Thistles welcomes life-sized basking shark made from second hand electrical devices
Thistles shopping centre in Stirling has unveiled a new art installation, Betty the e-waste shark, which has been making a splash with shoppers.
Betty is a life-sized basking shark made entirely from second hand electrical devices including over 200 keyboards and water cooler panels that have been saved from landfill. Shoppers brave enough to stand at Betty’s mouth will see two projector lenses and TV screens showing a powerful film highlighting the enormous scale of e-waste that is shipped across seas every year.
The work of Edinburgh artist, Jonathan Elders, Betty was created to raise awareness of Scotland’s electronic waste problem. Designed to be engaging, it is also fully inclusive and accessible to people of any height or level of mobility.
For a limited time only before Betty continues her journey across the country, visitors are invited to interact and snap a picture with the striking sculpture located outside Muffin Break to learn about the growing problem of e-waste facing our country.
Gary Turnbull, Centre Director at Thistles, said: “We’re excited to have welcomed Betty into the centre as not only is it a fantastic sculpture, but it is also a great way to educate our shoppers on the problem of electronic waste which faces us all.
“At Thistles we have been putting a great focus on sustainability, how to cut down on all waste and the steps we can take to protect our planet. Our Wolf Pack Kids’ Club is something that we’ve been able to introduce into the centre, with the help of the Sustainable Supers, to get the next generation clued up on all things sustainable and reducing our carbon footprint.”
The instalment furthers Thistles’ focus on raising awareness about sustainability and reducing waste as its monthly Wolf Pack Kids’ Club continues. Hosted on the last Sunday of the month from February to November, each month centres around a unique theme around planet saving, kindness and sharing.
Wolf pack members will be able to see Betty the shark up close after the next, free of charge event on September 25. Children can take part in an interactive workshop to design, create and take home their very own garden windchimes as we celebrate the seasons and head into Autumn.
Thistles encourages all shoppers to catch Betty the e-waste shark while you can as she will be at the shopping centre for a limited time only.
To find out more and sign up for The Wolf Pack, please visit:
Stirling’s majestic 12th-century castle is set to make history when it stages its first gathering of crypto enthusiasts and Bitcoin Angels this month.
The ancient seat, where the infant Mary Queen of Scots was crowned, will embrace 21st-century technology at a Grand Party later this month (July 30) hosted by innovative artist Trevor Jones.
Fine art graduate and painter, Trevor has worked at the intersection of art and technology for more than a decade, experimenting with QR code paintings and augmented reality (AR). When he invested in Bitcoin in 2017 it inspired a new creative direction, leading to his crypto-themed AR paintings and his emergence as a pioneer of non-fungible tokens (NFT) in art.
The open-edition NFT derived from his painting The Bitcoin Angel broke sales records on its release last year generating $3.2M in 7 minutes and has become iconic in the NFT world. And now he’s hosting the Castle Party extravaganza to celebrate this exciting digital art movement and the unique worldwide community that has grown up around The Bitcoin Angel.
Billed as the year’s most exclusive crypto event, with an exclusive Special Edition Castle Party 2022 NFT available only at the gathering, it will bring more than 300 guests to Scotland from 20 countries across North America, Europe, Australia and Asia.
Trevor Jones said:“When searching the world for a venue one place felt right above all others: the beautiful Stirling Castle in the heart of Scotland. More than just a celebration, this is an opportunity to support Scotland, both by putting it on the map of the NFT world and through the charity that we have chosen to endorse.”
The party, in partnership with 21CC Group and the Stirling Highland Hotel, will feature a range of entertainment including DJ RT, tribal drums and pipe band Clanadonia; sword-wielding warrior actors and performers from Combat International; sleight of hand from Jody Greig and Dusty the Magician; caricaturist Neil Kempsell; harpist Mary Macmaster; Pipe Major Kevin McLean, historical re-enactment group Living History Scotland and Royal Burgh of Renfrew Pipe Band.
Sponsored by NFT whisky marketplace Metacask, Nova Finance digital asset investments, Tokenframe digital screens for NFT artwork, Saga cigars hand crafted in the Dominican Republic, and Apollo NFT, a leading NFT consulting firm and production studio, the Grand Party will also feature a Confessional Booth and ‘crypto clergyman’ for any crypto-sinners to unburden their soul.
Adam Greenberg, Co-Founder, Nova Finance said: “Being invited to support Trevor’s event on home turf is both an honour and privilege. The world of blockchain has so much potential and bringing to life successes like The BItcoin Angel will only open up this space to many more people.
“Nova’s calling into this arena was just like Trevor’s, to challenge the traditional finance system, empower individuals and give them access to high quality tools and opportunities that wouldn’t have been available previously.”
Nim Siriwardana, Co-Founder, Metacask comments:“We’re delighted to be a part of this magical and historic event. What a venue, what a line-up, and what a day it promises to be.
“Having worked with Trevor on the record-breaking Macallan ’91 cask and Angel’s Share NFT auction, Metacask share a natural affinity for all things art, NFTs, and of course the Scottish staple, whisky. On that note, we’ll be armed with a choice selection of premium whiskies, so we look forward to enjoying a few drams with discerning guests at the bar… Slàinte!”
To attend, each partygoer must own at least one Bitcoin Angel open edition NFT and giveaways on the night will include limited edition prints, an angel T-shirt, a Bitcoin Angel branded Saga cigar and the chance to win three original Trevor Jones paintings. One being an artwork created especially for the party, will also be on offer.
Mickael Paris, Marketing Director at FinTech Scotland said:“Fintech is so much more than the use of new technology in the financial sector. With NFTs we have a perfect example of fintech innovation revolutionising one of the oldest and most established sectors, art.
“I was lucky enough to meet with Trevor a few months ago and was inspired by his story. It is fantastic for Scotland to be hosting the most exclusive crypto event this year and a real testament to the country’s vibrant fintech cluster. I’m looking forward to joining him and his guests at Stirling Castle.”
For more details and a full list of entertainment, please visit:
This June, East Lothian based artist, Andrew Brooks will be exhibiting art focussing on telling the stories of those diagnosed with neurological condition Functional Neurological Disorder, FND, often referred to as the most common condition you’ve never heard of.
Brooks makes art that concentrates on small details of information to tell stories, using the particular to find the universal.
The multidisciplinary exhibition, FND Stories, is based on in-person interviews with six people from around the UK who live with FND along with contributions from over 90 of those diagnosed from around the world.
The interviews gave first-hand accounts of living with FND and include a beauty queen finalist from Croydon who only began competing since her diagnosis in July 2020. The artwork was created using techniques of data analysis from the interviews and contributions in a range of media including silent video, text-based art, and large-scale ink and gold leaf pieces.
The exhibition seeks to raise awareness of the condition and highlights the lived experiences of those diagnosed. It will be on show through the 20m long windows of InSpace Gallery for the full period to engage as many people as possible, as well as a shorter internal show with an opening event.
Functional Neurological Disorder (FND) is a common and disabling cause of neurological symptoms. The symptoms are not caused by a structural disease of the nervous system but it is a problem with the “functioning” of the nervous system.
It is a problem with how the brain and body send and receive signals. The symptoms can cause impairment in quality of life that is similar to and in some aspects worse than other neurological conditions.
Symptoms are highly varied and can include weakness and abnormal patterns of movement, attacks of abnormal movement / change in awareness that resemble epileptic seizures, sensory problems, cognitive problems, and visual and speech problems.
Andrew Brooks began making work involving the condition while studying a Fine Art MA in Bristol: “FND is a constant part of my life as my wife was diagnosed with it in 2015 following a bicycle crash involving a car.
“I began to make and exhibit work about our experiences living with FND reflecting on our married life, subsequently broadening the project making further work with members of Southwest England based charity ‘FND Friends’. Having moved to Scotland I secured funding from Creative Informatics.
“The ‘Connected Innovators’ funding stream has given me the time and resources to continue making work with those diagnosed with FND developing new skills to represent people’s stories and raise awareness about the condition”.
With support from FND Hope UK (whom he is independent from) Brooks has been able to broaden the project and had responses from around the globe, including America, Canada and Gibraltar, with over 90 participants answering the question what three words would you use to describe your FND – the top three responses being frustrating, debilitating and misunderstood. Six in-person interviews with participants from around the UK were filmed and transcribed, these stories are the basis for much of the artwork.
Those interviewed are from a range of ages, backgrounds, types and severity of condition and were asked the same set of questions about life with FND. In response to “what is a good day with FND?” one interviewee answered, “a good day is having a shower and not having to sleep after it (laughing)…good days are when I can do the things I used to take for granted”.
Coverage Briefing
The artwork is multidisciplinary and varied including video, sound, word and physical paper-based art, to tell different facets of stories, often focussing on specific details. Large paper-based pieces, some of which are over 2m long, use ink, water, gold leaf, graphite dust and latex, encoding words, meanings and information.
As Brooks explains “the encoded presentation is to create a slower understanding of what is being discussed or described be it data or words, hopefully enabling a more nuanced interaction with the subject matter.
“The interview films are shown as a pair without sound, one film showing the subject’s reaction while listening to their favourite childhood story and the other show’s them explaining about their life with FND.
“Removing the sound avoids the primary forms of storytelling and shifts focus from what is being said to the emotional communication of the person. Relying on body language and the contrast of the two films allows the viewer to emotionally engage with the teller.”
Brooks added: “My aim is to make work that can portray some of the lived experiences and stories of those diagnosed with FND. I don’t want to portray a list of symptoms but reveal different facets of people’s stories.”
FND Stories will be partially on display on Inspace City Screen (Inspace windows facing on to Potterrow), Monday 6th – Sunday 26th June, with full exhibition inside Inspace Thursday 23rd June – Sunday 26th June, 11am – 5pm.
There will be an opening event on Wednesday 22nd June 5-7pm.
Tickets to the opening event can be booked through Eventbrite here:
