Menoggling; Culture Cram Part Three

I mentioned in part two last Thursday that a part of the Scottish exhibition at the National Museum of Scotland came as a surprise. It is a long-term but temporary display and, although not large, was very absorbing. Having lived in the times being discussed (and remembering some of the angst and terror), both having deja vu with current events, Mac1 and I were deeply moved and impressed with the presentation and points covered. 

I am mostly going to let the images speak for themselves, but if you are interested in reading a review/precis of the exhibition, you may like to read this article in the NYT. (I was unaware of the unrelated, yet similar display down in London.)

These images represent the gamut of information provided. I got the chills when I pulled up the museum's web page advertising the exhibition. The photograph that heads the page (and is seen again a little further down, past the bottle shaker - and yes, I made a couple of those!) is of a protest held in Glasgow... which I attended! The man second from right with the beard and holding his daughter was our coordinator of SCND at ESCA when I worked there. Shortly after, there was a protest sit-down at Faslane, which led to the formation of the still-running Peace Camp. (In fairness and balance, here is the link to read about HMNB Clyde.)

Yes, it is just a hiss and spit along the water from The Hutch. I can vouch for the fact that many in Dunoon still hark back to how lively the place was when the US Navy was posted there. I also recall being in Ullapool when the Russian 'fishing fleet' was anchored in Loch Broom. The sailors happily dropped ashore and traded items from the USSR for things such as whisky, tablet (Scottish fudge), shortbread, and haggis! Many couldn't speak English, and next to no Russian was spoken by the shopkeepers of West Scotland, but both showed evident respect and fun. The 'trades' included, sometimes, things stripped from the ships they were on - such as that huge hammer and sickle and the slightly worn flag you see behind Mac1 as she listens to some first-hand interviews with Dunoon residents. Mostly, though, it was trinkets.

For those of you keen on the Art Vibe series, this link provides a bit more about Paolozzi. If you follow blogpal Hilary Milton-Butcher, you may recall she recently featured him in a post about his more famous early work, "I Was A Rich Man's Plaything."

All this just leaves me to say...