Travelling Gallery returns to Highlands (22/04/09)

The Travelling Gallery will be returning to the Highlands for three weeks at the end of April, after successful visits last year. The custom-build mobile art gallery will be taking its new exhibition ‘Finger Buffet’, to thirteen schools across the area, and will also be open to the public for the day at the Black Isle Leisure Centre on Monday 4th May.

Now in its 31st year, the Travelling Gallery provides a national service, bringing inspiring and thought-provoking contemporary art exhibitions to visitors in schools and communities throughout Scotland.

The Gallery’s visit to the area has been supported by The Highland Council. Chairman of the Council’s Education, Culture and Sport Committee, Councillor Bill Fernie said: “Creativity is one of the cross cutting themes within the new Curriculum for Excellence and the Travelling Gallery exhibition will provide many children and young people throughout the Highlands with a unique opportunity to see contemporary art within their own school grounds.”

The ‘Finger Buffet’ exhibition has a theme familiar to everyone; food and drink, and visitors/pupils will be able to see artwork which not only looks at the pleasure we get from food, but also issues such as GM food, junk food and packaging. Artwork on show will include photographs of intricate landscapes created from food, paintings based on chocolate boxes, clothing dyed using fizzy drinks and sculptures of food packaging.

The exhibition will include work by five contemporary artists, all with a Scottish connection: Alex Frost, Gayle Chong Kwan, Janice McNab, Kate Owens and Mariah Skellorn.

The gallery will be visiting the following venues:

Monday 27th April – Culloden Academy
Tuesday 28th April – Kingussie High School
Wednesday 29th April – Grantown Grammar School
Thursday 30th April – Kilchuimen Academy, Fort Augustus
Friday 1st May – Glenurquhart High School, Drumnadroichit
Monday 4th May – Black Isle Leisure Centre, Fortrose 11am – 5pm
Tuesday 5th May – Alness Academy
Wednesday 6th May – Golspie High School
Thursday 7th May – Farr High School, Bettyhill
Friday 8th May – Farr High School, Bettyhill
Monday 11th May – Coigach Community Centre
Tuesday 12th May – Maryburgh Primary School
Wednesday 13th May – Broadford Primary School
Thursday 14th May – Ardnamurchan High School
Friday 15th May – Caol Primary School

As part of the Travelling Gallery education programme pupils at Ardnamurchan High School will have the chance to create their own artwork inspired by the exhibition during an artist-led workshop, pupils at Farr High School will have a talk from Kate Owens, one of the exhibiting artists, and teachers will also have the chance to take part in a workshop based on the exhibition, at Culloden Academy.

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