ART SCHOOL DEGREE SHOWS
From design and fashion to sculpture, photography, multi-media and painting, Scotland's art schools form the backbone of the nation's burgeoning visual arts scene. Sarah Redhead and Allan Radcliffe scouted out degree shows at three Scottish art schools for a flavour of tomorrow's big creative names
GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART
Originally from Iceland. Ragnar Jonasson paints. but not using brushes or canvas. ‘I'm pouring paint,‘ he explains, ‘from saucepans. l pour it onto plastic. then peel it off, so there’s nothing except the paint.‘ Jonasson is particularly inspired by exotic colour. ‘The extreme colours in nature. those that you wouldn't expect to find. For example, I‘m using images of the octopus; they have their own ink so I feel connected to them. Also a poison arrow frog — they‘re extremely colourful'
Jonasson says his work is mainly focused on the manipulation of materials. ‘I just want to get right inside that seductive world of colours and textures,‘ he says.
In June 2007, Glasgow International Airport was hit with a propane-filled car. It got Andrew McCalister thinking that there must be a solution to the devastating effects of car bombs. ‘The problem with standard barriers is that they're either too small, and allow the shock-wave to go over the top of them, or they're really large and have no visibility for armed troops,‘ he says.
20 THE LIST 22 May—5 Jun 2008
‘My project is an attachment for
smaller barriers that keeps the visibility
high but stops the shock-wave.‘
McCalister stresses the aesthetic aspect of his work: ‘There's a major problem with sporting events. like the Commonwealth Games. aesthetically you can't have these huge barriers. that are intimidating to peOple. You can walk past mine and almost not notice it.’
Winner of the Goldsmiths Young Designer of the Year 2007 and commissioned to design the Hunter Cup to celebrate 200 years of Glasgow's Huntarian Museum. Leah
Black has now turned her attention to
the more intricate art of jewellery— making. ‘l'm making a lot of smaller pieces based on the relationship between memory and object,’ she says. ‘l've taken photographs of junk shops, and monuments. and I‘m
making jewellery that's like a still life of
forgotten objects: a shelf, with little
bottles and wine glasses for a brooch.’
Black was inspired by the many hidden layers she found while removing wallpaper in her flat. ‘lt made me think about the marks that people leave behind them. and how these things were important to somebody at one point.’ After graduation, Black plans to go into business with her sister, a fashion designer.
73*“ Taking er inspiration from rubbish dumps. textiles student Claire Dyball works with man-made threads to knit a range of legwear for women. Product design student Michael Johnson creates new and exciting technologies sensitive to the relationships between people and objects, including “Hello Freddo', an intelligent. interactive fridge, which aims to support young families and their relationship with food.
Glasgow School of Art, Sat 14- Sat 21 Jun, Mon-Thu 10am-9pm, Fri 10am-7pm, Sat/Sun 10am-5pm.
5;",
Claim Dyball
Ragnar Jonasson
Steven Doyle
Steven Doyle’s project “The Same but Different' brought together people from the University of Dundee community who share the same name. ‘I wanted to portray issues of identity using digital technology,‘ he says.
The project involved poring over the University's online email directory of 20,000 names. 'I always approach a project in the way a scientist tackles a controlled experiment,’ he laughs.
Doyle asked the pairs to bring to the studio an object that said something about them. ‘That stage of it really highlighted the dynamic range of individuality at the University.’ The 18 colour photographs on display at the Degree Show, which include ‘Meet David Duncan' (pictured). are accompanied by stories about the objects and people, including crossed >