A new online exhibition launched by the City of Edinburgh Council’s Museums & Galleries, Libraries and Archives services brings together 900 years of objects relating to Edinburgh.
From Greyfriars Bobby’s collar to the National Covenant, visitors to a digital exhibition can see all kinds of fantastic objects and artworks and find out more about their stories.
Edinburgh 900: Objects from Nine Centuries of City Life is hosted on the Capital Collections website. It showcases not only some of the treasures viewable in museum and gallery venues around the city, but also many items that have never been fully shared with the public before.
These include a 19th century record of petty criminals, a rare Hearts and Hibs football programme, beautiful contemporary silver and ceramics and historic documents from as early as the 12th century.
The exhibition launched on Friday 23 May with the first 20 objects, with new objects being released each month between May and September, when the City’s Edinburgh 900 celebrations officially conclude.
The team behind the exhibition have not only been photographing and researching these amazing treasures, they’ve also been engaging with community groups across the city to capture their responses to them.
Groups including MindRoom who work with neurodiverse young people and dementia-friendly group Art In the City, have been connecting with the objects and having their responses recorded for display in the digital exhibition.
This work is in partnership with the Open University who have provided the interactive digital app technology to capture community responses.
Lord Provost Robert Aldridge said: “Edinburgh 900 is a year-long celebration of our city’s rich history, culture, and bright future.
“It’s incredible to see the diversity of historic objects cared for on behalf of the city all viewable together online.
“I’m sure viewers are going to really enjoy seeing the tiny historic details the photographs reveal, as well as diving into the background stories and responses from the community. It’s a real celebration of Edinburgh’s past and present.”
A small display in the City Art Centre foyer showcasing some of the objects included in the online exhibition will open in the Summer.
British Ecological Society is presenting a new digital exhibition as part of this year’s Science Festival.
They teamed up an artist with a scientist and each pair was asked to imagine a greener future for Edinburgh and demonstrate how problems like carbon emissions, drought, heatwaves and even social justice can be tackled with nature-based solutions in our most familiar green spaces.
What they’ve come up with is very impressive – Leith on Sea (rising sea levels), tree-lined Nicolson Street (the most polluted street in Edinburgh and second-most in Scotland).
These visions – as well as audience’s own ideas – will directly inform the City of Edinburgh Council plans for Edinburgh’s future green spaces: Thriving Green Spaces project (see below).
As part of this year’s Edinburgh Science Festival, the British Ecological Society (BES), in collaboration with SMASH-UK, are presenting a virtual gallery of art created by local artists and ecologists, predicting the green future of Edinburgh – these visions will directly contribute to work by the City of Edinburgh Council in envisioning the future of the city’s green spaces.
This free event, running from 26 June to 11 July 2021 transports visitors to a fully explorable 3D virtual gallery overlooking the iconic Arthur’s Seat, displaying visions for Edinburgh’s future green spaces.
Exhibition artworks include a vision of Leith, successfully defending against sea level rises and extreme rain events (now ‘Leith-on-Sea’), to a resilient and renovated tree covered Nicolson St, known to the most polluted street in Edinburgh and second-most polluted in Scotland.
Local artists have collaborated with ecologists from Scottish Wildlife Trust, the City of Edinburgh Council, Nature Scot, Architecture & Design Scotland, Forest Research and Bangor University to imagine a greener future for Edinburgh and demonstrate how problems like carbon emissions, flooding, heatwaves and even social justice can be tackled with nature-based solutions in our most familiar greens spaces.
Visitors to the digital exhibition will also be able to contribute their own ideas for future green spaces, which will be displayed alongside the artwork in the gallery. Their visions will also inform the Council’s plans for the future of Edinburgh’s green spaces.
Dr Chris Jeffs, Senior Education & Engagement Officer at the British Ecological Society and curator of the exhibition said: “This cutting-edge exhibition is the first-time local artists and ecologists have been brought together to envisage the future of Edinburgh’s green spaces.
“It offers a way for the residents of Edinburgh and beyond to have their say on how green spaces should look like in future, and how they can tackle environmental challenges in their local area.
“Ecologists are on the front lines in our battle against climate change, and nature-based solutions in our green spaces, like those depicted in the exhibition, offer enormous hope. We want everyone to understand the climate crisis and the role ecology and nature-based solutions can play in a greener, sustainable future.”
On the interactive element of the exhibition, where visitors can contribute their own ideas, Chris Jeffs said: “It’s important that we give people a voice in shaping their green future, so we are delighted to be working with the Scottish Wildlife Trust and the City of Edinburgh Council, giving all our exhibition visitors the chance to share their ‘visions of future green spaces’ directly with the council to help them in their ‘Thriving Green Spaces’ project.”
Donya Davidson, Ecologist and Project Development Officer at Scottish Wildlife Trust for the ‘Thriving Green Spaces Project’ in Edinburgh’ said: “Working with local artists has been incredible.
“I think communicating through the medium of art is a really impactful way to demonstrate the work we are doing as ecologists. This exhibition has opened my eyes to how beneficial and exciting it can be to collaborate with artists and those outside of the environmental sector.
“Our work at the Scottish Wildlife Trust with the City of Edinburgh Council has shown that our existing green spaces already provide so many benefits to both people and wildlife and the right interventions in the right places can improve even more areas to provide these benefits.
“The artwork I collaborated on, Leith Walk on the Wild Side, shows Leith Walk, but not as people know it now! It is thriving with wildlife and residents are out enjoying all the new greenspace they now have on their doorsteps.
“The nationally scarce northern brown argus butterfly, previously only found in Holyrood Park, now moves freely down the street from planter to planter. Although it is an aspirational vision, I hope it is something we can see in the not-so-distant future, for a connected, biodiverse and sustainable Edinburgh.”
Sarah Hannis, illustrator of ‘Leith Walk on the Wild Side’ said: “It was great working with Donya and learning about all the green initiatives in Edinburgh. At a time when so much news is negative it has been really uplifting to be involved in this project – learning about connecting up habitats in urban areas, and the small but significant ways that local residents can contribute.
“Leith Walk is currently one of the least green parts of Edinburgh so I re-imagined it totally green! Green paths with wildflower areas lie to either side.
“Building eves are lined with swift nesting boxes and each window has its own planter with pollinator-friendly plants. Nest boxes and bug hotels hang on every wall and there’s even a small pond.
“The whole street becomes a thriving green wildlife corridor, boosting biodiversity and all the human wellness benefits that come from immersing ourselves in nature and coexisting alongside it.”
Diane Cassidy, Green Spaces Development Officer for Edinburgh’s Thriving Green Spaces Project at the City of Edinburgh Council said: “We’re excited to be part of this fantastic exhibition with the British Ecological Society.
“The artworks’ inspiring visions of nature-based solutions, combined with the voices of visitors to the exhibition will be incredibly valuable to us in our ongoing ‘Thriving Green Spaces’ project which aims to improve Edinburgh’s green spaces and ultimately the lives of local people.”
BES is planning to introduce the idea in other UK cities later this year and present the exhibition as part of COP26.
Other BES events at the Edinburgh Science Festival
Alongside the virtual gallery, the BES will be hosting five other online events and contributing to an outdoor photography exhibition, all completely free to attend.
12 June – 21 July. Human Nature exhibition. Experience giant images in the photography exhibition along the picturesque location of Edinburgh’s Portobello Promenade, featuring contributions from the BES ‘Capturing Ecology Competition’.
Tuesday 29 June. Flea Circus: the smallest show on Earth. Dr Tim Cockerill talks audiences through the history of flee circuses, a genuine spectacle, made up of live fleas pulling chariots, riding tricycles and even fighting duels with miniature swords.
Saturday 3 July. NatureCast. A family friendly interactive broadcast where participants can take part in fun activities, they can do at home or outside, while discovering fascinating connections between nature and people.
Sunday 4 July. The Big Ecology Draw-along. Join our presenter, zoologist and science communicator Sophie Pavelle, and nature-artists Hana Ayoob and Lauren Cook to learn how to draw incredible plants, fungi and animals, following their simple step-by-step tutorials.
Wednesday 7 July. ECOmedy night. An online comedy night where audiences can laugh and learn as you watch real scientists showcase their knowledge about animals, plants, and their interactions with our planet.
Thriving green spaces project
The City of Edinburgh Council is leading on a project to create a new vision for the city’s green spaces. This will be captured in a 30-year strategy which aligns with Edinburgh’s 2050 city vision.
The project is being achieved by a £899,500 grant from the Heritage Fund and the Natural Trust. They have joined together to provide funding to local authorities to develop bold, innovative and financial management solutions for their green spaces. You can read more about this on the Heritage Fund Website or see Future Parks Initiative or National Trust
What will we do
The project will run for two years until May 2021. The funding is being used to recruit a project team and buy in professional expertise to
carry out research and studies
start pilots
gather robust baseline information
which will create thriving green spaces 2050 vision and strategy for Edinburgh.
To deliver this project we are working with our project bid partners
greenspace Scotland
Scottish Wildlife Trust
Edinburgh and Lothians Greenspace Trust
University of Edinburgh
Edinburgh green spaces forum
who are the group for the city’s various Friends of Groups.
Our work will determine how our green spaces need to change so that they play an active role in delivering greater benefits in areas such as
