Tag: Fruitmarket Gallery

Discover ‘The Benefit of Books’ with Rachel Hazell at Fruitmarket Gallery’s Annual Bookmarket 

On Saturday 15 February, Rachel Hazell, The Travelling Bookbinder, will be sharing all she has learnt about the power of creativity at her talk The Benefit of Books at the Fruitmarket Gallery’s annual Artists’ Bookmarket. 

The talk is free to attend, tickets can be booked HERE.  

Rachel Hazell, The Travelling Bookbinder said: “I’m excited to attend the Artists’ Bookmarket – it’s the social highlight of my year – a fantastic event to see inspiring work, familiar faces and new innovations is the artist’ book world- reconnecting with my tribe! 

“After twenty-seven years of using the book as a creative medium, this talk distils what why and how books are so great.

“I’m passionate about sharing the art of bookbinding with others and hope to inspire them to create something, in whatever form, that brings relaxation and mindfulness.”    

Based between Edinburgh and the Hebridean Isle of Iona, Rachel has explored and taught this ancient craft of bookbinding all over the world, and her talk will explore the physical, mental, practical and emotional impact practising the artform can have. Whether as a meditative process or a means of self-expression she will share how bookbinding nurtures well-being and personal growth and can be a key tool in pursuit of mindfulness.   

Rachel’s approach to bookbinding puts a modern spin on the artform, and at the workshops she hosts across the world – from Shetland to Venice – she encourages participants to take inspiration and materials from their unique surroundings and incorporate them in their work.

Whether that’s driftwood for the cover, or maps for the pages, nothing is off the table when it comes to making it a part of your bound story.  

Rachel’s fine craftmanship has made her a sought-after figure in the world of bookbinding, artistry, and wellness and she has featured in publications including Condé Nast Traveller, the Financial Times, Selvedge and The Simple Things.

In 2024 she published a book of photos of her daily swims, taken on Iona during lockdown. Today’s Changing Room featured in The Scotsman among others. All the proceeds go to the mental health charity BlueTonic.   

As teacher, author and traveller, books, words and the power of imagination have always been central to Rachel’s life and the day she was taught how to make her first book; she knew she’d be a bookbinder for the rest of her life. Hear a bit about her story and how and she believes that everyone has a book inside them.  

What: Rachel Hazell: ‘The Benefit of Books’ at Artists’ Bookmarket 2025 

When: Saturday 15 February, 1:45pm – 2:15pm 

Where: Fruitmarket Gallery, 45 Market Street, Edinburgh, EH11DF 

Tickets: Free to attend, book here  

Celebrate Hope: Book Week Scotland illuminates Edinburgh and the Lothians with inspiring literary events

Scotland’s national celebration of books, Book Week Scotland 2024, returns from 18-24 November to uplift Edinburgh and Lothians with its theme of Hope.

This year’s programme offers unique perspectives on resilience, community, and the landscapes that define the region. Over the years, Book Week Scotland has deepened its impact on Edinburgh and the Lothians, delivering literary events to even the remotest locations and fostering connections in towns and communities.

The 2024 programme spotlights regional authors and local libraries as community cornerstones. 65,000 copies of a new free book, Scotland’s Stories: Hope, will be distributed during the week.

It is made up of real-life stories from people across Scotland, including contributions from people in Edinburgh and Lothians.

Local voices in this year’s Hope book include:

·       “A Wee Pocket of Joy” by Rosemary Henderson, East Lothian

·       “Dancing for Hope” by Georgia Marlborough, Edinburgh

·       “Ribbons and New Socks” by Sheena Mason, Dalkeith

·       “Hope and Consolation” by David Pickering, Edinburgh

·       “It’s The Hope That Kills You” by Julie Drybrough, Edinburgh

·       “Thorin” by Sam Eastop, Edinburgh (also adapted as a comic strip by Mollie Ray)

Each piece reflects the theme of Hope in unique and personal ways, highlighting the power of local stories.

Book Week Scotland event highlights in Edinburgh and the Lothians:

·       Landscapes of Hope and Inspiration, Fruitmarket Gallery, Edinburgh, 18 November—This event will bring together visual artist Julie Brook, writer Linda Cracknell, and musician Duncan Chisholm to discuss how Scotland’s landscapes inspire and provide hope. 

·       The Pleasures of Reading with Jackie Kay, Portobello Bookshop, 20 November – Jackie Kay shares the books that have inspired her, joined by Dr Sarah McGeown to explore the benefits of reading for pleasure. 

·       Various Author Events Across Edinburgh and East Lothian – Libraries and regional community centres will host readings, discussions, and family events celebrating the joy of reading. 

The variety of events this year reflects Edinburgh and Lothians’ longstanding engagement with Book Week Scotland, now in its 13th year and supported by Creative Scotland.

Scottish Book Trust invites everyone to join the #BookWeekScotland conversation and find further information and event listings at Book Week Scotland 2024 – Scottish Book Trust .

Extracts:

Rosemary Henderson, Tranent (East Lothian), ‘A Wee Pocket of Joy’

Sheena Mason, Dalkeith (Midlothian), ‘Ribbons and New Socks’

Georgia Marlborough, Edinburgh, ‘Dancing for Hope’

David Pickering, Edinburgh, ‘HOPE AND CONSOLATION’

Julie Drybrough, Edinburgh, ‘It’s The Hope That Kills You’

Sam Eastop, Edinburgh, ‘Thorin’ – story also adapted as a comic strip by Mollie Ray Jennie Tripp, Edinburgh

Follow in our Footsteps: Fruitmarket Gallery’s Schools Programme exhibition

Augmented reality artwork, corrupted selfies, hidden content and an installation hanging from washing lines, a time-lapsed film projected onto the cast impressions of Edinburgh’s Old Town and sound experiments as a playable interface …

These are some of the artworks created by pupils from eight Edinburgh schools which will be on display at Custom Lane in Leith this weekend as part of The Fruitmarket Gallery’s Making Matters and SmART Thinking Schools’ Programmes.
Continue reading Follow in our Footsteps: Fruitmarket Gallery’s Schools Programme exhibition

Fruitmarket Gallery set to pop up at Waverley Mall

Waverley Mall Edinburgh is thrilled to announce the latest addition to the Centre as The Fruitmarket Gallery signs up to move in from mid-September 2019.

The move comes as plans to extensively renovate and extend The Fruitmarket Gallery on Market Street are approved, resulting in the temporary closure of the Gallery while works are completed.

Waverley Mall will become the temporary home to The Fruitmarket Gallery and ‘Bookmarket’ – an independent, award-winning bookshop run by the Gallery. With an admiration for good books at its core and a mission to help customers find beautiful, useful, and unique books, the Bookmarket pop up will be accessed via Williams and Johnson Coffee Co. just off Princes Street at the top of Waverley Steps.

It will offer expertly selected niche titles, hard-to-find arts resource texts, artist’s books, and specialist books on typography, art theory, design, architecture, and fashion, plus a curated selection of design-led products and cards from all around the world.

Waverley Mall is excited to work with The Fruitmarket Gallery, welcoming its loyal customers and introducing some new ones to the Gallery in its new home. Gallery staff will also enjoy new office space at the Centre, during this year of transition, with workshops, talks and performances happening in the space, as well as a series of pop-up exhibitions.

The first of these will be the culmination of 6 weeks of workshops on zine making by Fresh Fruit, the Fruitmarket’s peer led group of young people aged 16-25 years. Zines are quick and cheap to produce and have a radical underground history where anything goes and different voices can be heard. The results can be seen at Bookmarket from Saturday 26 October.

The addition of Bookmarket to Waverley Mall is truly reflective of the Centre’s vision for the mall as a hub of music, arts and culture in the heart of Edinburgh. The aspirations of Moorgarth Group, who own the Centre, include the offering of products, services and experiences that are surprising and unexpected and very much not what you’d find on the average high street.

The busy city-centre shopping mall has recently enjoyed a series of new store openings including Mademoiselle Macaron – an Edinburgh-based French patisserie and Clicks and Mortar – a new concept collaboration between Amazon, Enterprise Nation, Square and Direct Line for Business, who together create a space through which small, independent businesses can trade.

Daryll Bunce, Director of New Revenue Solutions, Moorgarth Group Ltd. says: “The addition of this Edinburgh institution, The Fruitmarket Gallery to Waverley Mall is fantastic news for us as they provide a very current and relevant offering to our customers, which ties in perfectly with the overall vision we are striving for.

“This journey started 12 months ago with the opening of Williams & Johnson – Leith’s best coffee roaster in an amazing new store on the upper level of Waverley. This has become a real destination for great coffee in the city centre and following the success of this, we have established a brand new space for the Fruitmarket Gallery which continues to expand our offering and adds a whole new dimension to the mall.”

Fiona Bradley, Director of The Fruitmarket Gallery said: “We jumped at the opportunity to work with our neighbours Waverley Mall, embracing the chance to meet new audiences in this busy part of Edinburgh.

“It is great to be able to keep our much-loved independent bookshop open, and to have a space for our Engagement team to run events and workshops during our closure.”