Staged @ the City Observatory

Article by Benjamin Bennett | 19 Jul 2010

A terribly important writer once declared that “all the world is a stage, and all the men and women merely players.” I think it is fair to say that old Wullie would have thoroughly enjoyed stalking the back streets of Edinburgh and cavorting with the wonderful assortment of unmentionables that fill our delightful capital every August. A couple of artists, described by the Edinburgh Art Festival as the ‘rising stars of Scottish visual arts’ have seemingly taken these words to heart in the planning of their 2010 Festival commission, Staged.

Fresh from various high profile international commissions, Kim Coleman and Jenny Hogarth intend to bring a touch of the dramatic to this year’s artistic offerings. Between 30 July and 15 August the City Observatory on Calton Hill will play host to a video installation that combines live CCTV images and pre-recorded footage. Intriguingly described as ‘a digital camera obscura’, the installation will draw on the artists’ interest in the complex relationship between reality and fiction. And where else might one find a more inspirational location for this topic than Edinburgh during festival season?

Coleman and Hogarth both studied at Edinburgh College of Art and their previous performances and video installations, such as An Infusion of the Evening Air, are playful explorations of contrasts between light and dark, artificiality and repetition. The producers of the exhibition, the Collective Gallery, promise an equally dynamic and spontaneous contribution to the EAF’s programme. So the stage is set and players are gathering for Coleman and Hogarth’s investigation into art’s enduring fascination with the relationship between place, environment and humanity. You never know, you might become a star of CCTV yourself. [Benjamin Bennett]

City Observatory on Calton Hill

http://www.collectivegallery.net