VISUAL ART
SOWING THE SEEDS
Our Visual Art editor Rachael Cloughton talks to grassroots collectives that have grown out of Scotland’s art schools
‘Q uite often, as a graduating student, it’s hard to see what lies past graduation,’ explains Max Slaven, discussing the beginnings of the David Dale Gallery and Studios. In 2009, alongside Ellie Royle and Ralph Mackenzie, Slaven founded the gallery: ‘We felt it was important to have an organisation for us to enable the momentum built up in art school to continue.’ Things
have developed rapidly since then: in the past i ve years David Dale has evolved from makeshift studios in a derelict building in Glasgow’s East End, to a prominent contemporary art space. ‘Fairly soon into the project we became more interested in supporting and facilitating exhibitions and other artists’ work rather than our own,’ says Slaven, ‘and have developed this interest into our current programme.’
School
Slaven, Royle d and e Mackenzie met at the f of Glasgow d they had Art, where d worked previously e together on collaborative . students. projects as d involved ‘We were e in a project called the e Collective Glasgow ,’ while in our i nal year,’ s continues Slaven. ‘This n in was d showing us that we had y the possibility and ability d and to or create opportunities for ourselves.’
self-organise
instrumental
Self-organising as as st students was the catalyst for the formation of the Glasgow Open House team too. ‘We had a lot of fun working together on group exhibitions as students,’ says Amalie Silvani-Jones, director of the group. ‘One I remember as particularly relevant was held in an empty l at in the West End. Someone was in the middle of moving and still had the keys to a big l at that was lying empty, so invited us to take part in a group show there. It was fantastic!’ The group – all graduates from the GSA – are now working on the second iteration of Glasgow Open House. Their last event showed work in over 36 domestic spaces across the city.
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Silvani-Jones credits her time at college as being part of the project’s success: ‘You leave with a big, strong network of friends and contemporaries, and the festival wouldn’t have been as successful without the support and involvement of these people.’
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The founders of the 2-1-4-1 collective also teamed up while studying. R Rosie Roberts and Frances L Lightbound met on the pa painting and printmaking co course at GSA, while K Kirsty Macleod, who st studied at Gray’s School o of Art in Aberdeen, m met Lightbound when th they were high s school. Recognising th the advantages of their e exchanges while at d different establishments, 2 2-1-4-1 was created to p provide a platform for d discussion and critique a across emerging S Scottish art scene. ‘We w wanted a space where g graduates from all the art s schools in Scotland could b begin to see each other’s w work and goings on,’ e explains Roberts. ‘We a also partake in curatorial e endeavours, such as our r recent show Draw In, to t try and create a dialogue between potentially disparate practitioners.’ in Edinburgh, Ronald Binnie, Svetlana Kondakova, Leo Starrs- Cunningham and Piotr Skibinksi met at Edinburgh College of Art and founded the Black Cube Collective in 2012. The group has already made a the huge contemporary arts scene, participating in two European Commission-backed projects. ‘These projects enabled Scottish artists and technologists to collaborate on funded projects,’ explains Binnie, ‘the results of which were then shown both in Scotland and in Brussels, and helped to inl uence EC policy on art and new technology.’ impact on
Over
Binnie is happy to share the secrets of that group’s success: ‘Work with people you trust, know and like. Above all, be prepared to do a lot of work for very little initial return. Like art in general, do it because you’re passionate about it.’