“Be prepared to be transported out of your comfort zone.”
2009 sees the second year of the CuparArts Festival. Running from 10 – 25 October, the themes central to this ambitious event are innovation and experimentation. It is the unique high-quality curated Visual Arts programme that distinguishes this festival from others in Fife and the rest of Scotland. Started by the Cupar Arts and Heritage Project, the Festival makes use of a number of venues and sites in Cupar, allowing artists the opportunity to respond to the town’s unique buildings and spaces and to link with its past through the medium of forward-looking creativity.
Internationally-acclaimed artists Dalziel & Scullion are leading the event with their piece ‘GENUS’; the culmination of their fellowship with the National Media Museum. It is the first time that it has been shown in Scotland and as a single screen projection.
Dalziel & Scullion’s studio creates artwork in photography, video, sound and sculpture that explore new artistic languages around the subject of ecology. The work strives to visualise aspects of our shared environment from alternative perspectives and to re-establish and re-evaluate our engagement with the non-human species we live alongside. They have been selected for important national and international exhibitions, including the British Art Show, the Venice Biennale and Artes Mundi Prize and have won numerous awards and prizes including the Scottish Arts Council’s prestigious Creative Scotland Award. For more information see http://www.dalzielscullion.com.
Listed below are the venues with details of the artists who will be participating – hope this whets your appetite!
THE SILO, CUPAR TRADING ESTATE, CUPAR
The silo will open up again this year to a range of stunning interventions by a selection of artists who have responded to this extraordinary space with their own unique interpretations. The work of Anton Beaver, Alexander McDonald, Kathy Watts and Louisa Preston will all be featured here.
THE WAREHOUSE
This vast warehouse hosts a number of installations. Once owned and utilised by Fishers Laundy Services, the building has a unique aesthetic, and a significant place in Cupar’s history. Artists at this site include Allison & Bray, Alan Grieve, Grain Corporation, Louisa Preston, Carolyn Scott and Liz Skulina.
OLD ST COLUMBA’S SCHOOL
The building has three levels. Twelve artists will present work at this venue including invited artists Dalziel + Scullion. Also featured are Johnathon Baxter, Neil Davidson, Sarah Griffiths, Peter Haining, Neil Mcintee, Eilidh McNair, Johnathan Richards, Sullivan/Skulina and Karen Spy.
CUPAR YMCA
Housed in a beautiful two-storey townhouse, the Y plays host to Peter Haining’s Attic Archive: ‘Open Access’ creates a relaxed environment within the YMCA in which the public can discover and read handmade and printed data from The Attic Archive in Dundee. Open Access is the first public outing of The Attic Archive in Scotland.
Music headliners this year are Aberfeldy and are joined in a packed programme by The Hazey Janes, Findo Gask, Boogalusa, James Yorkston and many more.
This festival promises to be inspiring, thought-provoking, engaging and entertaining. Come along to experience it for yourself; full programme can be viewed on the website at http://www.cupararts.org.uk/cuparartsfestival.htm
