FESTIVAL ART
GALLERIES/ MUSEUMS
TRUTH TO TELL“
The Carrying Stream, Netherbow Arts Centre. The irenzied cultural abundance of the Festival reaches the heights oi irony when one considers that the purpose oi this exhibition is to raise money ior the School oi Scottish Studies as it endures the Philistinism oi Mrs Thatcher’s political ethos, which does not admit the existence at society, let alone a distinct Scottish cultural tradition.
History is both storytelling through word and the resonance oi song, creative iorms retaining their roots and distinctiveness in the light oi the censoring oi reality in traditional history books. Sanitising the richness and opposition oi a cultural heritage, they deny a voice to those ior whom the oral tradition ensures the continuity ol their stories and passions which trace the outline oi a sense oi belonging.
Calum MacLean wrote: ‘There are two histories oi every land and people, the written history that tells what is politic to tell and the unwritten history that tells everything’. The School is a research and teaching department oi the University oi Edinburgh, concentrating on interdisciplinary research but is also Scotland’s national archive at oral tradition. It is a vital link, the keeper and reilector oi the unwritten history oi the music and poetry which evade a place in history by their transience and language oi living diiierence.
Consisting oi photographs drawn irom the archives oi the school, the
HERITAGE
I EDINBURGH CANAL CENTRE Bridge Inn, 27 Baird Road. Ratho. 333 1320/1251. ° Scotland‘s first Canal Centre has recently opened on the Union Canal — hire a rowing boat or look round the Visitor Centre which displays artefacts from the history ofthe canal.
I EDINBURGH UNIVERSITY LIBRARY EXHIBITION HALL George Square, 225 1915. Mon—Fri9am-5pm.
Librarte Until Fri 25 Aug. A history of Italian art as found in the books ofthe major publishing houses of Italy.
I NATIONAL LIBRARY OF SCOTLAND George 1V Bridge. 226 4531. Mon—Fri
exhibition provides through images an opportunity to visualise the cultural landscape through work, customs and dwellings, both past and present, thereby illustrating conditions oi existence. From photographs oi women waulking wool on Eriskay to haai-net lishing on the Solway Estuary, ways at subsistence become shared songs, meditative poems which transcend regionalism, but remain rooted in the reality oi the lives at people ior whom language and culture were ways oi being. To secure the continued existence oi the school, this exhibition deserves the utmost support. Amidst the chaos oi iestivals and the superticiality oi City oi Culture, small organizations, undervalued and marginalized carry the ilow oi cultural lite: the School oi Scottish Studies plays a vital role in this respect. (Lorna J. Waite)
9.3()am—5pm; Sat 9.30am—lpm; Sun 2pm—5pm.
300 Years 300 Books Until Sat 11 November. An exhibition celebrating the tercentenary of the foundation ofthe National Library whose origins go back to the establishment of the Advocates' Library in 1689. For each year ofthe Library‘s existence there will be a specific exhibit representing a particularly interesting or curious acquisition ofthat year. The enormous range includes the poignant last letter of Mary Queen of Scots, the Gutenberg Bible. the war diaries of Earl Haig and a 1985 edition of Old King Cole printed in Paisley.
I NETHERBOW 43 High Street, 556 9579. Mon—Sat 10am—9pm. Cafe.
The Carrying Stream Until Sat 2 Sept. A
photographic record of the work carried out by the Scottish School of Studies. an institution dedicated to preserving Scotland‘s oral history and heritage , in support of its appeal fund. Their collection houses 10.000 prints, a large slide collection and a growing number offilms and videos but more importantly it isthe invaluable collater of Scotland‘s oral history, which with the aid of the money raised by the appeal fund, they hope to make more accessible to the public. I OLD ST PAUL'S CHURCH Jeffrey Street, Mon—Sat l()am—4pm. Princes, Priests and People, 1689-1989 Until Sat 2 Sept. An exhibition celebrating St Paul‘s tercentenary. I SCOTTISH RECORD OFFICE West Register House, Charlotte Square , 556 6585 Mon—Fri 9am—4.30pm. Strange Revolutions: Scotland 1688-89 Until Fri 22 Sept. Friends OI Liberty Until Fri 22 Sept. Written records dating back to the time of the French Revolution record its effects on Scottish society and politics. The display concentrates on the period from 17894830, 3 time of great political unrest in this country, which had the ruling classes terrified that events here would follow a similar course to those in France. I TALBOT RICE ART GALLERY Old College . University of Edinburgh, South Bridge, 667 101 l. Mon—Sat lOam-Spm. Treasures ot the University Library Until Wed 1 Nov. Spanning the entire 200 years since the founding of the Old College and its Library the exhibition consists of ancient books, manuscripts and architectural drawings from the dustiest shelves of the University Library. I ROYAL MUSEUM OF SCOTLAND Chambers Street. 225 7534. Mon—Sat lOam—Spm; Sun 2-5pm. Wealth cl 8 Nation Until 31 December. A major exhibition of the wealth, intrinsic and otherwise that Scotland holds in its museums. Many of the items are currently poorly housed and part of the reason for the show is to drum up support forthe construction of new buildings for the museum on Chambers Street. Revolutions in Science Until 10 Oct. A look at the major scientific discoveries ofthe last 200 years with the chance to try out the odd experiment yourself. I SCOTTISH AGRICULTURAL MUSEUM lngliston. Mon—Fri l()am—Spm. Agriculture still plays an important role in Scotland‘s culture and this museum looks at the old trades and skills ofthe countryside. The Sword and the Plough A special exhibition which explores the changes brought by two World Wars and their effect on the communities and the landscape.
FILM IN PHOTOGRAPHS
Paulo Pasolini: La Forma dello Sguardo, St Cécilia’s Hall.
The Form oi the Vision is a photographic exhibition comprising lilm stills, poetry and visual documentation at the work at the revolutionary oi the Italian screen, Pier Paulo Pasolinoi. Murdered in 1975, Pasolinl’s death reilected the provocative, transgressive qualities oi his iilms and writings which were rooted in a fascination ior Freud, Marx and Jesus as well as a psychological identllicatlon with the Italian proletariat. Neither dogmatic narratives nor ambiguous statements, Pasolini’s images were both a history oi ideas as well as exquisite visual poetics which transcended bourgeois values and admitted the politics at desire through his exploration oi the literary potential oi cinema.
A Communist atheist transiixed on an exploration oi Fascism, homosexuality and spirituality, Pasolini’s anarchy was committed to revealing the cruelty at power through the establishment oi ialse and alienating values and the attendant death at living cultures. For him, sexuality was a metaphor ior the relationship between power and those who are subjected to it. The way of seeing the world became the ‘technical sacredness ol seeing that world ' through the properties oi lilm. All the photographs in this show convey his iluidity oi composition and love oi light. Badlcallzing contradictions, his reality is the lens which tuses word amd image. (Lorna J. Waite)
' 9.7m: = I Am I :xTL‘i
Until 9th Se—ptember WHEN WE WERE YOUNG An exhibition about the portrayal ofchildren in British Art
from 1880 to the present day.
Until 16th September MUNCH AND PHOTOGRAPHY AND MUNCH AS PHOTOGRAPHER Drawn from collections at the Munch Museum. Oslo revealing the importance ofphotography to Munch‘s paintings. 2 Market Street, Edinburgh Open Mon—Sat l0am—6pm During Edinburgh Festival, Sun 2pm—5pm
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ROYAL BOTANIC GARDEN EDINBURGH
The List 25 — 31 August 1989 49