your craft. Shameless plug: for the last four years, in collaboration with Edinburgh Art Festival, The Skinny has run an Emerging Writer scheme. The scheme supports Scotland-based, early career writers from backgrounds underrepresented in journalism through a mentored, paid opportunity to be published in our magazine – both print and online.

In the words of Chloe Caldwell, author of lesbian cult-classic Women: “Writing publicly is so embarrassing. But someone’s gotta do it.” It can feel incredibly vulnerable to get your name and your words out there, which is why building a community of fellow writers can help stave off the fear. The Skinny runs monthly meet-ups for art writers across Scotland, where we explore an exhibition together before chatting about the art on the walls, and art journalism in general, over the ultimate writing fuel (coffee). Gallery Bagging also run regular ‘[synonym]’ sessions that facilitate writing within exhibition spaces. Through thoughtful writing prompts, facilitators A-J Reynolds and Eliza Coulson create a dialogue about the exhibition at hand – no previous art writing experience is required.

Showing up

While an invitation to an exhibition opening at a big ol’ institution might seem hard to come by, refreshingly, there are many galleries with an open-door policy out there. Glasgow Art Map has made it easier for us to find them. Use this independent guide to exhibitions happening across the city as a tool to establish connections with galleries, artists and curators. Wherever you’re based, keeping up to date with exhibition openings through newsletter subscriptions and social media can go a long way.

Beyond exhibition openings, there’s artist in-conversations. These dialogical events are a way for artists to explore their creative process, context and intentions, and often leave room for you to present your questions. During August, Edinburgh Art Festival organise several thought-provoking conversations, while Edinburgh International Book Festival often have an art focus in their programme.

Of all the art forms, visual art has a reputation for being the wankiest. I’ve lost count of the number of people who have told me “I enjoy going to exhibitions and writing, but I can’t write about art.” Our ethos at The Skinny is: “Why the hell not?” Hopefully, this snapshot of opportunities reassures you that there are folk out there hellbent on demystifying the art scene.