SCAN member + staff picks: Glasgow International 2024
Glasgow International Festival of Visual Art returns throughout June with a packed programme of artists’ projects across the city – incorporating events, exhibitions and publications from Glasgow-based arts organisations, artists and curators, alongside the festival team. A whole host of SCAN members are part of this year’s festival, which builds on Glasgow’s identity as a vibrant centre for contemporary art.
Not sure where to start with the programme? We asked SCAN members and staff for their personal picks of the festival, which runs in venues across Glasgow from 7 – 23 June 2024.
Loose Tomatoes in the Backyard at Rumpus Room
Saffa Khan, Hussein Mitha, Nadia Rossi, Angel Walker, and Holly White in collaboration with children and the wider community
“It’s great to see young people particularly engaged with and included in GI – especially through a collaborative relationship with artists. It will be interesting to see how the group’s experiences with and within the garden developed and changed throughout the project and to find out about new relationships and ideas that have come about as a result.” – Michelle Emery-Barker, Co-director of Sculpture Placement Group
fir gorma at 5 Florence Street
Josie KO and Kialy Tihngang
“We met the artists earlier this year at one of the GI facilitated sessions for participants, and were really interested in the historic context, but also how the artists are using their own practices to explore the power of speculative narratives and imagination on identity in both a personal and wider socio-political context. The works sound like they will give room to quite a rich and expansive imagined reality, which I’m excited about.” – Shireen Taylor, Co-director of Offline and SCAN Finance Administrator
Sandra George at 5 Florence Street
Curated by Jenny Brownrigg with Craigmillar Now
“There are so many wonderful projects by GSS members, friends, and collaborators in this year’s programme but I’m really excited (maybe unsurprisingly given my job!) to spend time with Sandra George presented by GSA Exhibitions and Craigmillar Now at Florence Street. Capturing the day-to-day of community work is hard to prioritise in the moment, often a wistful realisation after the fact, so it feels really special to witness this record of time spent together.” – Kirsty Hendry, Learning + Engagement Manager at Glasgow Sculpture Studios
each body wakes up on a wave at Glasgow Print Studio
Group exhibition curated by artists Rudy Kanhye and Lauren La Rose
“Artists Rudy and Lauren have curated a really powerful show which combines playful elements (including a screenprinted ping pong table!) with extensive, in depth research. It promises to be an accessible, multi-sensory experience which, much like the Women’s Library project Peace Arbour, invites visitors to stop, reflect and contemplate the past whilst looking to the future.” – Naomi Brown, Digital & Marketing Officer at Glasgow Women’s Library
Where a castle meets the sky at The Pipe Factory
Emelia Kerr Beale, Suds McKenna, Josie Perry and Jonny Walker
“We are looking forward to this project bringing together works by Emelia Kerr Beale, Suds McKenna, Josie Perry and Jonny Walker. Both Suds McKenna and Josie Perry recently had incredible shows in our Intermedia Gallery, so we can’t wait to see their new work alongside such exciting artists on an international platform.” – Centre for Contemporary Arts (CCA)
Peace Arbour at Glasgow Women’s Library
Reiko Goto Collins, Yoko Ono and Zana Araki
“I’ll be looking forward to visiting the temporary orchard, making a wish and attending one of the Hakoto performances based around the tree installation.” – Jo McInnes, SCAN Net Zero Co-ordinator
“In this time of climate crisis, some of our members are reconsidering our relationships with (and in) Nature – humans and non-humans together.” – Scottish Artists Union
Beyond the Forbidden Gate in four libraries across Glasgow
Joey Simons
“I’m really interested in this programme because it activates library spaces during the festival, and interrogates civic space and who makes the decisions as a whole.” – Helen Moore, SCAN Membership Lead
Gatherings series of events, various venues throughout the festival
“For me, festivals are about being with one another across different formats, and feeling close to one another in a room and hearing one another, so there are many Gatherings events that I don’t want to miss. Equally, gathering in party spaces is just as important, as magic happens when bodies move together in a room, so I will make sure not to miss the Thursday and Friday party nights!” – Kim McAleese, Director of Edinburgh Art Festival
Art Outside of the Box at University of Glasgow
Project Ability, Leverndale Recreational Therapy and University of Glasgow
“This handling kit features works from Joyce Laing’s outsider art collection Art Extraordinary, and I love the line: “She believed in the transformative power of art as a tool for expression, communication, and well-being.” – Emma Gibson, SCAN Member Development Officer (Highland)
Glasgow International Festival of Visual Art takes place 7 – 23 June 2024.