Menoting; Memorable

I've been in Edinburgh this week. Wanted to go to the 200 Years Exhibition at the National Gallery of Scotland, which celebrates two centuries of Scottish art and artists, with all works available for sale. 

Tuesday, like nearly every other day this month, dawned very dark, very grey, very wet and on the chilly end of comfort. Nothing some woollens and macs wouldn't overcome. We hopped on the bus and were down to the city centre just ahead of eleven in the eh and em. Walking onto the plaza that precedes entry to the gallery, we were met with the most astounding sight.

Fireproof was - it turned out - on its last day of display, and neither of us had heard anything about it being on, which is an immense shame. Then again, it was slap bang in the centre of one of the busiest thoroughfares in the country, so it would not have lacked viewers. Neither, I am pleased to see, has it lacked for donations to the cause it was there to promote: providing necessary supplies to the Ukrainians. There is still just a little way to go to reach the target amount... can you help?

Mostly, I took only wide shots, only picking a very few to be more detailed. You will see the three I chose in the upcoming Menonday post, but here is one with Mac1 contemplating the soldier in the trench, so reminiscent of WW1 images... the photographer is Oleg Petrasiuk.

It was all very moving, just by the visual impact... but I had a brief interaction with a young family from Ukraine, he a soldier, here for a week's respite. They were deeply moved by the support they have found here. Then, Mac1 and I got chatting with a tall, well-spoken young American, who is an army attaché to the US embassy in Kyiv, who was appreciative of the 20 or so minutes we afforded him to 'download '. We assured him of confidentiality, but suffice it to say, he was glad of sleep without air raid sirens, and driving without fear of drones... We left him reluctantly, wishing him well, both so very impressed by his clear strength and sense of love and duty towards Ukraine and its citizens. A marked counterfoil to what has been in the news... My sister and I both shed a tear later.

From this, we had to transition to our main purpose. The piper helped, as incongruous as his presence was beside the trauma on display...

The 200 proved to be very worth our while, and was an excellent balm to the sore hearts we had from the first encounter of the day. There were lots of photos taken, of course, and you know you will be seeing most of them in Art Vibe posts... but here are just a few tasters to give you an idea. (Oh, and yes, more purchases by yours truly, which will be revealed in due course..) By the time we returned home, we knew we had had a day out, one that will stick in memory for quite some time.

(L) Edward Arthur Walton. (R) Alexander Fraser

(Lx2) Kate Downie. (Rx2) Norman McBeath

Michael Snowden

(Lx2) John Mackechnie, (C) Victoria Crowe, (R) Annie Cattrell.

Menookery; Togetherness

Well, I had a surprise last Saturday. Macs 2 and 3, who live very far south and slightly less south, respectively, take a yearly holiday back up here in the Bonny Land, just to remember their roots. Usually, that happens at the end of May, but this year, for reasons obscure, they had booked the first week of May. 

I received a text in the morning saying that they were coming to The Hutch before driving to their chosen cottage on the far banks of Loch Lomond. A lengthy round trip for them, but I was delighted to have my younger siblings finally deign to come to these remote parts! Mac1 may have had a hand in 'persuasion'. Anyway, as so often happens with that crew, the ETA stretched to over an hour beyond itself, and they turned up, along with Wizard the Viszla (Mac3's dog), at nearly 4:30 in the arvo. They were clearly already thinking they needed more than a cuppa, so after said cuppa and a bit of catch-up, I sent them off to walk the dog on the shoreline while I prepared a meal of salad, potato and eggs. That went down well, and the natter kept going until they needed to head off. It was about eight already, so it was 10 pm before they got to their place! 

It had been three years since we were last all together: that was when I first got The Grey, and we did our first grand tour together. That means the van is also just past its third birthday. Crikey. That was fast...

Now, on a slightly different note... I have been finding Blogger very tardy at delivering some posts to my reader, which does mean that sometimes I miss seeing  some posts altogether. I am learning to check back a day or so, but I am sure that I am missing a few. It seems to be happening with random blogs and for random periods of time. 

If you are used to seeing regular comments from me, and for some reason you think I may be MIA, please just be aware that the cause is likely to be this late delivery. You don't get rid of me that easily!

Menohygging; Comfort of Familiarity

Thank you to all for the birthday greetings. I had a thoroughly lovely few days. Mac1 drove over from Edinburgh on Thursday and, thank goodness, spring had properly arrived and the weather was more than decent for the whole of her stay. We are very comfortable together, and she just makes herself at home, so no standing on ceremony, and lots of easy silences. 

The World Snooker Championship is on this fortnight, so she was happy for me to catch the matches while she listened to her podcasts and worked away at her art diary, or read her books. Then we would eat and natter, drink tea and natter, watch a vid, then natter... 

There was, of course, beachcombing...

Mac1 is an inveterate collector of flotsam and jetsam! I lost count of how many sticks and bits she stuck into her bags. Meanwhile, I found lots of little seaglass bits to add to her supply. There were, as always, plenty of dogs to say hello and give ear chucks to.

My sissy spotted some yarn in my stash that she liked the look of. That was the only signal I needed to pick it out and start a sleeveless jumper (vest) for her. More on that in the Saturday Stitches post. I still have unfinished objects (UFOs), but the lure of doing something that is wanted by another, that has a defined purpose and specific design (albeit another of my own production) takes over. 

Monday arrived, and Mac1 had to get back over to the east of this Bonny Land. It had been a most delightful, relaxing, and entertaining few days.

Menorticle; It's An Art Vibe

Having driven up over the border to Hawick, I spent a week there parked in the council-provided "aire". Level standing, dump-station, bins, fresh water... and it's free! Thank you to the town council for their understanding that this encourages people in vans to stay and spend their moolah in the various businesses. Supermarkets, of course, but also museums, special interest shops, and some excellent restaurants. 

After that respite period, it was on to Edinburgh to spend another static week. This was time spent with my sister, as is the pattern now. Most of the time was just chilling, but we did make one outing to the gallery. 

Andy Goldsworthy is a renowned 'nature artist'. He sculpts/paints/photographs/films with plants, rocks, water... himself... both in and with nature. Profound and astounding, his work requires of the observer to be themselves a part of nature. Quite often, the works are interactive. It will not surprise you at all that I have reserved a few of my photos for the Menonday Art Vibe series, and there will be a Views page dedicated to a few more in November. This post is purely to whet your appetite, pique your interest, and tantalise your brain cells.

Andy's oeuvre consists almost entirely of temporary structures. There are a few items which will stand for a long time, those which involve stone. Mostly, though, everything is left to the elements and gets, eventually, reabsorbed. I find magnificence in this, much as the creation of the most intricate mandalas by meditators, which are swept away once complete. Everything - everything - is temporary. It is incumbent upon us to see the beauty in everything, the usefulness of everything, and that our very presence changes what is before us, beneath us, beside us. Take the Oak Passage in the image above. You will learn more about it when it turns up in Art Vibe proper, but as a pointer, know that the branches were all retrieved from fallen oaks (mostly after a major storm last winter). As we walk around and through the central avenue of the structure, we are invited to consider the mighty trees and how their wood has been a staple of construction for the human race for millennia... not least the very floor of the gallery. On the end wall, bracken stems have been split and splayed, pinned to the wall with tiny wooden splinters to create a snake-like maze that is mesmerising. Mac1 sat and sketched the oaks - and me with the Rolls-later as we perambulated...

Immediately on entering the gallery, we were faced with an installation. Wool Runner is a gathering of many 'blown' fleeces, which is when the sheep start to lose their wool before shearing has begun. Many of the flyaways get hooked on wire fencing and bushes, so they are easily gathered. Andy was inspired to create this piece to honour the original stair covering (removed many years back), which would have been woven from wool. The markings are what the farmers would have organised to separate flocks, and to mark which ewes were served by the ram, and also to determine which ewes had twins and which triplets. Every farm has its own colour coding.

Whilst we were all enjoying this exhibition under the roof of the National Gallery of Scotland, Andy's works are almost entirely created outdoors. A lot of his film and photographic work involves himself, or at least his hands, becoming the art: Hedge Walking (he literally crawled through hedges), Brambles (his hands crushing brambles looking like blood), and his Shadow series (lying down on dry ground and rising once the rain shower has passed) are some examples. The use of all the materials around him in any environment is his skill. He will spend hours creating decoration on tree trunks and stumps, or rocks, using leaves and water in such a way as to look like gilding, silvering, quite literally painting with nature. 

Another of his things is to bring a mass of twigs, or reeds or vines together to create pattern. In the gallery, one room is dedicated to Skylight.

Reeds are embedded in each other and suspended like a waterfall from the very high ceiling under a cupola. The artist had hoped that the gallery would have had the glass cleaned for the exhibition, so that the light effects would be more pronounced. They did not, and this is a great shame. I was fortunate to be present in the enclosure when there was a brief burst of pure sunlight, emphasising the fall of the rushes, but mostly it was a bit dull. That said, the effect of this surrounding curtain of natural material, with the faint odour of the riverside still emanating, was cocooning and comforting. I would have quite liked to have lain down and stayed there a while!

Red Wall is made entirely from the material gathered from the Lowther Hills in Dumfriesshire (where the artist has lived for three decades). This is the stuff that was originally - and still by some - used by farmers to colour their sheep for market... remember those Suffolk Lambs I showed you recently? There was some process to creating this work, though. In the words of the artist, "...clay-rich earth was dried, crushed, mixed with water, passed through a sieve, dried once more, then reconstituted into a workable material, cracking as it dried. The earth is vivid red because of its iron content. Our blood is red because of its iron content. It's a reminder that we are bound to the earth."

Being the ever-aware bloke he is, Tables, seen here behind Mac1, are, quite literally, the tabletops from the production work of the material as mentioned above. Andy had a team of helpers for the earth preparation. "It was important that the people working on the table weren't aware that the canvas might become a work in its own right. Its integrity as an artwork lies in it being a by-product of the process, not its purpose."

All rather fun! I do encourage you to explore the various photo galleries on Andy's home page, as linked above, and, next time you are out in nature, try to see leaves and mud differently!

Menontional; Kids Art

May 16th, and it was time to get on the road again. It was a bit of a pull to leave Dunoon, given how the weather had been and how the place absolutely feels like home. There are many places yet to see, to revisit, and to happen upon, so back into Grey and off we went. 

First to Edinburgh. There was to be a day with Mac1 and then a day with Aitch. With sister, it was - as you may have come to expect from us now! - a visit to the art gallery. The Open Exhibition was on. This is where not just established artists, but anyone with any ambitions to sell their work can submit and, if accepted, be hung for the public to view. We did it in two shifts. 

Arriving via the easy access (back door) entrance, we landed in the hall with the more outrageous offerings. We were, for the most part, very impressed and ended up lingering in there for the best part of 40 minutes. I loved the shark (recycled plastics used and representing endangered species as a result of plastic pollution), and several other pieces in there. Am holding back images for the Monday posts, so you'll see those later in the year!

As we walked into the next 'chamber' we found it was a video presentation set up and all the moving picture artworks were on a loop. We ended up staying there for all but the last two - so nearly 90 minutes!

Two items we both enjoyed immensely. The first was a video featuring visuals of the Scottish coastline, above and below water, with a commissioned soundtrack. It runs about 18 minutes and is available to view on Vimeo - I do not think you will be disappointed to have spent your time with it! Put it on full screen, sit back, and brrreeeaaathhheeee...

The other was a most moving set of scenes of the battlefields of Belgium from WW1... with some dates. These places are now lush and productive, and show few scars, though the ground remembers. Given the film-maker's name, we have assumed that the Percy Young McNiven (PYM) of the title fought in those battles, on those dates and was either grand or great-grandfather to him. 

Please note:  viewing will only be possible until the close of the exhibition on June 8th. If you are reading this after that date, do try, but I suspect you will no longer be able to access them.

I did a little research (of course). I could find only this clip from the Edinburgh Gazette on PYM, when he was first awarded the Military Cross - but I noted at the end of the film that he also had 'bar', which means he earned the recognition at least once again.

I was also able to trace that the family belongs locally to the Lothians, being from Newbattle, near Dalkeith, just to the south and east of the capital city. As you will see, should you chose to watch it, PYM lived a good long life following that dreadful time.

At this point, we decided we needed lunch. As we moved to the lower level for the bistro, we walked through the interactive space reserved for kids, and discovered that a fully curated exhibition was now hung there. Again, a couple of these I am keeping for the Art Vibe series, but here is the example of the Oban High School set.

We were gobsmacked at the talent that was showing through, as well as the thinking that presented itself through imagery. 

From the teenagers, we moved to the toddlers...

We were as moved and impressed by what we saw here as by anything in the grown-ups' show above!

After lunch it was back up to complete the remaining three rooms of works. Here is just one, general, teaser image and individual works I favoured will appear as and when...

Menoggling; Culture Cram Part One

Another visit to Edinburgh to spend some time with Mac1 and to get a boost of culture. After a relaxing time sitting by the waters of the Clyde, it was back on the road to the east. 

En route, I spent a night at Lanark and took the chance to finally purchase a proper mini ironing board, the better to prepare my clothing for outings such as those I will tell you about now.

First, on Spring Equinox, an evening in Rosslyn Chapel, to listen to Mac1's group, the St Margaret's Singers, provide an hour of sublime singing in the superb acoustic of St Matthew's church (the proper name for the building). 

In normal visits, which are strictly ticketed and regulated, there is a no-photography rule (buy your images at the shop on your way out—the place has become a commercial phenomenon). However, as the minister, Rev Julie, was herself taking shots, several of us took the chance of some sneakers, too! Of course, I was only taking shots of the people. The architectural background was purely incidental.

More external shots will appear in Me-Now-Views a bit later. The evening was sublime, and the 'girls' sang to their peak of talent. Pieces by Palastrina, Rutter, the St Francis Prayer... oh, it was marvellous. It was also a chance to meet up with our cousin Sophie.

Sophie did the opposite to me—she was born and raised in OZ but came to study medicine at Edinburgh University and never left. She's just returned from a lengthy visit down under and, like me, finds herself a tad torn between here and there. The other lady in the photo was a long-time friend of the late Neighbour M. It has been almost two years since that dear lady's passing, and we shared fond memories, knowing how much she would also have enjoyed this concert. 

Anyway, that was that. Saturday was a free day, and I did a bit of 'housework', as it was indeed a very fine day. Then on Sunday, Mac1 and I headed into the National Gallery to view two new exhibitions: The Glasgow Boys and the RSA New Contemporaries.

The first was in a small room off the main gallery and held only about two dozen pieces. The pieces were exquisite and focused on their process as much as on finished works, which we both appreciated, but doesn't lend well to photography. Two or three pieces caught my eye, and they, of course, will be shared in Art Vibe later!

After refuelling with a pricey but very tasty and filling cheese scone and a mug of tea, we went to the much larger showcase for up-and-coming artists who are either Scottish by birth or have studied art in Scottish colleges. We were blown away. Having viewed the exhibition online first, I was keen to see just how much had been lost through the photographic representation of what was mostly 3D, or at least textural, work. 

It must be said that seeing things directly brought entirely new dimensions, sensations, reactions, and delights. Most of the works seen on the web did not benefit. Getting up close and interactive was definitely an advantage. This was especially true of two works in particular (and again, I'm keeping the main info and better shots for Art Vibe posts). First, there was the mock-up urban scene, which was a coffee table/desk-sized installation with so many little details to enjoy. Titled Doontoon by Niamh Finnigan, you can see the overall view via that online link above, but here are two vignettes.

You might gather that it speaks to the sleeping rough, the living tough, and litter issues. It is a fascinating piece and evokes the sense of urban despair that can be felt in some parts of Scotland's central belt. Made entirely of litter products, it met with much approval from both of us. 

The second item that really grabbed us and held us for a good quarter hour was Black Sheep by Olivia Priya Foster.

We could go into the installation, touch, and experience the cuddling feeling of these tents. There was warmth and, of course, the intense smell of lanolin, as these were sheared pelts directly from the sheep with no processing done on them. The sound aspect was spoken Gaelic and also of the sea on the shore, as Hebridean sheep often eat seaweed on the edges of the islands. Our mother would have LOVED this exhibit! I had to resist the urge to lie down and curl up among the fibres, so nurturing did it feel.

...back next Thursday with part two of the culture cram!

Menorbishun; Absorbing Inspiration

Last Friday evening, The Grey and I parked up in the gated premises of the Glasgow Science Museum. Not because I intended to visit there, but because it was very handy for getting across the Clyde to the SEC (Scottish Exhibition Centre) and although a tad pricey (£15 per 24 hrs), I figured thirty quid for a weekend's stay in the big city in the comfort of my own van was pretty good value, not to mention, secure... and relatively peaceful.

Entry costs to the science building are also very pricey - how do families cope?! Even as a senior, it would be £12. It's not somewhere that attracts me really - too big, too noisy, too frenetic. It's for the youngsters to go and get hands-on with many of the exhibits. Anyway, that aside, non-visitors are permitted to park as well, so I am grateful for that. It happens to be right beside the Scottish campus for the Beeb, too.

It's only a ten-minute walk over Bells Bridge to get to the site which holds the O2 stadium (a spaceship-looking thing), the "Armadillo" wing of the SEC and then, tucked behind that and not of any notable architectural interest, the main SEC. 

The Glasgow Comicon was taking place in halls 5 and 5A, so there were lots of fabulous costumes on all the enthusiasts walking about. It made me smile as I fondly recalled all my days in the Sydney Sci-Fi group and how I was part of the organisation of early versions of these get-togethers.

I wasn't there for all that, though. I was meeting up with Mac1 to attend the Scottish Quilting and Craft Show—the tenth annual event in this space, but my first time attending. Mac1 has been going for several years and, later, as part of the exhibitor support for the group, through which she obtained her City & Guilds qualification. She had Saturday morning free, so we viewed all the competition entries as well as some of the professional stalls before she had to go on duty again.

Oh, my word. The skills!!! I wish I could share everything with you. Even I draw a line at that. However, several deserve to be included in the Monday Artvibe posts, so you will see those in due course. Today, though, I will use some more general shots so you get a feel for the exhibit layout and provide a teaser. The theme for this year's entries was Reuse, Reclaim, Recycle. Stash busting, use of found items and scrap, repurposing of old clothing or household linens. You name it, it was used. The lady who produced the item I have taken a morsel of in the photo above was very generous with her time at her stall. Mac1 and I spent a good half hour with Sheena Norquay as she described how she worked her colour-scrapping to produce the most fantastic colour gradations. Although I am not a quilter, there was much about her logical approach that I might apply in yarns...

You can tell by the smiles that we were having a grand time! 

There were also international offerings to view. A lady from Chile/Brazil (amazing tapestry-like works), South African Quilter's Association with lots of minis, and a small display of items expressing diversity.

We found this next one quite mesmerising. It has a deceptively simple chequerboard layout, but the stitching, along with some minuscule corner patches, made it a 3D fascinator. Given the amount of time Mac1 spent studying it, I think it is safe to assume that there will be some experimentation going on soon!

It is only fitting to close this post with a view of Mac1's own contribution to the exhibition. She used her own printed fabric (combo of dyes and cyanotype) as well as items of litter found when 'mudlarking' and photos of pylons from dad's old stash. (I won't show you the yarn stalls I visited. Or the yarns that just had to come back with me...) I was there for the best part of five hours. It was sensory overload but an absolutely fabulous day.

Menoggling; Eyeing Up Art - Part The Second

Having made our marks and hung them in the National Gallery Basement, it was time for lunch at the in-house restaurant, Contini. The service was five-star. Mac1 had the Lentil Soup with Sourdough, and I had the Beetroot Tartare (although it was differently dressed than stated in the menu you'll see on that link - it was shaved goats' cheese, pea shoots, roasted walnuts, and an aged vincotto. We followed this with, for her, carrot and walnut cake, and for me, the plant-based chocolate pudding, which was again a different mix to that stated but no less indulgent. Absolutely lush!

It was a delightful interlude to our day of culture.

From there, we went to the upstairs gallery to view the five rooms of current works by RSA Watercolourists. Oh, my word. We have been disappointed with this annual sales exhibition for the past two years. This year, we each found several in all the rooms that we would happily have swagged! We spent AGES viewing these and often returned to the favourites.

I didn't go mad with the clicking in this show... just too busy enjoying it, frankly. However, there were two or three that I just adored and will turn up in the Menondays posts. Mac1 and I have varying tastes, but there were a couple that we both agreed upon as being sheer delights. The works of Ruth Thomas were of particular appeal to us both (and I now discover that she is an expat Aussie!) Others that kept us intrigued were Alison Dunlop, Sheila Anderson Hardy, which is one I know David Gascoigne will appreciate, as he will the next, Jonathan Sainsbury.

We were fast running out of opening hours! The third and final exhibit was In Orcadia. I am simply going to share my images from this, with the relevant info bits, and you can take what you will from it (or view further online via that link). There was one piece from here (the Sunset by Victoria Crowe) that I am reserving for the regular ArtVibe posts. 

After this, it was back on the 31 and a cuppa tea before crashing for the night. The third day with Mac1 was at home, watching her stitch her quilts, create some dyed fabric and just generally chillaxing. We made our farewells after brekky on the Thursday, and I turned The Grey's wheels south and west again.