After a successful run of our Wasps Summer Artist and Makers Markets, we are returning with the Wasps Winter Artist and Makers Market series! Applications are now open for these markets and will take place in Inverness and Glasgow. Save the date and share with your creative network and let’s make this year the best yet.
Inverness Creative Academy
Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 November 2022
Apply for this Winter 2022 Market here.
The Briggait, Glasgow
Saturday 3 and Sunday 4 December 2022
Apply for this Winter 2022 Market here.
The deadline to apply is Monday 3 October. Should you have any questions about the application process, contact us on info@waspsstudios.org.uk.
Clyde community initiative marks the work of 20th century Scottish Novelist Naomi Mitchison
A public art exhibition celebrating the work of Scottish novelist, poet and playwright Naomi Mitchison will open in Glasgow this autumn, following free creative workshops with communities located on the Clyde estuary.
As part of the celebrations for Scotland’s Year of Stories 2022, provider of creative spaces, Wasps, the Clyde Fishermen’s Trust, and award-winning multidisciplinary artist Rhona Taylor have been collaborating with community groups in Carradale, Tarbert and Glasgow. The locations mark the traditional fishing route along the Clyde to The Briggait, which once served as Scotland’s largest fish market and is now operated by Wasps as a major arts centre. In each location, Rhona Taylor, who is also a Wasps tenant, has worked alongside local communities to explore and respond to different elements and themes present within Naomi Mitchison’s work.
The resulting exhibition will be held at Wasps’ The Briggait, which now serves as a working home for artists and creators and features gallery and event space. Leading up to the exhibition Rhona Taylor has used Mitchison’s work with local communities as a focal point to encourage discussion around the historical relationship between the Clyde’s rural and urban areas, collecting responses and stories about the history of this relationship and how it might develop in the future.
Naomi Mitchison was a prolific novelist, poet and playwright whose body of work spans an entire century, encompassing an array of genres and formats, including children’s literature, feminist science fiction and a semi-autobiographical play. Her work was ahead of its time, exploring themes of self-determinism and equality across gender, race and class.
Mitchison spent the latter half of her life in Carradale, where she was heavily involved in local life and the politics of the small fishing communities of the Clyde. She worked as a farmer and fisherwoman, skippering her fishing boat, the Maid of Morvern, and wrote extensively about her experience of living and working within a small fishing community.
The exhibition at Wasps’ The Briggait opens on Sunday 18 September, will be free to attend, and will feature a collective sculptural installation incorporating the creative contributions of the community groups. It is intended to weave together responses to the themes of community, self-determinism, equality and collective action present in Mitchison’s life and work.
Artist and Wasps tenant Rhona Taylor: “It’s brilliant to be working with the Clyde Fishermen’s Trust and Wasps to focus on Naomi Mitchison for the Year of Stories. Naomi Mitchison wasn’t just a prolific writer, but was a lifelong campaigner and also did some amazing work bringing contemporary artworks to schools in Argyll. She believed that art shouldn’t be confined to big cities, which I couldn’t agree more about. She had an incredible life, and lived much of it in Carradale, so it’s great and very fitting to be working with people in her local communities on this project.”
Jonathan Walker of Clyde Fishermen’s Trust: “The Clyde Fishermen’s Trust are delighted to be working in partnership with Wasps and the artist Rhona Taylor to celebrate the life and work of Scottish novelist Naomi Mitchison as part of the Year of Stories 2022 Community Stories Fund. We are excited to work alongside the communities in which Naomi lived, exploring the themes present in her work and responding creatively through participatory art workshops.”
Marie Christie, Head of Development at VisitScotland said: “We are delighted to be supporting Clyde Fisherman’s Trust project through the Year of Stories 2022 Community Stories Fund. Events play an important role in our communities as they sustain livelihoods and help to celebrate and promote our unique places, spaces, and stories. Themed Years are all about collaboration and Museums Galleries Scotland, National Lottery Heritage Fund and VisitScotland are pleased to work in partnership to create this fund to showcase community stories. By supporting events taking place within our communities, including the Clyde Fisherman’s Trust project, new opportunities with be provided for locals and visitors to come together and find out more about the diverse stories, past and present, that our communities have to share.”
This event has been supported by the Year of Stories 2022 Community Stories Fund. This fund is being delivered in partnership between VisitScotland and Museums Galleries Scotland with support from National Lottery Heritage Fund thanks to National Lottery players.
Scottish Borders Artist Collective Bring New Show to Edinburgh Gallery
Visual and applied artists who have worked at The Borders’ Marchmont Estate open a collective exhibition with an ecological theme at Wasps’ Patriothall Gallery in Edinburgh next week.
Second Nature appears at the capital’s Patriothall Gallery from Friday 10 June to Friday 24 July and features sixteen artists who have conducted their creative practices at the Borders estate at some point over the past three years, including four artists who won residencies at Marchmont Estate through the partnership between Marchmont and Scotland’s national provider of creative spaces, Wasps.
The exhibition theme centres around Art and Nature and takes inspiration from a former high profile resident of Marchmont, Rory McEwen, one of Scotland’s most versatile creative figures of the last century, a leading figure in the folk music scene from the late 1950s and a pioneer of botanical and multimedia art.
Despite having received no formal graduate training in art, Rory McEwen became one of the most gifted botanical artists of the 20th century. Influenced by the surrounding landscape and countryside, Rory’s artwork can be found in the collections of the British Museum, Victoria & Albert Museum, Tate, National Gallery of Modern Art, Scotland, the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, the Hunt Institute, Pittsburgh, and MOMA, New York.
Second Nature exhibiting Wasps artists include Helen Flockhart and Laura Derby, whose work will be on show alongside Emma Hislop, Jack Brindley, Charlie Poulson, Martha Ellis, Gary Anderson, Andrew Mackenzie, Richard Goldsworthy, Michelle de Bruin, Sara Rhys, Frippy Jameson, Josephine Crossland, Tod Hanson, Redbraes Pottery and Annabel Wightman, all artists with connections to Marchmont Estate.
Wasps Chief Executive Officer Audrey Carlin: “Second Nature is a fabulous way to celebrate what has been achieved with Wasps’ and Marchmont’s partnership so far, and this exhibition gives the public a flavour of the diversity of output emanating from this idyllic location. It not only features some of the fantastic works by residency winners Laura Derby, Helen Flockhart, Emma Hislop and Jack Brindley, but also artists from outside the Wasps network who have taken part in the Marchmont House programme and have become part of this flourishing creative community. We look forward to welcoming their work to Wasps’ Patriothall Gallery and wish the artists continued success.”
Second Nature appears at Wasps’ Patriothall Gallery, Stockbridge, Edinburgh, EH3 5AY from Friday 10 June to Sunday 24 July. The exhibition is free to attend and opening times are Fridays and Saturdays, 11am to 4pm, or by appointment.
Creating beautiful products that also take into consideration the environmental impact the materials used can be challenging. After years of working in mental health, Laura Derby is striving to make the world a better place through her art, while also reducing her environmental impact. In this episode of Perspectives Wasps chats with Laura about how she is taking a mindfulness approach to her textile arts practice.
Listen in to get her perspective on how to utilise mindfulness in your work.
Artist tenants at The Briggait welcome visitors to their creative studios in May
One of the most historically significant buildings in Glasgow will be open to the public on Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 May, as the artist occupants encourage curious cultural enthusiasts to pay them a visit.
The Briggait, Glasgow’s former fish market which is located on the north bank of the River Clyde, has, for the past 12 years, served as an artist and creative industries complex and has been a workplace to award winning artists including two Turner Prize winners. On the weekend of Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 May, forty creatives will open their studio doors to the public, providing a rare opportunity for visitors to experience what happens at one of the country’s most prolific arts centres.
The Briggait Open Studios will be open to visitors from 11am to 5pm on both the Saturday and Sunday, access via the main hall’s entrance on Bridgegate, providing access to over thirty studios and forty artists.
Artist and The Briggait Studio Representative Margaret Archbold: “Our studios and workshops are usually closed to the general public. Open Studio events are incredibly special occasions, giving insight into artists, makers, their practices and our amazing building. Welcoming visitors for this particular weekend will be a huge boost to the studios creative life post-lockdown. We can’t wait to meet everyone.”
The Briggait is managed by Wasps, Scotland’s national provider of creative spaces, a charity dedicated to providing affordable artist studios. Wasps has begun a project to develop the unused spaces at The Briggait and is collecting opinions on what services the riverside renovation might offer to the public. The consultation can be undertaken while visiting the Open Studios or online anytime at www.waspsstudios.org.uk/briggait.
The Briggait Open Studios is on Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 May, from 11am to 5pm and is free to attend.
For more information visit Wasps’ website www.waspsstudios.org.uk.
Scotland’s national provider of artist and creative spaces, Wasps, presents a series of conversations with tenants past and present about their experiences of being an independent creator.
Perspectives is the new monthly podcast series featuring interviews with members of Scotland’s creative community, sharing their first hand experience of working life in the arts.
After years of juggling working for free in creative roles whilst being employed in jobs she found no enjoyment in, Anna Hepburn made the move from London to Glasgow. Since coming to Glasgow she’s found a creative community that’s pushed her forward, further developed her textile home and lifestyle brand, and founded SPOT Design Market. In this episode of Perspectives Tavienne Bridgwater, Wasps’ Arts Enterprise Officer, chats with Anna about how she’s using her platform, SPOT, to give more designers, makers and artists a space to shout what they’re about.
Listen in to get her perspective on creating a platform for yourself and other creatives.
Award-winning artist Susie Rose Dalton opens first solo exhibition at South Block Gallery
The debut solo exhibition of visual artist Susie Rose Dalton, Personally I Would Never Do That, opens in South Block Gallery, Glasgow on the 4th March.
Open Monday – Friday until the 29th March, Personally I Would Never Do That reflects on how we move through personal and collective changes, and the marks we leave on one another along the way.
Susie Rose Dalton, 30, won a Wasps Award in 2021, given by the national provider of artist studios to contemporary emerging artists in Scotland. The award was granted in recognition of Susie’s ceramic work which records the sunlight in the artist’s living space during lockdown, exhibited in Leith School of Art’s Contemporary Art Practice exhibition in Patriothall Gallery. Wasps described the work as a, “…poetic and poignant reflection on lockdown life that manifested itself in beautiful sculptural form.” The work received national press coverage, including in the Independent and Evening Standard.
Personally I Would Never Do That includes the award-winning piece alongside new sculptural work from the artist, as well as film and print work, exploring themes of transience, intimacy, and emergence. The exhibition will also feature a movement workshop facilitated by artist, dancer, and researcher, Ashanti Harris, on the 11th March.
Artist Susie Rose Dalton: “There’s nothing quite like processing personal things in public to remind yourself of how hilariously messy it is to be a human. I’m delighted to have my first solo exhibition in Glasgow’s South Block Gallery. I use simple approaches to working with materials, mostly ceramics, to try to put form to intangible feelings and experiences. I do this because it helps me to process those feelings and experiences, and it allows a way of connecting with others. This work explores the sensitive in-between spaces we find ourselves in when we undergo change.”
Susie is a current member of the Bridge Pottery Collective and a recent alumni of the Contemporary Art Practice course at Leith School of Art. She completed a ceramic apprenticeship under Bärbel Dister at the Cromarty Pottery in Cromarty, Scotland. Her work has been shortlisted for a number of other awards, and in 2020 received a ‘very special mention’ from artist and film maker Miranda July in July’s online International Covid Art Festival. Susie lives and works in Edinburgh, and originally hails from Belfast.
The exhibition has received financial support from Creative Scotland and the City of Edinburgh Council via a Visual Artist and Craft Maker Award. Susie’s work will also be shown in the annual exhibition of Visual Arts Scotland in March, which will be held online.
More information about the exhibition can be found at waspsstudios.org.uk and susierosedalton.com Private view of the exhibition is from 6-8pm, 3rd March, at South Block Gallery.
The Scottish Borders estate welcomes Jack Brindley and Emma Hislop to its creative community
Two professional artists have won opportunities to practice their craft at one of The Borders’ most culturally important estates later this year.
A partnership between Scotland’s national provider of studios, Wasps, and Marchmont House, has given two artists the opportunity be residents on the Marchmont House Estate, spanning Friday 25 March to Saturday 26 April 2022.
Marchmont Makers Foundation is developing a hub for creators and makers in the region and is expanding its mission to support artistic vision. Renovations began on the house in 2011 and subsequently in 2019 the estate’s stables have been converted to artist studios with the former early 20th Century garage being transformed into ‘The Marchmont Workshop’, for rush seat chair making in a long standing tradition. Seven full-time artists and craftspeople work from Marchmont, with further expansion due to provide increased capacity in the future.
Part of the Marchmont House estate includes the former studio of one of Scotland’s most versatile creative figures of the last century, polymath Rory McEwen, and best known for being a leading figure in the folk music scene from the late 1950s and later as a pioneer of botanical and multimedia art. Emma Hislop and Jack Brindley will have the privilege of working in Rory’s former studio in the village of Fogo, 3 miles from Marchmont House, during the residency.
Despite having received no formal graduate training in art, Rory McEwen became one of the most gifted botanical artists of the 20th century. His artwork can be found in the collections of major institutions around the world. McEwen balanced a career as a folk musician with his devotion to art until he chose to become a full-time artist in 1964.
Partner in the residency partnership is Wasps, the national studio provider, who help the nation’s artists to develop sustainable practices. Partnering with Marchmont provides an platform for its tenants and waiting list members to access rare opportunities to develop their skills in a fresh and nurturing environment.
Co-winner of the Marchmont residency Emma Hislop: “I’m excited to bring Marchmont into my practice as this residency allows me to be immersed in both rural and historical settings. I hope to find where Rory McEwen’s botanical practice and Thomas Clayton’s decorative plasterwork crossover with my work. I’ll be muddying around in the environment and coming back into the studio playing with motifs into sculptural forms, exploring my interest in the common rush and other overlooked plants that exist on and around the estate.”
Co-winner of the Marchmont residency Jack Brindley: “My current work with Stained Glass involves exploring the relationship between repeated pattern and light, I am interested cultivating a truly contemporary place for Stained Glass within the context of art and design. I’m particularly excited about spending time at Marchmont house to further explore glass in relationship to architecture.”
Lucy Brown, Managing Director of Marchmont Makers Foundation: “Our partnership with Wasps has proven to be an inspiring way to introduce new artists and ideas to the Marchmont ecosystem. We are delighted to offer Emma and Jack the opportunity to focus their practice in a dedicated and supportive environment.”
Wasps Chief Executive Officer Audrey Carlin: “Such was the success of the first year’s partnership with Marchmont Estates that we expect great things from the collaboration in 2022. The location provides the artists with solace to concentrate on their practice while the surroundings are inspiring, with a developing creative community in place with which to share ideas. We wish Jack and Emma well and look forward to seeing the fruits of this enriching experience.”
Open to Wasps tenants & artists on Wasps’ registered waiting list, the successful applicants will receive accommodation and working facilities on Marchmont Estate, a stipend, a tour of Marchmont House, and access to Marchmont’s Creative Common Space.
Scotland’s national provider of artist and creative spaces, Wasps presents a series of conversations with tenants past and present about their experiences of being independent creators.
Perspectives is the new monthly podcast series featuring interviews with members of Scotland’s creative community, sharing their first hand experience of working life in the arts.
Have you taken a leap of faith and decided to retrain? In this episode of Perspectives Tavienne Bridgwater, Arts & Enterprise Officer at Wasps, chats with Wood Worker Angus Richardson about how a lifelong love of wood helped to instill the confidence to pursue a career in furniture making, previously thought nonviable.
Listen in to get his perspective on following your passion.
