Month: August 2024

World-renowned painting by John Singer Sargent comes home to Edinburgh

One of the most celebrated paintings by world-renowned artist John Singer Sargent (1856 –1925) – Lady Agnew of Lochnaw (1864 – 32) – is welcomed home to National Galleries Scotland: National. The much-loved painting is back on display and free to visit now.

With the painting’s exciting arrival back in Edinburgh also comes a name change for this landmark portrait. The painting was on a major international tour as one of the star attractions of the Sargent and Fashion exhibition at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston and Tate Britain, London.

Following its return, the portrait has been given a fuller name – Gertrude Vernon, Lady Agnew of Lochnaw (1864 – 1932). By including her first name, this fascinating sitter can finally be recognised as an individual in her own right, beyond her status as the wife of Baronet Andrew Noel Agnew of Lochnaw.

National Galleries of Scotland is about to release a new book on the painting on 23 September, which is available to pre-order now at Lady Agnew: A Painting by John Singer Sargent (paperback) (nationalgalleries.org).

Sargent’s dazzling and unforgettable image of Gertrude Vernon is one of the most instantly recognisable portraits of fashionable London society.

For both the artist and his sitter, the painting was an instant success, reviving Sargent’s reputation as the portrait painter of choice for the London elite and immediately transforming the newly elevated Gertrude Vernon into a society celebrity.

Sargent’s image of Gertrude Vernon helped her to become a leading light in fashionable circles, holding lavish salons in her London home. Ironically, the high costs of this hospitality meant that she was eventually forced to sell some family pictures including this portrait which was purchased by National Galleries of Scotland, after Sargent’s death, in 1925.

The confident gaze and relaxed posture of Gertrude Vernon was unusual in contemporary portraiture. The spontaneous feel of the image was enhanced further by the fluid and sweeping brushwork.

More conventional portraits of respectable women had the sitters gazing downward, off to the side, or upon another person or object in the painting. To have a lady sit and stare at the viewer was unconventional, but it was enthusiastically received as bold and beautiful.

Gertrude Vernon was around 26 at the time of the painting and is believed to have walked into the studio one day and slumped herself down in the chair. Sargent liked to capture the most naturalistic pose for his sitters and so he decided to paint her portrait exactly as she appeared that day.

The exact circumstances behind the commission are not known, but the Agnews may have met the artist through mutual American friends. According to notes in her husband’s diary, work on the portrait progressed swiftly, and Sargent later recalled that it was painted in just 6 sittings.

Gertrude Vernon is shown seated in a Louis XVI chair against the backdrop of a Chinese silk hanging, both of which were standard props in Sargent’s studio.

She is reported to have been of frail health; she recovered slowly from a severe bout of influenza in 1890 and was apparently still suffering from exhaustion when she sat for Sargent. There are brilliant passages of painting in the highlights, reflections and coloured shadows that show Sargent at his best as a painter of surfaces and textures.

Sargent was born in Florence and spent his childhood travelling across Europe with his wealthy American parents who restlessly followed the changing social seasons. In 1874 he entered the Paris studio of the stylish French portraitist, Carolus-Duran.

The young Sargent combined the flamboyant style of his teacher with his study of old masters such as Rembrandt and Velázquez but was also influenced by Monet and Impressionism.

His provocative and unconventional Portrait of Madame X caused a scandal at the Paris Salon exhibition in 1884; and, when Sargent settled in London in 1886, he initially found it difficult to find clients. However, his dashing technical mastery and confident manner were ideally suited for aristocratic patronage, and he soon won over his critics with his elegant, flattering portraits.

When his portrait of Gertrude Vernon was shown at the Royal Academy in 1893, one contemporary observed: ‘London is at his feet … he has had a cracking success.’

Dr Patricia Allerston, Deputy Director & Chief Curator of European & Scottish Art, National Galleries of Scotland said: “This fascinating painting is a favourite for many visitors, and we are delighted to have it back on display at the National.

“Sargent’s compelling portrait presents Lady Agnew as a real person with a very distinctive personality. Our aim in adjusting the portrait’s title is to give visitors a bit more information about this intriguing sitter.’

Free to visit: Gertrude Vernon, Lady Agnew of Lochnaw (1864-1932) by John Singer Sargent | NGS CMS 2022 (nationalgalleries.org)

VPZ rewards eco-friendly festivalgoers at Party at the Palace

  • VPZ, the UK’s largest vaping retailer, will be attending Party At The Palace and plans to reward environmentally conscious festivalgoers who recycle their disposable vapes at the event.
  • The festival, which takes place on August 10 -11th at Linlithgow Palace, will be attended by the vaping retailer who alongside offering smoking cessation tools and advice will be debuting their innovative recycling service on the go.
  • Festivalgoers will be able to recycle any disposable vapes in VPZ’s bins at their stand and be rewarded with £1 off a reusable alternative.
  • Doug Mutter, Director at VPZ, said: “We are looking forward to bringing along our own innovative recycling services to Party At The Place to tackle the environmental problem of disposable vaping alongside offering incentives to those recycling to access reusable alternatives.”

VPZ, the UK’s largest vaping retailer, will be rewarding eco-friendly revellers during 2024’s Party At The Palace.

Festivalgoers are set to benefit from the vaping retailer’s one year anniversary of its partnership with WasteCare which saw VPZ launch a recycling service for vaping devices and e-cigarettes across all its UK stores.

Disposable vapes contain lithium batteries and plastic and when littered they can cause harm to the local environment.

This vape recycling service will be debuting in a mobile form at Linlithgow Palace and will be open to all vapers throughout the festival, as anyone can visit the stand and dispose safely of their vaping devices or e-cigarettes.

VPZ will have two recycling bins throughout the weekend at Party At The Palace, both located at the seating area at its stand with one for batteries and one for disposables.

For their eco-friendly efforts, for every disposable vape recycled at the Party At The Palace, VPZ are offering festivalgoers £1 off the purchase of any reusable AEQ vape at the event.

VPZ Director Doug Mutter said: “At VPZ, we are pioneering in the battle against waste and are proud to have launched our vape recycling service across all stores and now debuting it on the go.

“Our appearance at Party At The Palace will be a great chance to tackle this burgeoning environmental issue head on and aid people to safely dispose of disposable vapes throughout the event.

“We strongly believe this innovative service and intervention is vital in responding to an emerging environmental problem whilst educating vapers on the long-term financial benefits of using reusable products.”

Alongside being in attendance to educate on the environmental impact of vaping, VPZ will also be offering a dedicated one-to-one service to help smokers quit. VPZ specialists are trained and have expert knowledge, engaging with smokers to educate them on the health and financial benefits of switching to vaping.

To reflect VPZ’s full commitment to helping UK smokers on their stop-smoking journey, the vape specialist is also introducing a 30-day switch guarantee. This guarantee offers a full refund to anyone who doesn’t make a complete switch to vaping in 30 days, supporting VPZ’s confidence in the role of vaping for a Smoke-Free 2030 national goal.

By introducing this policy, VPZ is not only investing in the well-being of people trying to stop smoking but also educating them on the financial benefits of vaping.

VPZ Director Doug Mutter added: “VPZ is the UK’s leading vaping specialist, and we are spearheading the fight against the nation’s number one killer – smoking.

“At VPZ, we are much more than a vaping retailer, as our new 30-day guarantee provides a solution to Smoke-Free targets and stands by our promise to support all smokers on their own quit-smoking journey.

“Our approach gives adult smokers the help and advice they need at a time when local stop-smoking services across the country are under threat whilst supporting the country’s ambitions to become a smoke-free nation by 2030.

“We are fully supportive of the UK government’s ban on disposable vaping products and it is positive progress that we have a proposed enforcement date for April 1 next year but it’s critical that they take on board advice and guidance to regain much-needed momentum and help the country meet its 2030 ambitions.

“VPZ has been calling on the UK Government to introduce licencing and controls for selling vaping products for the past two years and it’s hugely important a ban operates alongside a licencing scheme where there are proper punishments and policing in place to enforce the ban and tackle the growth of the existing black market.”

Researchers at King’s College London found vaping to be a more effective treatment than nicotine replacement therapy for stopping smoking.

A further report from the Royal College of Physicians Tobacco Advisory Group backs vaping as an effective treatment for tobacco dependency and recommends that it should be included and encouraged in all treatment pathways. The report also found that the long-term impact of vaping is 95 per cent less harmful than smoking cigarettes.

To date, Edinburgh-based VPZ has already helped over 700k smokers in the UK quit since it was established in 2012.

Information on the UK Government’s Smoke-Free by 2030 plans can be found here: 

https://publichealthmatters.blog.gov.uk/2017/06/16/our-ambition-for-a-smokefree-nation-is-in-sight/

Last ditch offer to avert council strikes

Following a special meeting of Council Leaders yesterday to discuss Local Government Pay, COSLA has made a ‘significantly improved’ formal offer to the trade unions.

Scotland’s council leaders welcomed that Scottish Government had provided funding to take a pay offer beyond the 3.2% previously offered by COSLA, recognising the financial position facing councils while also providing firm assurances around any recurring additional funding.

This additional funding means that the revised offer is better than the offer made to Local Government workers in the rest of the UK.

If the offer is accepted everyone will receive at least 3.6% and for the first pay point on our pay scales,  there will be an increase of £1292 (or 5.63%), The overall offer value is 4.27%.

In making this improved offer, COSLA is requesting that strike action is suspended while it is considered by the unions, who have been made aware of Leaders’ concerns that the additional funding may be at risk if strikes go ahead.

COSLA’s Resources Spokespeople Cllr Katie Hagmann said: “Having worked hard over the last week with Scottish Government to increase and guarantee additional funding, Leaders are now in a position to make this improved offer to our trade unions.  

“This offer reflects what trade unions have asked for and we hope that they will now be prepared to call off the strikes while they put that offer to their members.”

Public Protest: Plans remain in place to keep communities safe

First Minister John Swinney held further talks with Police Scotland yesterday to receive a further update on preparedness should any disorder emerge in Scotland over the weekend.

Throughout the week the First Minister has remained in regular contact with Police Scotland to discuss the ongoing situation and support work to promote community cohesion across the country. 

Earlier this week he brought faith and refugee community leaders together and held talks with leaders of political parties and Police Scotland to unequivocally condemn all forms of violence, prejudice and Islamophobia. 

The First Minister has also written to X, Meta and TikTok to ask what action they are taking to combat the spread of misinformation, and to address racist and hateful material on their platforms.

The First Minister said: “The last few days have been a challenging and worrying time for many with the scenes of violence unfolding in other parts of the United Kingdom.

“I would like to thank Police Scotland for their continued work to protect our communities. Their ongoing engagement across Scotland and enhanced patrols are vital to support community cohesion and ensure public safety.

“We remain vigilant to the potential for disorder in Scotland and I have been reassured by Police Scotland that it has the capability and resources in place to respond should we face similar challenges, and that plans and preparations are in place to ensure everybody is kept safe.

“While officers and staff are doing their part to keep us all safe – there is no place in Scotland for hatred of any kind, and each of us has a responsibility to confront racism and religious prejudice, including islamaphobia, wherever and whenever it appears, and do all we can to strengthen community cohesion.”

Assistant Chief Constable Gary Ritchie said: “Officers right across Scotland continue to provide reassurance to communities across the country through enhanced patrols and direct engagement.

“You may see more officers in our towns and cities and we are closely monitoring the situation to ensure any potential for violence or disorder in Scotland is identified quickly and responded to immediately.”

First Minister: Social media companies need to address online hate

John Swinney says action is needed to address misinformation, racism and hateful online material

Following disorder in parts of the UK, First Minister John Swinney has written to X, Meta and TikTok to ask what action they are taking to combat the spread of misinformation, and to address racist and hateful material on their platforms:

From: First Minister John Swinney

To:  X, Meta and TikTok

This week I met with representatives of faith and refugees groups to show solidarity with communities around the country.  They were clear to me about the impact of social media in spreading misinformation, raising alarm and the sense of threat in their communities.

I also met with Scottish political party leaders and Police Scotland representatives to discuss the situation in Scotland and the rest of the UK.

Police Scotland described social media posts that contain deliberate misinformation, with provocative and incendiary language with some potentially meeting the threshold for charge under Scotland’s hate crime legislation that came into effect in April this year.

It is clear to me that social media platforms have a duty to take action to ensure that individuals in our society are not subjected to hate and threatening behaviour, and that communities are protected from violent disorder.

I was struck by the communication from Ofcom this week reminding social media companies of their obligation to remove material that incites hatred or violence.

All political parties in Scotland stand together in resisting the prejudice and islamophobia that we have seen on the street in parts of the UK and online. 

Everyone has a role in stopping the spread of misinformation.  You and your platform have a specific responsibility to do so.

I would therefore be grateful if you could outline the action you are taking to combat the spread of misinformation on your platform and what steps being taken to address racist/hateful speech across your platform.  Given the seriousness of the situation action needs to be immediate and decisive. 

Police Scotland has specifically raised with me concerns about the time it takes for problematic posts to be removed when these are identified by law enforcement agencies. This increases the risk of spread of malicious content. I would wish to understand the steps you are taking to address this, particularly for content that police identify as illegal or harmful.

I am copying this letter to Peter Kyle MP, the Secretary of State for Culture Media and Sport.

Anger as Lothian Pension Fund increases fossil fuel investments

Climate justice campaigners have condemned the Lothian Pension Fund for increasing its investments in fossil fuels despite the worsening climate emergency. 

The latest investment holdings list from the Lothian Pension Fund reveals that the fund’s investments in oil and gas companies have risen in value to £208m in 2024 from £166m in 2022. This increase is driven by the purchase of additional shares rather than changes in the market value of existing holdings and has arisen despite Edinburgh and East Lothian councils passing motions in 2022 calling on the fund to divest from fossil fuels in order to tackle the climate crisis.

The Lothian Pension Fund is the second biggest fossil fuel investor of all the council pension funds in Scotland. It invests in some of the world’s biggest climate polluters, including TotalEnergies, Exxon Mobil, Eni, Equinor, Shell and BP.

TotalEnergies, now Lothian Pension Fund’s largest fossil fuel investment following a recent significant purchase of additional shares, is currently developing the East African Crude Oil Pipeline. If completed, the pipeline will stretch 1,444km across Uganda and Tanzania, to pump oil out of new oil fields in Uganda to be exported on the international market. It would produce 379m tonnes of carbon emissions if it goes ahead.

Joan Forehand from campaign group Divest Lothian said: “It is appalling that the Lothian Pension Fund is choosing to invest even more of its members’ pensions in companies that, despite responsible investors’ efforts over many years to get them to change course, are doubling down on oil and gas expansion plans. 

“The science is clear: we need to rapidly transition away from fossil fuels to avoid catastrophic climate breakdown, and the economic collapse that would bring. Increasing investment in the fossil fuel industry highlights the failure of the Lothian Pension Fund to adequately assess climate change risk in its financial modelling.”

Sally Clark, divestment campaigner at Friends of the Earth Scotland, said: “It’s unbelievable that despite the worsening climate crisis and clear support for ending fossil fuel investments from councillors in Edinburgh and East Lothian, Lothian Pension Fund has actually increased investments in fossil fuels. 

“These fossil fuel companies are driving climate breakdown and the pension fund’s managers have a responsibility to act in the best interests of their members and future generations. 

“The money moved away from fossil fuels could instead be invested in ways that support local communities and protect the planet for everyone, like renewable energy. As skyrocketing energy bills are plunging millions of people into fuel poverty across the UK, this transition is more important than ever.” 

Jane Herbstritt, climate campaigner at Global Justice Now added: “Despite the certainty of the climate emergency, TotalEnergies is pressing ahead with its climate-wrecking development of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline – displacing local communities and destroying the environment in order to profit from pumping out more new oil than can be safely burned.

“It is wholly irresponsible for the Lothian Pension Fund to give its backing to this by increasing its investment in TotalEnergies, particularly when councillors in Edinburgh and East Lothian have voted for the pension fund to divest from oil and gas.”

Divest Lothian is calling on the pension fund’s managers to stop investing in fossil fuels and to instead invest in renewable energy and social housing in order to prioritise the long-term health and well-being of its members and of communities around the world. 

Silver Sunday at Lauriston Castle

We are taking part in #SilverSunday with Age UK on Sunday 6 October by offering a free tour for elder visitors. We have an option of a tour of the Castle and a step-free option to see the castle digitally.

Join our knowledgeable guide for a FREE tour of Lauriston Castle. Find out about Willian and Margaret Reid, the last owners of Lauriston, and see for yourself the wonderful gift they left the nation.

Silver Sunday is the national day for older people, which is co-ordinated by Age UK. Age UK’s Silver Sunday is a national day where people of all generations can come together by hosting fun and free activities for older people. It is a day where older people can meet new people, visit new places, try new activities and connect with their local communities and the generations around them.

More Info here: https://www.edinburghmuseums.org.uk/…/tour-lauriston…

Michael Pedersen is the new Edinburgh Makar

A report to the city council’s Culture and Communities Committee yesterday has recommended Michael Pedersen as the next writer to be inaugurated as the seventh Edinburgh Makar.

Michael will take over the honorary role from Hannah Lavery later this year at a special reception hosted by the Lord Provost at the City Chambers.

Born and raised in the Capital, Michael is a prize-winning Scottish poet and author, and the Writer in Residence at Edinburgh University. His poetic prose debut, Boy Friends, was published by Faber & Faber in 2022. It was a Sunday Times Critics Choice and shortlisted for Best Non-Fiction at Scotland’s National Book Awards.

Michael has also been shortlisted for the Forward Prizes for Poetry and won a Robert Louis Stevenson Fellowship. Having co-founded the literary production house Neu! Reekie!, his work has been praised by many writers and performers including Stephen Fry, Sara Pascoe, Nicola Sturgeon, Irvine Welsh, Jackie Kay, Alan Cumming and Kae Tempest.

Culture and Communities Convener, Cllr Val Walker said: “I would like to begin by thanking Hannah Lavery as our outgoing Edinburgh Makar for her generous contribution to the cultural life of Edinburgh residents.

“Hannah has been an enthusiastic and hardworking advocate for poetry and the written word, engaging with a diverse range of people in many different settings including community writing groups, cultural organisations, theatres and festivals, contemporary poets and dramatists and the Council’s Museums and Galleries team. I wish her all the very best for her future endeavours.

“At the same time, I’m very much looking forward to welcoming Michael Pedersen into the role. Michael was a pupil at Portobello High School and is currently Writer in Residence at The University of Edinburgh.

“His work is honest, fearless and witty with a strong focus on mental health and friendship. I am looking forward to seeing Michael engage with our younger community members and to hearing his perspective on Edinburgh 900, as we celebrate 900 years of the city’s history over the next twelve months.”

The Seventh Edinburgh Makar, Michael Pedersen: “Finding myself as Edinburgh’s new Makar is a thrill supreme! I’m brio filled and beaming from it.

“From Parson’s Green Primary to Portobello High School, from years of running literary events with Neu! Reekie! to finding myself as the current Writer in Residence at Edinburgh Uni, I’ve been married to poetry throughout.

“I’ve published three collections over a ten-year period and feel like I’m only getting started. Edinburgh is one of the world’s foremost poetry cities, and I’m elated and electrified to be setting off fireworks (hopefully conceptually and literally) for both these bastions of beauty.

“I told my Granny first, then my Ma, the rest will follow. Long live love and poetry and Edina!”

The Edinburgh Makar is a civic post instituted in 2002 by the City of Edinburgh Council. The writer is selected and nominated by representatives of the Scottish Poetry Library, Scottish PEN, The Saltire Society, Edinburgh City of Literature Trust and the Council.