list.co.uk/festival PHOTO © ATELIER HERMANN NITSCH

Art at Summerhall | FESTIVAL VISUAL ART

Hermann Nitsch

STATE OF THE ART

Work by Hermann Nitsch, David Sherry and Derrick Guild comes to Summerhall this Fringe. Laura Campbell explores the venue’s visual arts programme

I n a few short years, Summerhall has asserted itself as the festival venue in Edinburgh. It’s not hard to to see why; the multi-arts venue caters fo for both the general festivalgoer and c connoisseur alike, and provides a unique s setting for creatives to mingle; a melting p pot of disciplines and styles.

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afforded The strength of its annual Fringe careful programme consideration every element. No strand suffers as a result of too much attention being given to another; its visual arts programme is equally as ambitious and boisterous as theatre, dance and music counterparts. Perhaps it is this that allows for meaningful connections to surface across disciplines.

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David Sherry Summerhall’s Festival 2015 is no exception. Exhibitions programmer

Holly Knox Yeoman is credited with pulling together a visual arts programme that is dramatic, curious, funny and disturbing in equal measures. Performance has a strong inl uence on this year’s manifesto, Allegories and Existence, and visitors are guaranteed a theatrical experience, both in the presence of the artwork and as they wind their way round the labyrinthine halls and chambers of the former Royal Dick Veterinary School. There are international headliners, intended to uphold Summerhall’s reputation as a place of sensation and excitement. Knox Yeoman is committed to pleasing festival crowds with the spectacle they have come to expect, but she is equally dedicated to showcasing what is special about contemporary art from Scotland, commenting that ‘it’s about recognising the talent close to home and maintaining that balance of the local and international aspects of the programme.’

13–20 Aug 2015 THE LIST FESTIVAL 97