National Museum of Scotland Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Open 10:00–17:00 daily
Bernat Klein: Design in Colour Until 23 Apr 2023 Exhibition Gallery 2, Level 3 Free entry
Marking the centenary of his birth, Bernat Klein: Design in Colour will celebrate the work of the influential émigré textile designer.
Visitors will be able to explore Klein’s creative process and varied career, from providing couture fabrics for fashion designers to his influence on modernist architecture and interior design in the UK and Scandinavia.
Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder Until 1 May 2023 Ticketed (concessions available)
Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder features eight zones filled with immersive, hands-on experiences. Travel through the Time Vortex Corridor, discover Sonic Screwdrivers, teleportation technology and much more in a TARDIS Tech room, and get up close with some of the series’ weird and wonderful creatures in the Monster Vault.
Join us for the Scottish premiere of this ground-breaking exhibition. It’s bigger on the inside!
COMING SOON Beyond the Little Black Dress 1 Jul – 29 Oct 2023 Special Exhibition Gallery, Level 3 Ticketed (concessions available)
From design classics to cutting-edge catwalk creations, this exhibition deconstructs the little black dress and examines the radical power of the colour black in fashion.
The exhibition will chart a century of fashion in a series of themed, immersive displays. Iconic early pieces by Yves Saint Laurent, Dior and Jean Muir will be juxtaposed with recent looks by ground-breaking contemporary designers and brands like Gareth Pugh, Simone Rocha and Off-White.
Japanese Contemporary Design Until 30 Jul 2023 Exhibition Gallery 3, Level 1 Free entry
From striking statement jewellery to prints and porcelain vases, this new free display considers how Japanese contemporary makers have combined innovative and traditional art, craft and design elements over the past five decades.
The star object is Hitomi Hosono’s A Large Pine Tree Pool, a sculptural porcelain bowl with complex hand-carving made and acquired in 2019. Further highlights include Junko Mori’s intricate New Pinecone Silver Organism, and colourful body adornments by jeweller Suō Emiko’s adapted from metalworking and engraving techniques traditionally used in the making of Japanese sword fittings.
Events National Museum of Scotland Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Open 10:00–17:00 daily
A Night of Science and Wonder 2 & 3 Mar 2023 18:30 – 22:30 £18 – £22 including talk and exhibition entry
Two exclusive evenings celebrating our Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder exhibition. Our adult-only events will explore the creative innovation and cutting-edge science behind the global hit television series, Doctor Who.
Each night will feature an expert perspective on either space science or Doctor Who, plus themed hands-on activities. Tickets also include entry to our Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder exhibition.
Refuge Britain: Stories of Émigré Designers 4 Mar 2023 14:00 – 16:00 Auditorium, Level 1 Age 14+ Ticketed, concessions available
Inspired by our exhibition, Bernat Klein: Design in Colour, join curator Lisa Mason and Dr Anna Nyburg to explore the work of revolutionary émigré textile designers, Bernat Klein and Tibor Reich. This event features an exclusive screening of the 2017 documentary film, Refuge Britain: Stories of Émigré Designers. There will also be the chance to view our free exhibition Bernat Klein: Design in Colour before or after the event.
BSL Access Evening – Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder 7 Mar 2023 17:30 – 19:30 Special Exhibition Gallery 1, Level 3 Standard exhibition entry princes apply
Join us after hours for a Deaf-led BSL tour of key objects in the Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder exhibition. Step inside the TARDIS to discover the science behind the global hit television series Doctor Who. Explore hands-on immersive experiences and see amazing props from across the programme’s history in this must-see exhibition.
Science Saturday: exploring the science of Doctor Who 18 Mar 2023 10:30 – 16:00 Grand Gallery (Drop in)
Meet scientists whose research might be helping to turn science fiction into science fact! Contributors include University of Edinburgh, Heriot-Watt University and National Museums Scotland. From AI and quantum realms to different dimensions and time travel, Science Saturday brings together expert-led activities that explore the real science behind Doctor Who‘s interstellar adventures.
Bernat Klein: Design Matters 28 Mar 2023 Free, with optional donation
Join curator Lisa Mason to discuss the legacy of visionary textile designer Bernat Klein and discover how his design ethos is inspiring designers working today with contemporary designers Kirsty McDougall and Sam Reich to discuss Klein’s legacy as a designer, educator and theorist, as well as his enduring belief in design as a force for good in society.
Audio Described Access Evening – Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder 28 Mar 2023 17:30–19:30 Special Exhibition Gallery 1, Level 3 Standard exhibition entry prices apply
Join us after hours for an audio-described tour of key objects in the Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder exhibition. Step inside the TARDIS to discover the science behind the global hit television series Doctor Who. Explore hands-on immersive experiences and see amazing props from across the programme’s history in this must-see exhibition.
Join us as we host two weeks of science-fuelled exploration at the National Museum of Scotland, from free interactive exhibits to family workshops and adult talks and events.
Relaxed Access Evening – Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder 18 Apr 2023 17:30–19:30 Special Exhibition Gallery 1, Level 3 Standard exhibition entry prices apply
Join us for a relaxed after hours visit to Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder for anyone who would prefer a calmer visit to the exhibition. During this opening, numbers will be reduced and wherever possible, sounds will be lowered and light levels adjusted to provide a more relaxed experience. A quiet, breakout space will also be available. A visual welcome guide will be provided in advance to help you prepare for your visit.
National Museum of Flight East Fortune Airfield, East Lothian, EH39 5LF Open daily 10:00 – 16:00
Operation Sabotage 18 & 19 Mar 2023 Age 14+ event Ticketed
The year is 1942 and you are stationed at the RAF base at East Fortune. There has been an act of sabotage and one of the aircraft is unknowingly carrying live ordnance with instructions to bomb the town. Solve a series of fiendish puzzles to call off the flight and save North Berwick!
Operation Sabotage is an escape room experience for 4-8 people that lasts up to an hour. Working together as a team, you must race against the clock in two Second World War-themed rooms to decipher the identity of the saboteur before it’s too late.
National Lottery Open Week 25 & 26 Mar 2023 10:00 – 16:00 Free entry on presentation of National Lottery ticket (T&Cs apply)
As a recipient of National Lottery funding, we are inviting players to the museum for free for the weekend, to say thank you for their support. Visitors will need to book a timed entry ticket online for every member of their group in advance of their visit and bring both their admission ticket and lottery ticket or scratch card.
Follow the Wright brothers and design your own aeroplane, drawing inspiration from the collection at the National Museum of Flight. Nearly 120 years ago the Wright Brothers flew the first powered and controlled aeroplane. Take inspiration from our Civil Aviation collection and make your own flying machine.
National Museum of Scotland Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Open 10:00–17:00 daily
Half Term: Galleries and Galaxies 13 – 18 Feb 2023 Grand Gallery Free, drop in Orbit around our out-of-this-world Space themed activities. Make a space monster at our craft station and drop by our Spark Cart for some intergalactic demos and object handling.
Madlab Electronic Workshops 13 – 14 Feb 2023 (various times) Studio One £15, Child 7 -14 £13.50, Members & Concessions Solder your own flashing alien or Space Screwdriver with Madlab. Learn the secrets of soldering, find out how electrical circuits work and make your own electronic gizmo to keep.
Pop up Planetarium Shows 17 – 18 Feb 2023 Event Space 10:30, 11:15, 12:00, 13:30, 14:15, 15:00 £2.50, Adult £2.00, Members & Concessions £2.00, Child 0 – 14 years Be amazed by the wonder of Space in these spectacular shows from Cosmos planetarium. Cosmos planetarium is a state of the art, fully digital, 360° immersive multi-media experience. There will be three exciting shows to choose from, one specifically for under 5s and the other two shows suitable for 5+. One of the shows will be a relaxed session suitable for children with additional support needs.
National Museum of Scotland Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Open 10:00–17:00 daily
Bernat Klein: Design in Colour Until 23 Apr 2023 Exhibition Gallery 2, Level 3 Free entry Marking the centenary of his birth, Bernat Klein: Design in Colour will celebrate the work of the influential émigré textile designer. Visitors will be able to explore Klein’s creative process and varied career, from providing couture fabrics for fashion designers to his influence on modernist architecture and interior design in the UK and Scandinavia
Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder Until 1 May 2023 Ticketed (concessions available) Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder features eight zones filled with immersive, hands-on experiences. Travel through the Time Vortex Corridor, discover Sonic Screwdrivers, teleportation technology and much more in a TARDIS Tech room, and get up close with some of the series’ weird and wonderful creatures in the Monster Vault.
Join us for the Scottish premiere of this ground-breaking exhibition. It’s bigger on the inside!
COMING SOON Beyond the Little Black Dress 1 Jul – 29 Oct 2023 Special Exhibition Gallery, Level 3 Ticketed (concessions available) From design classics to cutting-edge catwalk creations, this exhibition deconstructs the little black dress and examines the radical power of the colour black in fashion.
The exhibition will chart a century of fashion in a series of themed, immersive displays. Iconic early pieces by Yves Saint Laurent, Dior and Jean Muir will be juxtaposed with recent looks by ground-breaking contemporary designers and brands like Gareth Pugh, Simone Rocha and Off-White.
Japanese Contemporary Design Until 30 Jul 2023 Exhibition Gallery 3, Level 1 Free entry From striking statement jewellery to prints and porcelain vases, this new free display considers how Japanese contemporary makers have combined innovative and traditional art, craft and design elements over the past five decades.
The star object is Hitomi Hosono’s A Large Pine Tree Pool, a sculptural porcelain bowl with complex hand-carving made and acquired in 2019. Further highlights include Junko Mori’s intricate New Pinecone Silver Organism, and colourful body adornments by jeweller Suō Emiko’s adapted from metalworking and engraving techniques traditionally used in the making of Japanese sword fittings.
National Museum of Scotland Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Open 10:00–17:00, daily
Relaxed Morning 5 Feb 2023 10:00 – 12:00 (quiet space open until 12:30) Join us for our monthly Relaxed Morning for anyone who would appreciate a calmer visit to the museum. This session is primarily for, but not limited to, families with autistic children; autistic young people and adults; adults living with dementia; adults and children with mental health problems; and any other visitors with sensory needs or who may prefer a more relaxed experience, plus their families, friends and carers.
Gaelic Week Edinburgh 22 – 25 Feb 2023 Enjoy live music and storytelling during Gaelic Week | Edinburgh at the National Museum of Scotland. Running from 20-26 February, the wider festival celebrates the theme of “Coming Together / A’ Tighinn Còmhla”, inspired by post-pandemic recovery.
A Night of Science and Wonder 2 – 3 Mar 2023 18:30 – 22:30 £18 – £22 including talk and exhibition entry Two exclusive evenings celebrating our Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder exhibition. Our adult-only events will explore the creative innovation and cutting-edge science behind the global hit television series, Doctor Who. Each night will feature an expert perspective on either space science or Doctor Who, plus themed hands-on activities. Tickets also include entry to our Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder exhibition.
Refuge Britain: Stories of Émigré Designers 4 Mar 2023 14:00 – 16:00 Auditorium, Level 1 Age 14+ Ticketed, concessions available Inspired by our exhibition, Bernat Klein: Design in Colour, join curator Lisa Mason and Dr Anna Nyburg to explore the work of revolutionary émigré textile designers, Bernat Klein and Tibor Reich. This event features an exclusive screening of the 2017 documentary film, Refuge Britain: Stories of Émigré Designers. There will also be the chance to view our free exhibition Bernat Klein: Design in Colour before or after the event.
BSL Access Evening – Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder 7 Mar 2023 17:30 – 19:30 Special Exhibition Gallery 1, Level 3 Standard exhibition entry princes apply Join us after hours for a Deaf-led BSL tour of key objects in the Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder exhibition. Step inside the TARDIS to discover the science behind the global hit television series Doctor Who.
Explore hands-on immersive experiences and see amazing props from across the programme’s history in this must-see exhibition.
Bernat Klein: Design Matters 28 Mar 2023 Free, with optional donation Join curator Lisa Mason to discuss the legacy of visionary textile designer Bernat Klein and discover how his design ethos is inspiring designers working today with contemporary designers Kirsty McDougall and Sam Reich to discuss Klein’s legacy as a designer, educator and theorist, as well as his enduring belief in design as a force for good in society.
Audio Described Access Evening – Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder 28 Mar 2023 17:30–19:30 Special Exhibition Gallery 1, Level 3 Standard exhibition entry prices apply Join us after hours for an audio-described tour of key objects in the Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder exhibition. Step inside the TARDIS to discover the science behind the global hit television series Doctor Who. Explore hands-on immersive experiences and see amazing props from across the programme’s history in this must-see exhibition.
Relaxed Access Evening – Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder 18 Apr 2023 17:30–19:30 Special Exhibition Gallery 1, Level 3 Standard exhibition entry prices apply Join us for a relaxed after hours visit to Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder for anyone who would prefer a calmer visit to the exhibition. During this opening, numbers will be reduced and wherever possible, sounds will be lowered and light levels adjusted to provide a more relaxed experience. A quiet, breakout space will also be available. A visual welcome guide will be provided in advance to help you prepare for your visit.
National Museum of Flight East Fortune Airfield, East Lothian, EH39 5LF Open daily 10:00 – 16:00
Operation Sabotage 18 & 19 Mar 2023 Age 14+ event Ticketed The year is 1942 and you are stationed at the RAF base at East Fortune. There has been an act of sabotage and one of the aircraft is unknowingly carrying live ordnance with instructions to bomb the town. Solve a series of fiendish puzzles to call off the flight and save North Berwick! Operation Sabotage is an escape room experience for 4-8 people that lasts up to an hour. Working together as a team, you must race against the clock in two Second World War-themed rooms to decipher the identity of the saboteur before it’s too late.
Test Flight 10 –14 Apr 2023 11:00 –16:00 Follow the Wright brothers and design your own aeroplane, drawing inspiration from the collection at the National Museum of Flight. Nearly 120 years ago the Wright Brothers flew the first powered and controlled aeroplane. Take inspiration from our Civil Aviation collection and make your own flying machine.
New artwork celebrates 50+ swimmers in Scotland’s East Coast communities
Fife-based artist Joanna van den Berg will embark upon a new two-year art project inspired by the lure of coastal swimming thanks to National Lottery Funding through Creative Scotland’s Open Fund.
Developed in collaboration with swimmers, coastal artists and communities, Joanna will develop a series of mixed-media artworks, with a companion collection of writing and images.
This new project titled IMMERSE will take the form of a tribute, exploration and celebration of the growing numbers of ‘feisty 50+ers, women in particular’, whose lives, well-being and sense of solidarity have been galvanised through regular immersion in Scotland’s seas, lochs, rivers and reservoirs.
As one of many who started wild swimming during the Covid pandemic, artist Joanna van den Berg has drawn inspiration from the physical and emotional impact of this directly immersive encounter with the landscape. In Joanna’s own words, ‘the act of transitioning from land to water; the shock, the fear, the exhilaration.’
IMMERSE will host a series of exhibition/gathering events in coastal venues, aiming to produce a companion publication/anthology of text and images for wider distribution by December 2024. News on these, along with call-outs for contributors and regular updates on the project, will be available on an IMMERSE Instagram/Facebook channel from January 2023.
Artist Joanna van den Bergsays: “I’m delighted to have been awarded Open Project funding for IMMERSE, a project to create visual narrative for the emotional and physical lure of wild, coastal and tidal pool swimming.
“I’ll be developing work that draws directly from the stories and experiences of swimmers in Scotland’s East Coast communities.
“Much of my work is bound in transitions between land and water, lost and found, known and unknown, and is increasingly underpinned by my experience of aging.
“I am one of an armada of wild swimmers (many of whom are older women) with a newfound and directly immersive relationship with the landscape. I’m particularly interested in the correlation of wild swimming with age-related changes to our bodies, lifestyle and social autonomy.”
The project is one of 69 projects receiving a total of £1,197,933 National Lottery funding in this latest round of Creative Scotland’s Open Fund awards.
A new album from acclaimed Glasgow-based folk band Gnoss.
Look To the Rainbow – the first biography of the Scots-born singer, actress and entertainer Ella Logan from Alison Kerr.
A new duo album fromLouise Dodds and Elchin Shirinov comprised of traditional Scottish Folk Songs and interwoven with influences of both jazz and Azerbaijani folk music.
The Party Shrimp – an interactive, outdoor, visual walkabout performance for children (5+), families from Adrenalism.
A Scotland-wide series of exhibitions, talks and workshops engaging audiences in the story of Bernat Klein, a Serbian born designer whose career based in the Scottish Borders spanned six decades.
Paul Burns, Interim Deputy Director of Arts & Engagement at Creative Scotlandsaid: “As the year draws to a close, we are once again inspired by the range of exciting new projects that have received Open Fund support.
“The diversity and scope of these projects is reflective of our society as a whole, and we hope that these projects will continue to enrich the lives of people of all ages in Scotland in 2023 and beyond.”
A major Grayson Perry retrospective is announced today (28 November). The largest exhibition of Alberta Whittle’s career to date, a solo show by Do Ho Suh, and printmakers’ treasures are also among highlights of the National Galleries of Scotland’s new exhibitions programme.
Pottery allowed him the opportunity to indulge his fascination with sex, Punk, and counterculture, amongst other things, in the most unlikely and polite of art forms. Today he is one of Britain’s most celebrated artists and cultural figures.
Popular and provocative, Perry makes art that deals with difficult and complex ideas in an accessible and often funny way. He loves taking on big issues that are universally human: masculinity, sexuality, class, religion, politics and more.
On view will be subversive pots, brilliantly intricate prints, elaborate sculptures, and huge, captivating tapestries – all imbued with Perry’s sharp wit and social commentary. Working with traditional mediums, Perry addresses the controversial issues of our times.
We’ll reveal more information about the exhibition next spring. Running at the Royal Scottish Academy from 22 July until 12 November 2023, discover how and why he has become such a cultural icon.
Alberta Whittle: create dangerouslyis an immersive exhibition which invites you to slow down and pause.
At the heart of Alberta’s solo show is her generous spirit which promotes compassion and collective care as means of resisting racism and anti-Blackness. Alberta addresses the brutality and harm caused by colonialism, the Transatlantic trade in enslaved people, and the ongoing climate crisis.
Through richly symbolic artworks, she pulls apart the belief that ’racism and police brutality is [just] an English/Scottish problem or an American problem’. Instead, she underlines Scotland’s complicity in the structures of white supremacy.
Often deeply personal, weaving stories of family and belonging, Alberta ultimately offers a message of hope, asking us to imagine a world outside of these damaging systems and ways of thinking.
This will be the largest showing of Alberta’s works to date, with sculptures, digital collages, watercolours and new paintings made especially for the show, taking over the ground floor of Modern One.
Alongside never-before-seen artworks, the free exhibition offers you the opportunity to see Alberta’s extraordinary tapestry, Entanglement is more than blood, and film, Lagareh – The Last Born – which was on display at the Venice Biennale 2022, commissioned by Scotland+Venice.
Alberta Whittle: create dangerously, running from 1 April 2023 until 7 January 2024, will explore the ambition and breadth of the Barbadian-Scottish artist’s career to date. Alberta Whittle: create dangerously is kindly supported by Baillie Gifford, National Galleries of Scotland Foundation and The Alberta Whittle Exhibition Supporters’ Circle.
A first for us and for Scotland: a solo exhibition coming winter 2023/24 of the South Korean-born, London-based Do Ho Suh.
One of the world’s leading contemporary artists, Do Ho Suh will explore the foundational role that drawing and paper play in Suh’s artistic practice, focusing on his collaborative methods, experimental techniques, and innovative use of materials.
The free exhibition, taking over an entire level of Modern One, will present the artist’s complex and compelling thread drawings – in which cotton thread is embedded on handmade paper – alongside architectural rubbings, paper sculptures, cyanotypes, printmaking and watercolours.
There will also be a major new installation of Suh’s famed ‘hubs’, life-size sculptures that recreate physical spaces in colourful, translucent fabric. You can step right inside and immerse yourselves in this innovative reimagining of places meaningful to the artist and his life.
Do Ho Suh is kindly supported by National Galleries of Scotland Foundation, and our associated engagement and audience development initiatives are kindly supported by Baillie Gifford.
Printmaking, one of the most accessible art forms, takes centre stage next Winter. Come and experience the print pioneers who have made their mark in the last five hundred years in Rembrandt to Rego: The Printmaker’s Art.
You will go on a journey from Albrecht Dürer in the fifteenth century right through to contemporary artists including Tracey Emin and Chris Ofili. On the way you will discover how artists have pushed the boundaries in both subject and technique through screen printing, etching, engraving and more.
The show includes many brilliant artists who are now famous for their printmaking; see prints by Andy Warhol, William Blake, Rembrandt, Francisco de Goya, Elizabeth Blackadder, Paula Rego, Bridget Riley, Pablo Picasso and more.
Appreciate the techniques, tools and materials up close – you may even be inspired to give it a go. Rembrandt to Rego: The Printmaker’s Art runs from 2 December until 25 February 2024.
Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize 2022 marks a welcome return to the Scottish National Portrait Gallery.
Capturing and sharing emotional, dramatic, or everyday moments in life is the magic of this exhibition.A truly global affair, the prize celebrates the very best in contemporary photography on an international scale.
Sharing work by celebrated professionals and enthusiastic amateurs alike, the images selected for the exhibition share in their ability to move onlookers.
This year’s prize-winning photographs examine a range of subjects – from queerness, transness and the concept of chosen family, socially distanced glimpses into daily lockdown life, to identity and life in former Soviet states.
See several famous faces up close, including footballer and activist Marcus Rashford and Stranger Things star Finn Wolfhard. The variety of themes explored throughout the exhibition is matched by the high-quality, contemporary portraiture that reflects the shifting world of today. This free exhibition runs from 17 June until 10 September 2023.
Also at the Scottish National Portrait Gallery,Making Space: Photographs of Architecture will explore how architecture impacts our lives.
As a record of human life past, present, and future, architecture and people are intrinsically linked. A poorly built environment exacerbates inequality, but architecture has the power to address social issues including homelessness, poverty, and displacement.
This fascinating exhibition will also consider how the built environment has a significant role to play in creating a more sustainable future. On display will be a diverse range of photographic styles, formats and processes dating from the 1840s to the present day.
Follow the line from Hill & Adamson’s early experiments on Edinburgh’s Calton Hill through to spectacular contemporary photographs by Andreas Gursky and Chris Leslie which capture the breath-taking scale of modern buildings. Entry to this exhibition is free and will take place from 7 October 2023 until 3 March 2024.
Your Art World,from summer 2023 to spring 2024, will help young people across Scotland to discover a whole new world of creative possibilities.
This inclusive and interactive exhibition is free to see and includes work generated over the past year from a nation-wide call out to those aged between 3-18 years old.
Your Art World’s goal is to inspire and empower young people to think and act creatively but there’s also the added bonus of having their artwork showcased. All submissions will be displayed both online and at the Scottish National Gallery.
Your Art World is generously supported by players of People’s Postcode Lottery.
The final programme highlight is the return of a keenly-awaited tradition: the opening of Turner in January, an exhibition of mesmerising watercolours to help us through the dark days of winter.
Scotland’s famous collection of J.M.W. Turner watercolours was left to the nation by the great art collector Henry Vaughan in 1900.
Since then, following Vaughan’s strict guidelines, they have only ever been displayed during the month of January, when natural light levels are at their lowest. Because of this, these watercolours still possess a freshness and an intensity of colour, almost 200 years since they were originally created.
Presented at the Royal Scottish Academy, Turner in January will open on New Year’s Day 2023 and be open throughout the month of January. Turner in January is generously supported by players of People’s Postcode Lottery.
Sir John Leighton, Director General of the National Galleries of Scotland said: “There is so much to look forward to across our Galleries next year.
“From connecting with Grayson Perry’s craftsmanship up close to slowing down with Alberta Whittle to experience compassion and care, there is something for everyone to discover. Everyone is invited to our Galleries to learn, find a moment of calm, or feel inspired.”
Completing the exhibition programme are free displays currently at the Scottish National Gallery and Modern One respectively: Conserving Scotland’s Art until 16 April, which shines a light on how we preserve art for future generations to enjoy; Conversations with the Collection, offering a fresh way of presenting modern and contemporary art; and until 12 February, New Arrivals: From Salvador Dalí to Jenny Saville, a fascinating showcase of our latest modern and contemporary acquisitions.
Exhibitions & Displays National Museum of Scotland Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Open 10:00–17:00 daily
LAST CHANCE Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life Until 30 Oct 2022
Exhibition Gallery 1, Level 3 Ticketed, £0-£10 Explore the history of anatomical study, from artistic explorations by Leonardo da Vinci to the Burke and Hare murders. This exhibition looks at the social and medical history surrounding the practice of dissection. It will trace the relationship between anatomy, its teaching and cultural context and the bodies that were dissected. Looking at Edinburgh’s role as an international centre for medical study, the exhibition will offer insight into the links between science and crime in the early 19th century.
Supported by Baillie Gifford Investment Managers. .
OPENING SOON Bernat Klein: Design in Colour 5 Nov 2022 – 23 Apr 2023
Exhibition Gallery 2, Level 3 Free entry Marking the centenary of his birth, Bernat Klein: Design in Colour will celebrate the work of the influential émigré textile designer. Visitors will be able to explore Klein’s creative process and varied career, from providing couture fabrics for fashion designers to his influence on modernist architecture and interior design in the UK and Scandinavia.
Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder 9 Dec 2022 – 1 May 2023
Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder features eight zones filled with immersive, hands-on experiences.
Travel through the Time Vortex Corridor, discover Sonic Screwdrivers, teleportation technology and much more in a TARDIS Tech room, and get up close with some of the series’ weird and wonderful creatures in the Monster Vault.
Join us for the Scottish premiere of this ground-breaking exhibition. It’s bigger on the inside!
Inspiring Walter Scott Until 8 Jan 2023 Exhibition Gallery 4, Level 1 Free entry Following the 250th anniversary of Sir Walter Scott’s birth, experience his novels through objects that inspired him. In this small exhibition we show how Scott drew upon real historical objects for inspiration, placing objects alongside Scott’s words, and the stories in which they feature. While you view these fascinating objects, you can listen to an actor reading extracts from these tales.
In association with Walter Scott 250: Celebrating 250 Years of Scotland’s Greatest Storyteller and supporting Year of Stories 2022.
Japanese Contemporary Design Until 5 Mar 2023 Exhibition Gallery 3, Level 1 Free entry
From striking statement jewellery to prints and porcelain vases, this new free display considers how Japanese contemporary makers have combined innovative and traditional art, craft and design elements over the past five decades.
The star object is Hitomi Hosono’s A Large Pine Tree Pool, a sculptural porcelain bowl with complex hand-carving made and acquired in 2019.
Further highlights include Junko Mori’s intricate New Pinecone Silver Organism, and colourful body adornments by jeweller Suō Emiko’s adapted from metalworking and engraving techniques traditionally used in the making of Japanese sword fittings.
National Museum of Scotland Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Open 10:00–17:00 daily
Relaxed Morning 6 Nov 2022 10:00 – 12:00 (quiet space open until 12:30)
Join us for our monthly Relaxed Morning for anyone who would appreciate a calmer visit to the museum.
This session is primarily for, but not limited to, families with autistic children; autistic young people and adults; adults living with dementia; adults and children with mental health problems; and any other visitors with sensory needs or who may prefer a more relaxed experience, plus their families, friends and carers.
Magic Carpet Minis Until 14 Dec 2022 Various times and dates £15 per child for block of 3
Magic Carpet Minis introduces you and your little one to some of the wonderful galleries, objects and themes in the museum in a fun and gentle way.
Taking place in different spaces around the museum, you will explore subjects such as the Natural World, Space, World Cultures and Scottish History through songs, stories, rhymes, actions, objects and sensory play.
Friday Friend Until 31 Dec 2022 14:00-16:00, selected Friday afternoons Free, pre-booking required
Our Friday Friends programme offers a welcoming space for visually impaired and D/deaf children and their families. The groups meet monthly and explore the themes of the museum through objects, music, art and activities.
MEMBERS ONLY In Conversation with the Director: Earth in Space 1 Dec 2022 18:00 –19:00 Auditorium (enter via Lothian Street) Free for Members, booking required
Join Director Dr Chris Breward, Senior Curator of Science Dr Tacye Philipson, and Senior Curator of Mineralogy Peter Davidson, as we discover how we’ve explored our place in the universe.
NEW Spotlight On: Bernat Klein 8 Dec 2022 14:00 – 15:00 Auditorium, Level 1 Age 14 + Free, booking required Inspired by our exhibition, Bernat Klein: Design in Colour, curator Lisa Mason discusses Bernat Klein’s legacy and how his design philosophy can influence personal style, colour psychology and wellbeing today.
National Museum of Rural Life Philipshill Road, East Kilbride, G76 9HR Open 10:00–17:00 daily
Bugs and Beasties Trail Until 28 Nov 2022 10:00 – 17:00 Free with museum admission and Annual Pass Pick up our new Bugs and Beasties Trail inside the museum, then see if you can spot the six eco-friendly cardboard bugs on your way up to the farm. You will discover fun facts about the bugs, but keep your eyes peeled for the slug, snail, slater, spider, beetle and worm!
National Museum of Flight East Fortune Airfield, East Lothian, EH39 5LF Open daily 10:00 – 16:00
LAST CHANCE Operation Sabotage 29 & 30 Oct 2022 Age 14+ event Ticketed
The year is 1942 and you are stationed at the RAF base at East Fortune.
There has been an act of sabotage and one of the aircraft is unknowingly carrying live ordnance with instructions to bomb the town. Solve a series of fiendish puzzles to call off the flight and save North Berwick!
Operation Sabotage is an escape room experience for 4-8 people that lasts up to an hour. Working together as a team, you must race against the clock in two Second World War-themed rooms to decipher the identity of the saboteur before it’s too late.
Behind the Scenes Tours Until 26 Oct 2022 11:00–12:00 & 14:00–15:00 Object Store Free with museum admission Booking required
National Museums Scotland has one of the most comprehensive collections of aircraft engines anywhere in the world, some of which are in the Object Store at the National Museum of Flight, not normally open to the public.
Join Aviation Curator Ian Brown for one of our regular guided tours of the museum’s Object Store. Explore some of the collections not normally on public view and discover the fascinating stories behind them.
For booking, opening times and location details, contact National Museums Scotland on 0300 123 6789
A selection of exhibition and event images are available to download here. For additional information and images visit media.nms.ac.uk or contact media@nms.ac.uk.
National Museum of Scotland Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Open 10:00–17:00 daily
Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life Until 30 Oct 2022 Exhibition Gallery 1, Level 3 Ticketed, £0-£10
Explore the history of anatomical study, from artistic explorations by Leonardo da Vinci to the Burke and Hare murders.
This exhibition looks at the social and medical history surrounding the practice of dissection. It will trace the relationship between anatomy, its teaching and cultural context and the bodies that were dissected.
Looking at Edinburgh’s role as an international centre for medical study, the exhibition will offer insight into the links between science and crime in the early 19th century.
Bernat Klein: Design in Colour 5 Nov 2022 – 23 Apr 2023 Exhibition Gallery 2, Level 3 Free entry
Marking the centenary of his birth, Bernat Klein: Design in Colour will celebrate the work of the influential émigré textile designer. Visitors will be able to explore Klein’s creative process and varied career, from providing couture fabrics for fashion designers to his influence on modernist architecture and interior design in the UK and Scandinavia
NEW Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder Tickets on sale soon 9 Dec 2022 – 1 May 2023
Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder features eight zones filled with immersive, hands-on experiences. Travel through the Time Vortex Corridor, discover Sonic Screwdrivers, teleportation technology and much more in a TARDIS Tech room, and get up close with some of the series’ weird and wonderful creatures in the Monster Vault.
Join us for the Scottish premiere of this ground-breaking exhibition. It’s bigger on the inside!
Inspiring Walter Scott Until 8 Jan 2023 Exhibition Gallery 4, Level 1 Free entry
Following the 250th anniversary of Sir Walter Scott’s birth, experience his novels through objects that inspired him.
In this small exhibition we show how Scott drew upon real historical objects for inspiration, placing objects alongside Scott’s words, and the stories in which they feature. While you view these fascinating objects, you can listen to an actor reading extracts from these tales.
In association with Walter Scott 250: Celebrating 250 Years of Scotland’s Greatest Storyteller and supporting Year of Stories 2022.
Japanese Contemporary Design Until 5 Mar 2023 Exhibition Gallery 3, Level 1 Free entry
From striking statement jewellery to prints and porcelain vases, this new free display considers how Japanese contemporary makers have combined innovative and traditional art, craft and design elements over the past five decades.
The star object is Hitomi Hosono’s A Large Pine Tree Pool, a sculptural porcelain bowl with complex hand-carving made and acquired in 2019.
Further highlights include Junko Mori’s intricate New Pinecone Silver Organism, and colourful body adornments by jeweller Suō Emiko’s adapted from metalworking and engraving techniques traditionally used in the making of Japanese sword fittings.
National Museum of Scotland Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Open 10:00–17:00 daily
Burke, Hare and The University of Edinburgh’s Anatomy School 1 Oct 2022 10:30 – 16:30 Seminar Room, Learning Centre, Level 4 £ 49 (concessions available)
This one-day course with The University of Edinburgh is designed to complement the National Museum of Scotland’s major new exhibition Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life.
Examine the study of anatomy within the context of 19th century Edinburgh, including the University’s role as an international centre for medical teaching. Uncover the circumstances that gave rise to the Burke and Hare murders in 1828, and consider the actions of William Burke, William and Margaret Hare, and anatomist Dr Robert Knox.
NEW The Beauty of Maths: Tiling, Geometry and Art 2 Oct 2022 10:00-16:30 Learning Centre, Level 2 Free
Part of Maths Week Scotland and hosted by Open University, view art pieces created by artists, mathematicians and engineers before getting hands on to create your own. Explore the exciting work of regular and aperiodic tilings through beautiful artwork and hands on 2D and 3D puzzles.
NEW How do you take a photo of a dinosaur? 15 Oct – 16 Oct 2022 Various times Seminar Room, Learning Centre Level 4 Free Booking required
Join us to experience the story of a day told through poetry and puppetry, light and shadow, moving sound and musical instruments. From dawn through to dusk, we move about the space, following unusual sounds into unexpected atmospheres. Join us on a journey to create a very special kind of photograph made up of sensory snapshots.
NEW Museum Mid Term Mash-up 17 Oct – 21 Oct 2022 Daily, 10:30 – 15:00 Grand Gallery Level 1 Free, drop-in
Join us for a daily mix of favourite family activities inspired by our amazing collections.
This half term we’re bringing back some of our most popular crafts, trails and activities for families. Design a morse code bracelet, explore ancient Egyptian objects, make a woolly mammoth mask and more! There’s a different theme each day so pop in and see what fun you discover.
Magic Carpet Minis Until 14 Dec 2022 Various times and dates £15 per child for block of 3
Magic Carpet Minis introduces you and your little one to some of the wonderful galleries, objects and themes in the museum in a fun and gentle way. Taking place in different spaces around the museum, you will explore subjects such as the Natural World, Space, World Cultures and Scottish History through songs, stories, rhymes, actions, objects and sensory play.
Friday Friend Until 31 Dec 2022 14:00-16:00, selected Friday afternoons Free, pre-booking required
Our Friday Friends programme offers a welcoming space for visually impaired and D/deaf children and their families. The groups meet monthly and explore the themes of the museum through objects, music, art and activities.
National Museum of Rural Life Philipshill Road, East Kilbride, G76 9HR Open 10:00–17:00 daily
Tractor Tots Until 11 Nov 2022 10:15 – 10:55 Ticketed
Running in blocks of three Friday morning sessions, Tractor Tots offers a fun, focused experience for our younger visitors, introducing them to the museum and farm, and bringing it to life through interactive creative play. Each session will take place in a different location at the museum and working farm, and will feature handling objects from our learning boxes, singing, storytelling, rhymes, actions and sensory play to learn all about life in the countryside.
NEW Adult Workshop: Mushroom Alchemy 8 Oct 2022 11:00 – 15:00 (with lunch break) Learning Centre Advance booking required
Join Rhyze Mushrooms for this beginner’s mushroom cultivation workshop. Learn how to grow oyster mushrooms from household waste, and come away with all the materials you need to get started at home.
LAST CHANCE Operation Sabotage 29 & 30 Oct 2022 Age 14+ event Ticketed
The year is 1942 and you are stationed at the RAF base at East Fortune. There has been an act of sabotage and one of the aircraft is unknowingly carrying live ordnance with instructions to bomb the town.
Solve a series of fiendish puzzles to call off the flight and save North Berwick! Operation Sabotage is an escape room experience for 4-8 people that lasts up to an hour. Working together as a team, you must race against the clock in two Second World War-themed rooms to decipher the identity of the saboteur before it’s too late.
Behind the Scenes Tours Until 26 Oct 2022 11:00–12:00 & 14:00–15:00 Object Store Free with museum admission Booking required
National Museums Scotland has one of the most comprehensive collections of aircraft engines anywhere in the world, some of which are in the Object Store at the National Museum of Flight, not normally open to the public.
Join Aviation Curator Ian Brown for one of our regular guided tours of the museum’s Object Store. Explore some of the collections not normally on public view and discover the fascinating stories behind them.
Members’ Spotlight: From Table to Melting Pot – Roman Silver from Traprain Law
4 Oct 2022 18:30 -19:30 Free, booking required
In 1919, archaeologists excavating Traprain Law in East Lothian discovered a stunning hoard of buried treasure made up of over 300 fragments of Roman silver which had been cut into bullion, and were destined for melting down and recycling into new objects.
Join us and Dr Fraser Hunter, Principal Curator of Prehistoric and Roman Archaeology, as we explore more about this remarkable find and discover how recent research into the treasure has caused us to rethink how the Roman world engaged with groups beyond its frontiers, and the effects this had in the centuries that followed.
Ancient African Queens: New Perspectives on Black History
27 Oct 2022 19:30 – 20:30 Free, with optional donation
In the 19th and 20th centuries European and American Egyptologists appropriated ancient Egypt into an idea of ‘Western civilisation’ and set it apart from other African cultures. This historical colonial bias against Africa has ramifications on how we interpret ancient Egyptian and Sudanese collections today.
Join our panel as they discuss how reassessing 19th and 20th century colonial attitudes can bring new perspectives to fascinating aspects of ancient Egyptian culture and its place in African history.
For booking, opening times and location details, contact National Museums Scotland on 0300 123 6789
A selection of exhibition and event images are available to download here. For additional information and images visit media.nms.ac.uk or contact media@nms.ac.uk.
National Museum of Scotland Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Open 10:00–17:00 daily
E.Coli by Luke Jerram National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Until 31 Aug 2022 Grand Gallery Free entry
Part of the Edinburgh Art Festival programme, this 90ft long inflatable sculpture by Bristol-based Luke Jerram (above) will be suspended from the ceiling of the National Museum of Scotland’s Grand Gallery.
The E.coli is 5 million times bigger than the real bacteria. When standing next to it, does the bacteria alter our personal sense of scale? Does it look scary, beautiful, comical or alien? Will people be attracted or repelled by it?
The Typewriter Revolution Until 11 Sep 2022 Exhibition Gallery 2, Level 3 Free entry
The typewriter’s social and technological influence is revealed in this exhibition and looks at its role in society, arts, and popular culture. It traces the effect and evolution of typewriters across more than 100 years, from weighty early machines to modern style icons.
The impact of the typewriter has been much wider than simply speeding up the way we write. It helped revolutionise the world of work and change the lives of working women in particular.
Typewriters helped them launch their own businesses at a time when female employers were rare and became a vital weapon in the fight for the vote.
Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life Until 30 Oct 2022 Exhibition Gallery 1, Level 3 Ticketed, £0-£10
Explore the history of anatomical study, from artistic explorations by Leonardo da Vinci to the Burke and Hare murders.
This exhibition looks at the social and medical history surrounding the practice of dissection. It will trace the relationship between anatomy, its teaching and cultural context and the bodies that were dissected.
Looking at Edinburgh’s role as an international centre for medical study, the exhibition will offer insight into the links between science and crime in the early 19th century.
Bernat Klein: Design in Colour 5 Nov 2022 – 23 Apr 2023 Exhibition Gallery 2, Level 3 Free entry
Marking the centenary of his birth, Bernat Klein: Design in Colour will celebrate the work of the influential émigré textile designer. Visitors will be able to explore Klein’s creative process and varied career, from providing couture fabrics for fashion designers to his influence on modernist architecture and interior design in the UK and Scandinavia
Inspiring Walter Scott Until 8 Jan 2023 Exhibition Gallery 4, Level 1 Free entry
Following the 250th anniversary of Sir Walter Scott’s birth, experience his novels through objects that inspired him. In this small exhibition we show how Scott drew upon real historical objects for inspiration, placing objects alongside Scott’s words, and the stories in which they feature. While you view these fascinating objects, you can listen to an actor reading extracts from these tales.
In association with Walter Scott 250: Celebrating 250 Years of Scotland’s Greatest Storyteller and supporting Year of Stories 2022.
National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Until 5 Mar 2023 Exhibition Gallery 3, Level 1 Free entry
From striking statement jewellery to prints and porcelain vases, this new free display considers how Japanese contemporary makers have combined innovative and traditional art, craft and design elements over the past five decades.
The star object is Hitomi Hosono’s A Large Pine Tree Pool, a sculptural porcelain bowl with complex hand-carving made and acquired in 2019.
Further highlights include Junko Mori’s intricate New Pinecone Silver Organism, and colourful body adornments by jeweller Suō Emiko’s adapted from metalworking and engraving techniques traditionally used in the making of Japanese sword fittings.
National Museum of Scotland Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Open 10:00–17:00 daily
Gilded Balloon at the National Museum of Scotland National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Until 28 Aug 2022 Ticketed
Gilded Balloon are back: bringing Festival fun to the National Museum of Scotland throughout August! Bringing a colourful line-up: from science for kids to satire for grown-ups, from chat shows to live podcasts.
There’s an influencer, a ventriloquist, assorted Fringe favourites and of course a couple of Britain’s Got Talent winners.
Performers include Scottish treasures Fred MacAulay, Lynn Ferguson and Jack Docherty, alongside Paul Zerdin and assorted puppet pals, Lost Voice Guy, the one and only Chesney Hawkes and even Boris Johnson?! Plus, our own favourite – Comedy Night at the Museum where top comedians improvise a humorous look at our amazing collection.
Audio-Described Access Evening: Anatomy Special Exhibition Gallery 1 30 Aug 2022 17:30-19:00 £7.50 (free accompanying carer ticket available if needed)
Explore our fascinating Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life exhibition supported by an audio-described tour of key objects for those who are blind or visually impaired.
Join us after-hours for an audio-described tour of Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life led by artist Juliana Capes. Explore the history of anatomical study, from artistic explorations by Leonardo da Vinci to the Burke and Hare murders. The tour will last around 45 minutes with time to explore the exhibition independently afterwards. This event is particularly aimed at those who are blind or visually impaired.
Join our expert panel as they discuss the process of hoarding across time and cultures.
From assembling and burying, to curating and displaying, our panel will give diverse perspectives on this fascinating practice. Presentations will include the latest research on the Galloway Hoard, hoarding in the Viking Age and Scotland’s prehistoric hoards.
Relaxed Access Evening: Anatomy 13 Sept 2022 Special Exhibition Gallery 1 17:30 – 19:00 £7.50 (free accompanying carer ticket available if needed)
Join us for a relaxed after-hours visit to Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life for anyone who would prefer a calmer visit to the exhibition. During this opening of Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life, sounds will be lowered and light levels adjusted wherever possible to provide a more relaxed experience.
A quiet break-out space will also be available. A visual welcome guide will be provided in advance to help you prepare for your visit.
This session is primarily for, but not limited to, autistic young people and adults, adults living with dementia, adults with learning difficulties or mental health challenges or any other visitors with sensory needs or who may prefer a more relaxed experience, plus their families, friends and carers.
NEW Burke, Hare and The University of Edinburgh’s Anatomy School 15 Sep -1 Oct 2022 10:30 – 16:30 Seminar Room, Learning Centre, Level 4 £ 49 (concessions available)
This one-day course with The University of Edinburgh is designed to complement the National Museum of Scotland’s major new exhibition Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life.
Examine the study of anatomy within the context of 19th century Edinburgh, including the University’s role as an international centre for medical teaching. Uncover the circumstances that gave rise to the Burke and Hare murders in 1828, and consider the actions of William Burke, William and Margaret Hare, and anatomist Dr Robert Knox.
NEW Victorian Edinburgh 29 Sep – 8 Dec 2022 11:00 – 13:00 Seminar Room, Learning Centre Level 4 £180 for 10 sessions (concessions available)
National Museums Scotland are delighted to host a new term of University of Edinburgh Short Courses – a great way to explore our collections and their wider history with experts.
Victorian Edinburgh considers the complex challenges and changes wrought in the period 1837–1901 within Scotland’s capital city. It examines examples of the economic, social and political context in which ‘Edinburghers’ lived, and assesses their responses to the most important Scottish, British and international events.
National Museum of Rural Life Philipshill Road, East Kilbride, G76 9HR Open 10:00–17:00 daily
Bird Bingo Until 30 Sep 2022 10:00-17:00 A trail around the museum Free with museum admission and Annual Pass
Come and play Bird Bingo at the National Museum of Rural Life! Can you find all the birds hiding around the museum? Using the clues on our family trail sheet, see if you can spot different birds in our museum galleries and learn fun facts about them on your journey.
This family event is supported by players of People’s Postcode Lottery
Nature Track Packs National Museum of Rural Life, Philipshill Road, East Kilbride, G76 9HR Until 30 Sep 2022 10:00 – 17:00 Borrow from the ticket desk Free with museum admission and Annual Pass
Explore more at the National Museum of Rural Life this summer with our new Nature Track Packs. Each pack contains fun ideas and activities to encourage children to engage all their senses to explore the countryside on a walk up to the farm. Nature Track Packs are available to borrow on a first come, first served basis over the summer – just ask on arrival at our ticket desk, then return the pack to the desk once your Track Pack adventure is complete.
NEW Tractor Tots 30 Sep – 11 Nov 2022 10:15 – 10:55 Ticketed
Running in blocks of three Friday morning sessions, Tractor Tots offers a fun, focused experience for our younger visitors, introducing them to the museum and farm, and bringing it to life through interactive creative play.
Each session will take place in a different location at the museum and working farm, and will feature handling objects from our learning boxes, singing, storytelling, rhymes, actions and sensory play to learn all about life in the countryside.
National Museum of Flight East Fortune Airfield, East Lothian, EH39 5LF Open daily 10:00 – 16:00
Summer Satchels Until 23 Sep 2022 10:00 – 17:00 Free with museum admission Just ask at the desk in the Concorde Hangar.
See the National Museum of Flight in a different way this summer with our new family activity satchels. Each satchel contains all the equipment and simple instructions for five playful activities to help children explore the museum from a different perspective. The activities are designed to use outside on our spacious site.
NEW Operation Sabotage 29 & 30 Oct 2022 Age 14+ event Ticketed
The year is 1942 and you are stationed at the RAF base at East Fortune. There has been an act of sabotage and one of the aircraft is unknowingly carrying live ordnance with instructions to bomb the town. Solve a series of fiendish puzzles to call off the flight and save North Berwick!
Operation Sabotage is an escape room experience for 4-8 people that lasts up to an hour. Working as a team, you must race against the clock in two Second World War-themed rooms to decipher the identity of the saboteur before it’s too late.
Silent Teachers: The Story of Modern Body Donation 13 Sep 2022 19:30 – 20:30 Free, with optional donation
Inspired by our current exhibition, Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life, our expert panel will discuss the modern approach to anatomical study and body donation in this online event. In the 18th century, Edinburgh was Britain’s leading centre for medical teaching. As anatomists sought to understand the human body, the demand for bodies to dissect and study vastly outstripped legitimate supply.
As a result, grave robbing became common practice. Since then, legislation has ensured bodies used today are acquired, with proper consent, through donation. From their perspectives as exhibition curator, professor, medical student and living donor, our expert panel will discuss the modern approach to body donation and contrast the ethics, practices and beliefs of today with those from two centuries ago.
Members’ Spotlight: From Table to Melting Pot – Roman Silver from Traprain Law 4 Oct 2022 18:30 -19:30 Free, booking required
In 1919, archaeologists excavating Traprain Law in East Lothian discovered a stunning hoard of buried treasure made up of over 300 fragments of Roman silver which had been cut into bullion, and were destined for melting down and recycling into new objects.
Join us and Dr Fraser Hunter, Principal Curator of Prehistoric and Roman Archaeology, as we explore more about this remarkable find and discover how recent research into the treasure has caused us to rethink how the Roman world engaged with groups beyond its frontiers, and the effects this had in the centuries that followed.
NEW Ancient African Queens: New Perspectives on Black History 27 Oct 2022 19:30 – 20:30 Free, with optional donation
In the 19th and 20th centuries European and American Egyptologists appropriated ancient Egypt into an idea of ‘Western civilisation’ and set it apart from other African cultures. This historical colonial bias against Africa has ramifications on how we interpret ancient Egyptian and Sudanese collections today.
Join our panel as they discuss how reassessing 19th and 20th century colonial attitudes can bring new perspectives to fascinating aspects of ancient Egyptian culture and its place in African history.
Gilded Balloon at the National Museum of Scotland National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Until 28 Aug 2022 Ticketed
Gilded Balloon are back: bringing Festival fun to the National Museum of Scotland throughout August! Bringing a colourful line-up: from science for kids to satire for grown-ups, from chat shows to live podcasts.
There’s an influencer, a ventriloquist, assorted Fringe favourites and of course a couple of Britain’s Got Talent winners. Performers include Scottish treasures Fred MacAulay, Lynn Ferguson and Jack Docherty, alongside Paul Zerdin and assorted puppet pals, Lost Voice Guy, the one and only Chesney Hawkes and even Boris Johnson?!
Plus, our own favourite – Comedy Night at the Museum where top comedians improvise a humorous look at our amazing collection.
E.Coli by Luke Jerram National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Until 31 Aug 2022 Grand Gallery Free entry
Part of the Edinburgh Art Festival programme, this 90ft long inflatable sculpture by Bristol-based Luke Jerram will be suspended from the ceiling of the National Museum of Scotland’s Grand Gallery.
The E.coli is 5 million times bigger than the real bacteria. When standing next to it, does the bacteria alter our personal sense of scale? Does it look scary, beautiful, comical or alien? Will people be attracted or repelled by it?
Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Until 30 Oct 2022 Exhibition Gallery 1, Level 3 Ticketed, £0-£10
Explore the history of anatomical study, from artistic explorations by Leonardo da Vinci to the Burke and Hare murders. This exhibition looks at the social and medical history surrounding the practice of dissection.
It will trace the relationship between anatomy, its teaching and cultural context and the bodies that were dissected. Looking at Edinburgh’s role as an international centre for medical study, the exhibition will offer insight into the links between science and crime in the early 19th century.
Japanese Contemporary Design National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Until 5 Mar 2023 Exhibition Gallery 3, Level 1 Free entry
From striking statement jewellery to prints and porcelain vases, this new free display considers how Japanese contemporary makers have combined innovative and traditional art, craft and design elements over the past five decades.
The star object is Hitomi Hosono’s A Large Pine Tree Pool, a sculptural porcelain bowl with complex hand-carving made and acquired in 2019. Further highlights include Junko Mori’s intricate New Pinecone Silver Organism, and colourful body adornments by jeweller Suō Emiko’s adapted from metalworking and engraving techniques traditionally used in the making of Japanese sword fittings.
Bird Bingo National Museum of Rural Life, Philipshill Road, East Kilbride, G76 9HR Until 31 Aug 2022 10:00-17:00 A trail around the museum Free with museum admission and Annual Pass
Come and play Bird Bingo at the National Museum of Rural Life! Can you find all the birds hiding around the museum? Using the clues on our family trail sheet, see if you can spot different birds in our museum galleries and learn fun facts about them on your journey.
This family event is supported by players of People’s Postcode Lottery
Nature Track Packs National Museum of Rural Life, Philipshill Road, East Kilbride, G76 9HR Until 19 Aug 2022 10:00 – 17:00 Borrow from the ticket desk Free with museum admission and Annual Pass
Explore more at the National Museum of Rural Life this summer with our new Nature Track Packs. Each pack contains fun ideas and activities to encourage children to engage all their senses to explore the countryside on a walk up to the farm. Nature Track Packs are available to borrow on a first come, first served basis over the summer – just ask on arrival at our ticket desk, then return the pack to the desk once your Track Pack adventure is complete.
Summer Satchels National Museum of Flight, East Fortune Airfield, East Lothian, EH39 5LF Until 4 Sep 2022 10:00 – 17:00 Free with museum admission Just ask at the desk in the Concorde Hangar
See the National Museum of Flight in a different way this summer with our new family activity satchels. Each satchel contains all the equipment and simple instructions for five playful activities to help children explore the museum from a different perspective. The activities are designed to use outside on our spacious site.
Tractor Tots National Museum of Rural Life, Philipshill Road, East Kilbride, G76 9HR 30 Sep – 11 Nov 2022 10:15 – 10:55 Ticketed
Running in blocks of three Friday morning sessions, Tractor Tots offers a fun, focused experience for our younger visitors, introducing them to the museum and farm, and bringing it to life through interactive creative play. Each session will take place in a different location at the museum and working farm, and will feature handling objects from our learning boxes, singing, storytelling, rhymes, actions and sensory play to learn all about life in the countryside.
National Museum of Scotland Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Open 10:00–17:00 daily
The Typewriter Revolution Until 11 Sep 2022 Exhibition Gallery 2, Level 3 Free entry
The typewriter’s social and technological influence is revealed in this exhibition and looks at its role in society, arts, and popular culture. It traces the effect and evolution of typewriters across more than 100 years, from weighty early machines to modern style icons.
The impact of the typewriter has been much wider than simply speeding up the way we write. It helped revolutionise the world of work and change the lives of working women in particular. Typewriters helped them launch their own businesses at a time when female employers were rare and became a vital weapon in the fight for the vote.
Until 8 Jan 2023 Exhibition Gallery 4, Level 1 Free entry Following the 250th anniversary of Sir Walter Scott’s birth, experience his novels through objects that inspired him. In this small exhibition we show how Scott drew upon real historical objects for inspiration, placing objects alongside Scott’s words, and the stories in which they feature.
While you view these fascinating objects, you can listen to an actor reading extracts from these tales. In association with Walter Scott 250: Celebrating 250 Years of Scotland’s Greatest Storyteller and supporting Year of Stories 2022.
Bernat Klein: Design in Colour 5 Nov 2022 – 23 Apr 2023 Exhibition Gallery 2, Level 3 Free entry
Marking the centenary of his birth, Bernat Klein: Design in Colour will celebrate the work of the influential émigré textile designer. Visitors will be able to explore Klein’s creative process and varied career, from providing couture fabrics for fashion designers to his influence on modernist architecture and interior design in the UK and Scandinavia.
National Museum of Scotland Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF Open 10:00–17:00 daily
BSL Access Evening: Anatomy Special Exhibition Gallery 1 16 Aug 2022 17:30 – 19:00 Ticketed £7.50 (free accompanying carer ticket available if needed)
Explore our fascinating Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life exhibition supported by a Deaf-led BSL tour of key objects. As part of the Edinburgh Deaf Festival, join us for a D/deaf friendly after-hours event featuring a Deaf-led BSL tour of some of the key objects in Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life.
Explore the history of anatomical study, from artistic explorations by Leonardo da Vinci to the Burke and Hare murders. The tour will last around 30 minutes with time to view the exhibition independently afterwards. This event is particularly for BSL users but we also welcome other members of the D/deaf community and family and friends.
Museum Socials 19 Aug 2022 Third Friday of the month, 10:30–12:00 Free
Our Museum Socials events are created for anyone affected by Dementia and their relatives, friends and supporters. Museum Socials create a friendly environment where everyone is welcome and all contributions are valued. They are suitable for first-time visitors and for those who might not regularly come to the museum, as well as people who have always loved visiting.
Supported by players of People’s Postcode Lottery.
Audio-Described Access Evening: Anatomy Special Exhibition Gallery 1 30 Aug 2022 17:30-19:00 £7.50 (free accompanying carer ticket available if needed)
Explore our fascinating Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life exhibition supported by an audio-described tour of key objects for those who are blind or visually impaired. Join us after-hours for an audio-described tour of Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life led by artist Juliana Capes.
Explore the history of anatomical study, from artistic explorations by Leonardo da Vinci to the Burke and Hare murders. The tour will last around 45 minutes with time to explore the exhibition independently afterwards. This event is particularly aimed at those who are blind or visually impaired.
Join our expert panel as they discuss the process of hoarding across time and cultures. From assembling and burying, to curating and displaying, our panel will give diverse perspectives on this fascinating practice. The keynote address will be delivered by Professor Richard Bradley, Emeritus Professor of Archaeology at the University of Reading.
Relaxed Access Evening: Anatomy 13 Sept 2022 Special Exhibition Gallery 1 17:30 – 19:00 £7.50 (free accompanying carer ticket available if needed)
Join us for a relaxed after-hours visit to Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life for anyone who would prefer a calmer visit to the exhibition. During this opening of Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life, sounds will be lowered and light levels adjusted wherever possible to provide a more relaxed experience. A quiet break-out space will also be available.
A visual welcome guide will be provided in advance to help you prepare for your visit. This session is primarily for, but not limited to, autistic young people and adults, adults living with dementia, adults with learning difficulties or mental health challenges or any other visitors with sensory needs or who may prefer a more relaxed experience, plus their families, friends and carers.
Silent Teachers: The Story of Modern Body Donation 13 Sep 2022 19:30 – 20:30 Free, with optional donation Online event
Inspired by our current exhibition, Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life, our expert panel will discuss the modern approach to anatomical study and body donation in this online event.
In the 18th century, Edinburgh was Britain’s leading centre for medical teaching. As anatomists sought to understand the human body, the demand for bodies to dissect and study vastly outstripped legitimate supply.
As a result, grave robbing became common practice. Since then, legislation has ensured bodies used today are acquired, with proper consent, through donation.
From their perspectives as exhibition curator, professor, medical student and living donor, our expert panel will discuss the modern approach to body donation and contrast the ethics, practices and beliefs of today with those from two centuries ago.
National Museum of Flight East Fortune Airfield, East Lothian, EH39 5LF Open daily 10:00 – 16:00
Operation Sabotage Until 14 Aug (except 9 Aug) Age 14+ event Ticketed
The year is 1942 and you are stationed at the RAF base at East Fortune. There has been an act of sabotage and one of the aircraft is unknowingly carrying live ordnance with instructions to bomb the town. Solve a series of fiendish puzzles to call off the flight and save North Berwick!
Operation Sabotage is an escape room experience for 4-8 people that lasts up to an hour. Working together as a team, you must race against the clock in two Second World War-themed rooms to decipher the identity of the saboteur before it’s too late.
Behind the Scenes Tours Until 26 Oct 2022 11:00–12:00 & 14:00–15:00 Object Store Free with museum admission Booking required
Find out about our collection of aero-engines and propellers on a curator-led tour of our Object Store. Join Aviation Curator Ian Brown for one of our regular guided tours of the museum’s Object Store. Explore some of the collections not normally on public view and discover the fascinating stories behind them.
Back for its fifth year, with a new Chief of Engagement and a new Creative Director, Army @ The Fringe is poised to provoke public discussion through plays, art, poetry, and talks programmed to act as a foil to the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, showing the Army in a different, unexpected light.
As the Fringe emerges from Covid, Army @ The Fringe is playing its part in recovery. None of its visiting artists pay rent to perform in the venue, which keeps ticket prices affordable and means over a quarter of shows are free or pay what you want.
For the first time Army @ The Fringe has commissioned research and development works and play readings. Some are being performed by graduands from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland which sees their Fringe Debuts fully funded.
Lt. Col Hugo Clark MBE, who is responsible for Military Engagement across the whole of Scotland, is no stranger to Edinburgh and its festivals, having Commanded Edinburgh Garrison and the Military aspects of the Royal Edinburgh Tattoo for three years.
Lt. Col Clark said: “We’re trialing lots of initiatives to reach new audiences. For instance, we’re working with the University of Dundee to offer free tickets to humanities students from Scottish Secondary Schools up to 90 minutes from Edinburgh for productions and post show talks about history and international relations.
“We’re also collaborating with Scotland’s new Centre for Military Research, Education and Public Engagement at Edinburgh Napier University on a programme of post-show talks about veterans, spouses and mental health.
“In a year where the Fringe is on its way to recovery by having 80% of its 2019 programme, I’m pleased to support this by increasing our own capacity by 60% from last year through innovative programming and deploying a team who really have pulled out the stops to support this logistically.”
Leading the Creative Direction of Army at the Fringe is veteran producer, writer and artist Harry Ross who brings over two decades of experience to the artistic programme. He is also a serving Reservist, part of a new direction for Army @ The Fringe which will see soldiers start to play a more interactive role in creating work.
Interestingly, the venue in Hepburn House, an Army Reserve Centre on East Claremont Street, a fifteen-minute walk from Fringe Central, has some pedigree for artistic soldiers – two of Scotland’s well known modernist painters, Francis Caddell RSA and William Geissler enlisted into the Royal Scots at Hepburn House in the 20th Century.
Harry Ross said: “I rejoined the Army reserve as part of Artistic Research I am undertaking into the Hagiography of the Highland Warrior at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, University of Dundee.
“As part of the University’s ethical approval process, I had to explain what I was doing to my military superiors who have been exceptionally supportive of my research. When I was asked by HQ Army in Scotland to help Army @ The Fringe, I felt it was a way of returning that support.
“I’m no stranger to life in the British Army, my father commissioned half a century ago and retired in 2006. Today’s army is very different to the one I grew up next to, and I hope that my programme reflects the values of a contemporary, diverse, and moral organization that the British Army seeks to become, with plays that accentuate how the moral component is key to an army that needs its soldiers to be reflective on choices made during service and respectful of all communities.”
The arts have always been interwoven with the British Army and cultural influences are reflected in works of art and poetry that soldier artists have created on their return from operations overseas, and music that has been composed during and after conflict.
As part of Army @ The Fringe’s strategy to present more work outside central Edinburgh, the art of conflict will be in the spotlight at a special concert of chamber music composed by 20th and 21st century composers at war, and Edinburgh Napier University Music Students that will be presented by members of the Band of the Royal Regiment of Scotland at the War Poets Collection, Edinburgh Napier University, Craiglockhart Campus on 28th August.
Soldiers creating works of art and music is one element of how the army interacts with the arts, another important interaction is that all soldiers must understand how to protect cultural property. This is not just the physical works of art or architecture but also the intangible heritage of oral history, performing arts, the values, traditions, and identities of communities.
“The Baltic Countries have a UNESCO Protected Intangible Heritage in their music and dance festivals. The one in Estonia is known as Laupupidu”, said Lieutenant Colonel Wendy Faux, the lead for arts in the Army for the last three years.
“The Kings Royal Hussars Battlegroup formed a choir whilst deployed in Tapa. They had a Russian Musical Director and performed with local choirs from the region around Tapa – in old Estonian.
“For me this was the coming together of communities through a mutual respect of music. It was interesting that many in the crowd could not believe the soldiers were singing in an old Estonian dialect that many of them would not attempt.”
It was this event along with the links Ross has nurtured over the years that has inspired a programme that brings together different voices through Intangible Heritage, with a highlight of the Poetry and Plays of young playwrights from the Baltic nations and modern writers from the Visegrád Group.
Continuing with the cultural heritage theme there are workshops and readings that investigate Scotland’s own linguistic diveristy, with an event exploring exploring why so many British Army units celebrate the Scots poet Robert Burns with senior non-commissioned officers form the Royal Regiment of Scotland, and a workshop on Gaelic war poetry produced in collaboration with the Scottish Poetry Library and led by Outlander’s very own Bard – Gillebrìde MacMillan.
Army @ The Fringe is also presenting two photographic exhibitions: – One is a remount of Alex Boyd’s acclaimed photographic exhibition at Stills Gallery – Tir An Airm (Land of the Army), that explores the largely unseen places in Scotland that are used to train our armed forces and those of our NATO allies.
The other is a retrospective of the work of prizewinning military photographer Bdr. Murray Kerr – To Spur a Running Horse, a collection of Portraits of veterans at rest and Officer Cadets in the field.
This year presents an opportunity for audiences and creatives to immerse themselves in a finely-honed programme of premières that bring the questions that really matter to light – what is our Army for; how do we train it; what are our values; how do we treat our veterans; who do we serve with and why; and what is our place in contemporary Scotland, the UK, and the wider world?
Edinburgh Art Festival (EAF) is the platform for the visual arts at the heart of Edinburgh’s August Festivals, which celebrate their 75th anniversary season this year
Many exhibitions and events are free to attend
Taking place across the city, and on the Union Canal from the Lochrin Basin to Wester Hailes
Commissions are inspired by the theme of ‘The Wave of Translation’, marking the 200th anniversary of the Union Canal
New commissions from Jeanne van Heeswijk, Nadia Myre and Pester and Rossi
Associate Artist Emmie McLuskey programmes new work by Hannan Jones, Janice Parker, Maeve Redmond and Amanda Thomson
Four early career visual artists based in Scotland will take part in Platform: 2022 – Saoirse Amira Anis, Emelia Kerr Beale, Lynsey MacKenzie, Jonny Walker
Partner led highlights include: retrospectives of work by Barbara Hepworth and Alan Davie, a rare Scottish showing of work by Ishiuchi Miyako and new work by Cooking Sections and Sakiya, Tracey Emin, Daniel Silver, Ashanti Harris, Kirsten Coelho, Studio Lenca, Ruth Ewan, and Celine Condorelli
Over 100 artists in 35 exhibitions.
Edinburgh Art Festival has announces the programme for its 18th edition – including three major commissions, the Associate Artist programme, Platform: 2022, the festival’s annual showcase of early career visual artists, and thirty-five exhibitions across its partner galleries.
A city-wide celebration of the very best in visual art, the festival brings together the capital’s leading galleries, museums and established spaces. From photography documenting Frida Kahlo’s wardrobe to carnival-inspired performance art, the programme features international artists alongside exciting new voices from Scotland, the rest of the UK and beyond.
The festival’s Commissions programme including their Associate Artist programme supports renowned artists to create ambitious new work. Marking the 200th anniversary of the Union Canal, the programme takes inspiration from ‘The Wave of Translation’ – a scientific phenomenon discovered in Edinburgh.
In 1834, engineer John Scott Russell watched as a horse-drawn canal boat came to a stop at Hermiston on the Union Canal. This abrupt stop created a single wave which continued along the waterway holding its shape and speed. Russell’s recording and research of this phenomenon influenced the development of modern fibre optic technology. He described the wave as his ‘first chance encounter with that singular and beautiful phenomenon which I have called the Wave of Translation’.
The programmes unfold along the Union Canal, from the Lochrin Basin to Wester Hailes. In collaboration with local residents and WHALE Arts, Edinburgh Art Festival has been supporting new opportunities for art creation and learning since 2019.
For the festival, we present a major commission with a group of residents from Wester Hailes and local surrounding areas. The Community Wellbeing Collective present Watch this Space – a space for all to develop together and to experience what community wellbeing is and could be.
Throughout the festival the space will host activities and gatherings led by C.W.C. members, alongside weekend anchor events by invited guests expanding upon the context of community wellbeing, discussing its wider politics in relation to: democratising social care, healing through creativity, who wellbeing is for in an unequal world and collectively imagining the future of community.
Anchor events by Care and Support Workers ORGANISE!, Grass Roots Remedies, Jess Haygarth, The Spit it Out Project, and more.
The activity will take place in Westside Plaza and online at watchthisspace.online (live from 28 July), including short films capturing the essence of the project presented at the French Institute for Scotland and online. Follow @communitywellbeingcollective on Instagram for more.
Jeanne van Heeswijk – a renowned a visual artist who initiated the project – will also present this year’s Keynote Lecture – in partnership with the National Galleries of Scotland and British Council Scotland – as a highlight of the festival’s opening weekend.
The commission is supported by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
Finding Buoyancy is produced through collaboration with groups and individuals in Wester Hailes, alongside Glasgow based artists Pester and Rossi. Exploring ways that we can connect to the natural environment to help us stay buoyant in uncertain times, the project began with a guided audio journey called Finding Buoyancy –Sound Meditations(2021) inviting group members from WHALE Arts to creatively share responses to the canal.
For the festival, three elements anchor the commission – a set of publicly sited sails at Bridge 8 Hub and Paddle Café illustrating the voices and ideas of those living, working and playing on the canal; a community raft (Float For The Future ) made collaboratively with artist Sarah Kenchington; and a canal-based performance produced with local people in collaboration with Rhubaba Choir.
Co-commissioned by Edinburgh Art Festival and Edinburgh Printmakers, Montreal-based First Nations artist Nadia Myre will present Tell Me of Your Boats and Your Waters – Where Do They Come From, Where Do They Go? .
Across print, performance and sound, Myre explores reference points spanning Scotland and Canada, migratory routes starting on the canal, indigenous storytelling, archival research methods, pattern, prose and song lyrics. The work, which will be sited alongside the canal and in Gallery 2 at Edinburgh Printmakers, brings to the fore the decolonial impulse inherent in the artist’s practice.
This year’s Associate Artist, Emmie McLuskey, will lead a programme of artists to respond to the rich site of the Union Canal between Lochrin Basin and Wester Hailes, in a series of commissions that explore environment, translation and gentrification. The Glasgow-based artist, producer and writer has developed a programme of newly commissioned work which spans performance, sound, graphic design and dance. The invited artists aim to raise questions around history, land, water, trade, capitalism and redundant technology.
Each of the commissioned artists centres people and place within a deep desire to work responsively to site. Hannan Jones explores language, rhythm and origin in response to cultural and social migration through sound, installation, film and performance. Janice Parker’s work in choreography and dance is collaborative with people, place and context. Parker is known for her socially engaged practice across various art forms and media.
Amanda Thomson’s interdisciplinary work often concerns notions of home, movement, migration, landscapes, the natural world and how places come to be made. Designer Maeve Redmond’s research-led practice begins in the archive and attempts to unpack how the wider context of site informs how we aesthetically experience a place.
A print and radio project entitled Background Noise will accompany this series, featuring local and international contributions.
The Associate Artist programme will take place along the Union Canal and online, with further details to be announced.
At the French Institute for Scotland – the festival’s headquarters on the Royal Mile – Platform: 2022 will showcase another exciting cohort of emerging visual artists working in Scotland. This year, the annual showcase has been selected by artist Lucy Skaer researcher and curator Seán Elder, alongside Director of Dundee Contemporary Arts, Beth Bate.
In Saoirse Amira Anis’ (graduated Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, 2018) video and textile installation, she taps into her dual heritage by using materials and plants from Moroccan and Scottish cuisines to explore rituals of sharing, and the generosity of love provided by the hands.
Emelia Kerr Beale (Edinburgh College of Art, 2019) will take the speculative history of The Major Oak Tree as their starting point, as a metaphor for the ways in which disabled people are denied rights to speak as experts about their conditions.
Engaging with the materiality and physicality of paintings as objects, Lynsey MacKenzie (Glasgow School of Art, 2019) explores ideas of time, repetition, and memory, through shifting planes of colour, gesture, and scale. Jonny Walker (Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, 2017) considers impermanence and the body through the making of several lambs, placed across a large metal, patchwork blanket in varying states of erosion and collapse.
Platform: 2022 runs at the French Institute for Scotland from 28 July to 28 August.
Closing the festival, sculptor and contemporary artist Hew Locke will deliver the Endnote Lecture.
Locke’s Duveen Hall commission for Tate Britain, The Procession, opened in March this year, and in September 2022 his work Gilt will be unveiled as the Façade Commission for The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
He will be in conversation with Dr Maryam Ohadi-Hamadani, Department of Art History, University of Edinburgh at St Cecilia’s Hall. The Endnote Lecture is presented in partnership with British Council Scotland.
Our Commissions programme and Platform: 2022 are made possible thanks to the generous support of the Scottish Government’s Festivals EXPO Fund; EventScotland; and the PLACE Programme, a partnership between the Scottish Government, the City of Edinburgh Council, and the Edinburgh Festivals, supported and administered by Creative Scotland.
Watch this Space is additionally supported by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
Platform: 2022 is additionally supported by Cruden and the L’Institut français d’Écosse.
Across the partner programme, the festival celebrates artists and collectives who paved the way for new ideas and looks towards future voices in the visual arts.
A number of major new commissions and exhibitions open with the festival. Representing Japan at the 2005 Venice Biennale, Ishiuchi Miyako (Stills, 29 July – 8 October) will present her first solo show of photography in Scotland. Ashanti Harris interlaces ideas of community and cultural identity with her research and long personal experience of West Indian Carnivals (Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop, 28 July – 28 August).
Visitors can journey across the Lammermuir Hills and see the marked traces of human presence in work from Barbara Rae (Open Eye Gallery, 2 – 27 August), and see the changing Clyde-valley landscapes of Duncan Shanks, which chart the constant cycle of loss and renewal, observed in his riverside garden (The Scottish Gallery, 29 July – 27 August).
Celebrating its 180th birthday in 2022, The Scottish Gallery also presents work rooted in art history by Australian ceramicist Kirsten Coelho (29 July – 27 August). The textural works of Rosa Lee, Shelagh Wakely and Barbara Levittoux-Świderska are brought together during the festival (Arusha, 29 July – 29 August).
Tessa Lynch considers feminist readings of the city in ‘expanded print’, which promotes alternative building techniques inspired by play and the natural world (Edinburgh Printmakers, 28 July – 18 September).
Influenced by the landscapes of the North American prairies, a series of abstract works by John McLean bring rhythmic expressions in paint to the festival (The Fine Art Society, 22 July – 27 August). New work by graduating students also takes place in Summer at ECA, showcasing work from the schools of Art, Design and Architecture and Landscape Architecture (Edinburgh College of Art, 19 – 26 August).
Opening during the festival, we abandon the microscope with Luke Jerram’s 90ft inflatable sculpture fruit titled E.coli, which is 5 million times bigger than the actual bacteria (National Museum of Scotland, 3 – 31 August).
In major surveys and premieres, Tracey Emin will present her second ever solo show in Scotland since 2008, featuring the unveiling of a large bronze sculpture, paintings and drawings (Jupiter Artland, 28 May – 2 October).
The first Scottish solo show from London-based artist Daniel Silver highlights the artist’s shift to working in clay with colourful totems, figures and busts(Fruitmarket, 11 June – 25 September). Studio Lenca presentsa series which confronts the complex cultural history of their native El Salvador (Sierra Metro, 25 June – 28 August).
The first major survey of Céline Condorelli in the UK will take place bringing the outdoors into the gallery space (Talbot Rice Gallery, 25 June – 1 October). Monumental canvases rich in colour and detail are presented in Thoughts, meals, days by Glasgow based artist Lorna Robertson (Ingleby, 25 June – 17 September). Audiences can also become absorbed in the UK premiere of Yan Wang Preston’s work, which charts the changing life of a love-heart-shaped rhododendron bush (Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, Saturday 14 May – Sunday 28 August).
Movements and moments in both art and time feature in the festival. Audiences can experience the power of Raphael’s work, reimagined in VR and contemporary tapestry (Dovecot Studios, 1 July – 24 September). Visitors to Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life can see how anatomical art and illustration shaped knowledge of the human body (National Museum of Scotland, 2 July – 30 October).
Twentieth-century marvels from a group of prominent Scottish artists are revealed in National Treasure: The Scottish Modern Arts Association (City Art Centre, 21 May – 16 October), whilst the ambitions and morality of Andrew Carnegie are questioned in animation and archival presentation by Ruth Ewan (Collective, 25 June – 18 September).
The current mood of the country is closely captured by photographers working in Scotland in Counted: Scotland’s Census 2022(Scottish National Portrait Gallery, 12 March – 25 September).
Collectors and collectionsare considered during the festival. Audiences can wonder at historic Masterpieces from Buckingham Palace, which features work from Rembrandt and Artemisia Gentileschi (The Queen’s Gallery, 25 March – 25 September). Modern French art and the early collectors of the Impressionists are explored in A Taste for Impressionism (Royal Scottish Academy, 30 July – 30 November).
Recent acquisitions by the National Galleries of Scotland in New Arrivals: From Salvador Dalí to Jenny Saville (Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Modern 1, until Spring 2023). Refreshed for the festival, the exhibition includes a new acquisition by acclaimed American artist, Amie Siegel.
In retrospectives, shows highlighting the influence of distinguished international artists are celebrated. The life and legacy of painter, jeweller, polymath and jazz musician Alan Davie are explored in a major centenary exhibition (Dovecot Studios, 24 June – 24 September).
ScotlandÕs largest ever Barbara Hepworth exhibition to open at Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art
Barbara Hepworth: Art & Life – 9 April 2022 Ð 2 October 2022
Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art (Modern Two)
Leila Riszko (Assistant Curator at the National Galleries of Scotland admires the artwork Two Forms in Echelon, 1961, Bronze
Neil Hanna Photography
www.neilhannaphotography.co.uk
07702 246823
Barbara Hepworth’s life work comes into focus in an exhibition brought to Edinburgh with The Hepworth Wakefield, Tate St Ives and National Galleries of Scotland (Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Modern 2, 9 April – 2 October).
Scottish artist Will Maclean’s work is brought together – his work rooted in the history, archaeology and literature of the Scottish Highlands (City Art Centre, 4 June – 2 October). The works of Scottish artist, writer and poet Maud Sulter act as inspiration for a new publication as part of a wider ecology of projects (Rhubaba, across the festival).
The Modern Institute also presents work by American poet and artist John Giorno (1934 – 2019) alongside contemporary pieces from quilt collective Arrange Whatever Pieces Come Your Way and artists Julia Chiang and Marc Hundley (Dovecot Studios, 8 July – 17 September).
Themes around ecologies and the environment are central to the 2022 partner programme. Turner Prize nominees Cooking Sections, in collaboration with Sakiya,look at the history of land struggles in Scotland and Palestine within a wider global dialogue, highlighting how alliances between humans and plants can also enhance new collective horizons. (Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, 2 July – 18 September).
Calum Craik navigates debris and holiday rental accommodation through a sculptural stage (Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop, 10 June – 28 August). Camara Taylor brings further focus to Scottish waterways through new video and mixed media work, recomposed from the sighs and groans of a sinking kingdom, rooted in ideas of silt, slop and snap (Collective, 17 June – 4 September).
The result of a three-year commission, Annette Krauss explores Calton Hill as a site held in the ‘common good’, through a research resource presented online and at the City Observatory Library (Collective, 1 June – 4 September).
Jane Connarty, Programme Manager at Edinburgh Art Festival, said:“As Edinburgh marks 75 years of festival culture, we are proud to collaborate with our partners across the city to present the 18th edition of Edinburgh Art Festival, and are delighted to welcome to the city our new Director, Kim McAleese.
“A celebration of the unique ecology of visual arts in our city, our 2022 programme brings together independent galleries, world class collections, and production spaces across the city to present the work of more than 100 artists from around the world.
“The 2022 Commissions Programme invites artists and audiences to explore the site and histories of the Union Canal and includes two artists projects in Wester Hailes on the west of the city – both developed from close working and co-production with local residents.”
Amanda Catto, Head of Visual Arts, Creative Scotland said: “The Edinburgh Art Festival is a highlight of Scotland’s cultural calendar and always a joy to experience. This year is no exception with the festival bringing together an amazing array of art and artists in a really rich and dynamic programme.
“We’re especially excited to see the festival working with communities in Wester Hailes to create new work celebrating the 200th anniversary of the Union Canal. It’s a really tremendous opportunity for people to discover more about the canal’s histories and to re-imagine its future.
“We wish all the artists and partners well as they begin the final countdown to the festival and we look forward to exploring the great range of exhibitions and events taking place across the city this summer”.
Joan Parr, Service Director for Culture and Wellbeing at the City of Edinburgh Council, said:“I’m very excited about this year’s programme and look forward to the full return of artists from all over Scotland and the world showcasing their work in Edinburgh’s art galleries and unusual exhibition spaces.
“The Capital has a long history of promoting the value of culture and as we mark the 75th year of our August Festival’s, the EAF’s programme of 34 exhibitions will celebrate contemporary art across our ancient city.
“I’m delighted the Council is yet again able to support this year’s innovative festival. We’re also proud to host two exhibitions in our City Art Centre. With National Treasure: The Scottish Modern Arts Association, visitors can discover the story of this pioneering 20th century organisation and the outstanding collection it created.
“And Will Maclean: Points of Departure, provides a fresh insight into one of the most outstanding artists of his generation with many pieces going on public display for the first time.”
For more information, please visit www.edinburghartfestival.com or follow the Festival on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @EdArtFest #EdArtFest
