Tag: drawing

Annie Lord’s Ecology Centre Residency

My mini artist’s residency, supported by Fife Contemporary, has sadly come to an end. Over spring and summer, I had the opportunity to spend time onsite – at first getting to know the people who work or volunteer here, or in some cases both! Latterly I returned to run printmaking and drawing workshops. I was so inspired by the beautiful artwork that was produced that I decided to turn them into something celebratory – to honour the vibrant community of the Ecology Centre.

So, I had the artwork made into a textile (at the Centre for Advanced Textiles, Glasgow), and spent the next few days sewing together metres and metres of flag bunting. Each individual piece was made by someone who attended a workshop or one of the volunteer groups at the Ecology Centre. They depict the animals and plants of the local landscape – tadpoles, frogs, coots, elder leaves, the rings of a tree and the earth itself.

On a Saturday at the end of July, the bunting had its first outing at the Ecology Centre’s Beach Day on Kinghorn beach. The bunting flapped in the sea breeze as people gathered to go rock-pooling, made monoprints and created sand sculptures. I hope that for years to come, this bunting will be hung out at celebrations and community events. Some of the fabric was also used to create a set of weighted beanbags – perfect for playing games with and another way to celebrate the brilliant patterns and textures created on the workshops.

The landscape of the Ecology Centre provided a rich source of inspiration, with so much to see and draw! From now on, visitors to the Ecology Centre can borrow an activity kit which will provide the tools you need to creatively explore the site. Each kit contains a handmade notebook, a viewfinder, a ‘Discovery Drawing’ guide and art materials. All of this is packaged up in a beautiful tote bag printed by one of the volunteers at the Ecology Centre. It’s the perfect way for children to spend some time engaging with nature and playing with new techniques. Kits can be borrowed from reception. We can’t wait to see what you create – please share any photos with the Ecology Centre and Fife Contemporary (Facebook/Instagram @fifecontemp @theecologycentre, and Twitter @fifecontemp @theecology_1 with #kinghornloch).

It has been such a pleasure to get to spend time at the Ecology Centre and I am looking forward to returning as a visitor to sit and sketch in the grounds and enjoy this wonderful place. A big thank you to everyone who came along to a workshop, and in particular to the volunteers who helped put together the kits.

Finding Patterns in Nature

In this hands-on, free workshop, you’ll learn drawing, printing and stencil-making. You’ll all go on a short walk to take inspiration from the shapes and colours found in plants and birds, then head inside to get creative. Whether you’re a regular to the Ecology Centre or this will be your first visit, we’d love to have you here.

Fife Contemporary appointed artist Annie Lord to an artist’s residency with The Ecology Centre on Kinghorn Loch in March 2022. Since then she has visited several times to get to know the Centre, who uses and visits it, and what they do. This workshop from 11am-2pm Saturday 14 May will be her first public workshop there for anyone aged 7+.

The art that you create at the workshop will be used as inspiration for the final community artwork which will be unveiled at the centre later in 2022.

No experience required and all materials will be provided. Children must be accompanied by an adult for the duration of the workshop (and we’d love for you to get involved too!).

If you have any access requirements please contact admin@theecologycentre.org

Lines from Scotland

Fife Contemporary has commissioned independent curator Amanda Game to curate the exhibition Lines from Scotland.

It will be shown in Fife at St Andrews Museum (9 Nov 2019-22 Feb 2020) and touring to Dunfermline Carnegie Library & Galleries (7 Mar-10 May 2020)

Curated by Amanda Game, Lines from Scotland explores some of the many, varied ways that Scottish artists work/have worked with drawing and physical acts of mark-making as a way of developing and communicating thoughts and ideas.  It is designed to reveal something of the ever-evolving depth, diversity and richness of thinking in the arts in Scotland through linking works that spring from distinct disciplinary traditions, across media. Animation, archaeological records, botanical drawing, landscapes, portraits and designs for objects are just some of the lines that will be included.

Exhibitors span three generations: 

Wilhelmina Barns-Graham; Elizabeth Blackadder; Thomas A and Laurie Clark; Ian Hamilton Finlay; Andy Goldsworthy; Dorothy Hogg; John Houston; Susie Leiper; Michael Lloyd; Rory McEwen; Deirdre Nelson/Inge Thomson; Frances Priest; Carol Rhodes; Lizzie Sanders; David Shrigley; Lucy Skaer; Norma Starszakowna; Hanna Tuulikki/High Heels and Horse Hair; Frances Walker.

A small selection of archaeological drawings and photographic material from Historic Environment Scotland also feature to suggest some of the wider ways that human beings have drawn from and recorded their environments through time.

A 52 page, full colour publication has been produced to accompany the exhibition.

Header image: St Andrews Looking West, Wilhelmina Barns-Graham Trust; photo by Bruce Pert.

The Exhibition That Nearly Didn’t Make It To St Andrews!

Being situated on the east coast of Scotland – and not the far east coast at that – we probably don’t give much thought to the weather as a force to reckon with when installing exhibitions in Fife! But it most certainly did nearly put a spanner in the works last week as snow covered a large part of the country, paralysing road and rail networks, even cutting some of us off  for a few days! Our ‘Alan Vest – My Drawing Day’ exhibition, planned for this year’s StAnza Poetry Festival, suddenly looked in jeopardy!

Plan A had been to collect the work by car from the artist’s home in the NE of England the week before – but we had snow.
Plan B was to try over the w/end.  Ah.  Still snow.
Plan C – how about the Monday?  No, still not all clear – and heavy rain plus snow melt was now causing flooding.
Plan D – finally, an excellent Man with a Van (Stuart) was found who was willing to head south in the middle of Monday night to bring back Alan’s work to St Andrews by early afternoon on the Tuesday (he made it by lunchtime in fact – what a feat of heroics!).

The frames were installed at St Andrews Town Hall by excellent artist-technicians Marion and Anton, and Fife Contemporary’s exhibition was ready to be seen by visitors to StAnza.

The exhibition ‘My Drawing Day‘ is on view now till Sunday 11 March and shows 9 examples of Alan’s illustrative drawings, completed for The Guardian’s Saturday Review as ‘My Writing Day’.  You can also meet the artist in person on Saturday 10 March at his exhibition in St Andrews Town Hall from 12.30-1pm. For full details of StAnza 2018’s programme, please go to their website.