Celts: Arts and Identity

The first major exhibition in 40 years of the Art, History and Culture of the Celts. The National Museum of Scotland in collaboration with the British Museum London – tells the story of the Celts over 2,500 years.

 Now at the British museum and from March 2016 at the National museum Scotland.

In 2009, four gold torcs were found at Blair Drummond Stirling by David Booth (first tiw with metal detector!). The four torcs made between 300 and 100 BC show connections across Iron Age Europe – two are spirally ribbons, characteristics of Scotland and Ireland. The other two show French and Mediterranean style. The word Celtic still resonates today in politics, religion and identity.

The Celts were people in Iron Age and Medieval Europe who spoke Celtic languages and had cultural similarities. Celtic culture diversified into that of the Gaels (Irish, Scottish and Manx) and the Brythonic Celts (Welsh, Cornish, and Bretons) of the medieval and modern periods. During the Renaissance, 1700, it was used to describe the cultures of Brittany, Ireland, Scotland.

 

Notably here in Glasgow for the biggest world folk festival Celtic Connections. (no mention on the museum’s site). Where have all these exhibits been hiding all these years – in museum basements?

The British museum states the Celts are not one genetic race – I am not sure I understand what they mean? Were the Vikings or Romans one genetic race? For me it is more about sense of place, culture, heritage and history. 

http://www.britishmuseum.org/whats_on/exhibitions/celts.aspx

Artist Peter Doig

Peter Doig is a Scottish painter. I read of him recently in a Times magazine article by Bryan Appleyard. Oddly I had never heard of him, even while I often visit art galleries here and abroad. He was born in Edinburgh, the Tate lists him as English.

When others were turning to conceptual art in the 1990s Doig stuck to his painting.  

I went to check on his paintings and was impressed with his subtle use of colour and tones, thoughtful narratives and careful immersive reflections, Beautiful. 

Doig is one of the most renowned living figurative painters, he has settled in Trinidad since 2002. In 2007, his painting White Canoe sold at Sotheby's for $11.3 million, then an auction record for a living European artist. In February 2013, his painting, The Architect's Home in the Ravine, sold for $12 million at a London auction. 

His work is at the Palazzetto Tito, Venice from May 5, Venice biennial of art.   http://www.saatchigallery.com/artists/peter_doig.ht

National Art Galleries of Scotland

National Art Galleries of Scotland

At the Scottish National galleries in Edinburgh - I used to pass every day on my way to secondary school - there has not been a Scottish director for the past 60 years. The Scottish painters lie in its basement.  Most Scottish artists+ have had to move abroad to the likes of New York to gain recognition.  

In 2012 the galleries held an exhibition titled Van Gogh to Kandinsky | Symbolist Landscape in Europe 1880-1910 with not one Scottish painter in the display. 

The National Galleries of Scotland for the last 60 years have been run by directors from England. Does this matter?  Well yes if you value a country's expression. For those who wish to keep Scotland's historical and cultural identify suppressed it matters also.   

In most other major capital cities worldwide they house one half of the gallery for international art and the other sections for art of that country.  It would seem strange to visit the national art galleries of say Barcelona and for there not to be any Spanish art there? No idea what message this sends out to foreign visitors that in Scotland we rarely exhibit our own Scottish artists.

On my first visit to the refurbished Scottish portrait gallery a few years ago in 2011, I looked in vain for any respected Scottish photographers - when I know there are many! I hope this may be remedied now?  I just read that Scotland opened the first National Portrait gallery! The portrait gallery museum was (first established in 1882) and rehoused in its new purposed built building in 1889, the first in the world. Paid for by John Ritchie Findlay. 

Labour peer George Robertson, former Defence secretary and NATO chief, gave a speech at Dundee university where he claimed that places like Flanders and Catalonia have more history and culture than Scotland - when it fact Catalonia does not have anything like the long centuries of history Scotland has as a defined and separate country. In fact Scotland has a longer history than the UK has. 

He said regarding Scottish independence, " There is no linguistic differentiation, no great cultural discrimination that might ague for it, like in some other countries...."they have language and culture and all these sort of things. Scotland doesn't have any of that."    

I recommend reading the book 'Arts of Independence'  and 'Arts of the Resistance' on the suppression of Scottish arts, by Alexander Moffat and Alan Riach; the cultural argument and why it matters most. 

 http://www.luath.co.uk/arts-of-independence.html

Glasgow School of Art Restoration

The famed and beautiful Macintosh building was badly destroyed by fire in 2014. On the BBCs Scotland 2014 program recently 3 options were discussed.

(1) to restore the art school to its former glory as all the designs are still here and were kept safe. (2) To build a totally new building. (3) To design a new building around the fire with some of Mackintosh's work included. 

I've asked friends and most reactions I've heard are to restore the Mackintosh building.

I was rather aghast - to me it looks like opportunism by a present day architect to redesign the school. Innovation and creativity such as Rennie MacKintosh and Margaret MacDonald showed us, come along rarely in a life time.

I believe this great historic building should be an Art Library and Research centre and a place for exhibitions and visitors. I don't care whether the school is a workable place for art students and concept instillations. Art students doing risky instillations can do so in another place in my view.    

 http://www.e-architect.co.uk/architects/rennie-mackintosh

President of the Royal Institute of British Architects, Stephen Hodder, said: “The most important work by Charles Rennie Mackintosh, an architect of international significance, Glasgow School of Art, is held in the highest regard by architects and the public alike.“It was rightly judged to be the best building of the past 175 years, in a nationwide poll run by the Royal Institute of British Architects.

“Damage to  building of such immense significance and uniqueness is an international tragedy. It is irreplaceable. 

Edinburgh Festival 2011 (review)

Roland Rivron

I still have hundreds of images to sort...

Edinburgh's theme this year was Eastern colours, dance, and contrasts.  How do we find the joys, the fun in life that gets lost in our everyday realities?  I always pick a theme and my theme this year is fun and what festivals should be for, because after all if life isn't 'fun' what exactly is it for? My main focus is now the 'Edinburgh International Book festival' and I have much less time on the High Street. 

I took photos of the fringe show 'LEO' that is heading to New York and of many authors. Some of my stalking didn't work out. I missed Gordon Brown, David Hasselhoff and Brad Pitt (here Glasgow) - but I did meet Alex Salmond and shook his hand! Cool. 

Stalking!  I missed some stalking opportunities!  I missed my shot of Gordon Brown (ex PM)  who came with his wife Sarah for her talk at the EIBF. It was only a normal Saturday night in Glasgow when Zombies take over the streets!  Tuesday and Brad Pitt media arrived in Glasgow Central station. The pose of photographers were disappointed as he was taken off the back of his train and whisked away.  I later heard that one snapper got the 'shot' for the Sun.  Also a tip that David Hasselhoff would be at the BBC tent at 10pm, and I wasn't able to manage this stalking either!   

FRINGE SHOWS. My first show was 'Rick Hall', as seen on tv show 'Mock the Week'.  Next 'The Dead Philosopher' at the Traverse and the premise was that 'life is a joke' - well if so this show certainly wasn't one!   *
 *LEO.  I took photos at 'Leo' which was a highly creative and wonderful performance and was performed by Tobias Wegner and directed by Daniel Briere. Leo won the Carol Tambor Best of Edinburgh Award and will receive a full NYC production at Theatre Row in January. The award is the Edinburgh Festival Fringe's highest honour, and was presented at the festival's closing ceremonies on August 26. 

I was on the phone outside Biblos restaurant on the corner of Chambers Street when 'Gerry' of Martian fame walked past in the rain wearing a long leather coat with his serious deadpan look. Perhaps it is all fleeting odd moments that we have here and nothing is real or as it seems..? Life leads us on strange paths and on these pavements that have seen to many footsteps...

 'Real harmony comes from the heart. Trust, respect and friendship are all essential.' Dala Lama. My Field of Dreams, I search through them as they hover above, Sometimes golden, Sometimes hollow. 

Edinburgh has strong ever changing winds and apparently the rain is connected to the high tides. One photographer has shot Dylan. In our yurt, that one describes as a 'soggy mushroom' the crack at times is fun. I wonder to myself that some young people can't take time to 'smell the roses' - they are so busy constantly plugged in online.

I love the challenge of Photography while sometimes I wonder it is writing I really want to be doing. Sometimes the song is like a gift.   

It has been cloudy quite often and I feel tired and sad it is over for another year. The last day and it feels the posters are tired and sad a little too, as am I. Cultural overload. For the discerning there is much on offer to delight the senses at EIF.  A big Thanks to all at the Edinburgh Book Festival for another top year.  2,500 shows at 250 venues over 3 to 4 weeks, over one million visitors.  

GREAT Headlines! It has been a week of stupendous headlines!

A Disney fairytale week! First the 'beautiful princess' Kate Middleton in a dress of ivory lace married her 'handsome prince' (Prince William) who wore an Irish Guard uniform with a scarlet jacket and blue sash. 

On Monday the 'baddie'  -  one of the most evil men of our times - was killed in a raid on his hide-out.

I saw a post about his death on a YouTube clip and I thought at first it was simply a joke!  On checking the BBC Breaking news, I found this was actually real!  In fact the American security team had watched the raid in real time in the White House Situation Room.