{AROUND TOWN} Listings
FREE Skeptics at the Observatory Thu 18 Aug, 6–7.30pm. Royal Observatory Visitor Centre, Blackford Hill, 668 8404. A heady cocktail of science and comedy with speakers from the Royal Observatory plus comedian Helen Keen. Booking essential. Trading with the West Fri 19 Aug, 2.30pm. £6. Filmhouse, 88 Lothian Road, 473 2000. Debate (with accompanying film clips) about the history and future of Scotland’s trade with Asia, with John Rendall, Ian Ritchie CBE and John Callaghan. Part of Edinburgh International Festival. A Stitch in Time: HIstory in the Making Sat 20 Aug, 1.15–4pm. £20. Lauriston Castle, 2a Cramond Road South, 529 3963. Dressed as Anne Boleyn, Julia Soares-McCormick presents a talk about the design and construction of her historical costumes. Price includes afternoon tea. William Morris and Scotland Mon 22 Aug, 10.30am. £8. Lauriston Castle, 2a Cramond Road South, 529 3963. Annette Carruthers examines the impact made by designer, businessman and socialist William Morris on his visits to Scotland from the 1870s. Price includes tour of the castle, coffee and cakes. FREE Mary Seacole: Forgotten Hero? Mon 22 Aug, 12.30pm. Surgeons’ Hall Museum, Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, Nicolson Street, 527 1649. A talk on the impressive but oft- overlooked life of Mary Seacole, who independently ran nursing quarters for those injured during the Crimean War. FREE Towards the Light: Colour Woodcuts – Discussion & Follow The List on Twitter @thelistmagazine
Demonstration Mon 22 Aug, 12.45–1.30pm. Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art Two, 73 Belford Road, 624 6200. Kerry Watson talks to artist Paul Furneaux about woodcuts from Britain and Japan and some of the techniques used to make them. Conversations: The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle Mon 22 Aug, 5–6pm. £6. The Hub, Castlehill Royal Mile, 473 2000. Writer and director Stephen Earnhart discusses the play. See feature, page 16. Part of Edinburgh International Festival. FREE The Artful Science: Photography from Talbot to Sugimoto Tue 23 Aug, 12.45–1.30pm. Scottish National Gallery, The Mound, 624 6200. Dr Kelley Wilder explores the tension between science and art at the heart of photography. FREE Wednesday Walkabout Wed 24 Aug, 1–1.30pm. Talbot Rice Gallery, University of Edinburgh, South Bridge, 650 2210. Weekly informal half-hour talks from gallery staff, designed to fit neatly into your lunch hour. FREE Scottish Rare Plants Wed 24 Aug, 1.30–3pm. Royal Botanic Garden, Arboretum Place, 248 2909. Heather McHaffie talks about the work going on in the Botanics to conserve some of Scotland’s rarer flora. Continental Shifts: How Chinese Money Is Changing the World Wed 24 Aug, 2.30–3.30pm. £6. The Hub, Castlehill Royal Mile, 473 2000. Keynote lecture by author and journalist James Kynge, on the impact of Chinese economic growth around the world. Part of Edinburgh International Festival. Workshops Woodcut Workshop Thu 18 Aug, 10.30am–1pm. £35 (£30). Edinburgh Printmakers, 23 Union Street, 557 2479. Create a woodcut print in the style of Albrecht Dürer, who is the subject of a major exhibition at the National Gallery
of Scotland this summer. Booking essential. Movement Workshop Fri 19 Aug, 10am. £6 (£5). Out of the Blue Drill Hall, 30–36 Dalmeny Street, Leith, 554 8092. A drop-in session that explores physical expression, stretching and relaxation. Part of Leith on the Fringe. Post-Pop Printmaking Sat 20 Aug, 2–3pm. £5. Edinburgh Printmakers, 23 Union Street, 557 2479. Inspired by the work of Michael Craig-Martin in the festival exhibition, the Printmakers offers a studio tour and demonstration of the most up-to-date printmaking technologies. Ages 16+.
✽✽ FREE Keep Rising: Radicalism and Revolution in 2011 Sat 20
Aug, 3pm. The Forest Café, 3 Bristo Place, 220 4538. Spend the day thinking, remembering and celebrating the ongoing radical movements in world, and opportunity to share ideas and inspiration with like minded people. See Hitlist. Watery Landscapes Sun 21 Aug, 10.30am–3.30pm. £18. Lauriston Castle, 2a Cramond Road South, 529 3963. Learn beginner techniques in watercolour. Includes afternoon tea. For ages 16 years and over. Masters of Etching Tue 23 Aug, 10.30am–1pm. £35 (£30). Edinburgh Printmakers, 23 Union Street, 557 2479.
Create an etching in the style of Rembrandt, with help from the experts at Edinburgh Printmakers. Masterclasses: Christoph Pregardien & Michael Gees Tue 23 Aug, 2.30–3.30pm. £12. The Hub, Castlehill Royal Mile, 473 2000. An insight into the work of tenor Christoph Pregardien and pianist Michael Gees. Part of Edinburgh International Festival. Lineage Screenprinting Workshop Wed 24 Aug, 11am–4pm. £55 (£40). Edinburgh Printmakers, 23 Union Street, 557 2479. Take inspiration from the Art Festival exhibition and create contemporary prints from photographs, drawings or even objects. Ages 16+. Part of Edinburgh Art Festival. Art for Absolute Beginners: Looking at Art Thu 25 Aug, 10.30am–12.30pm. £10 (£8). Scottish National Gallery, The Mound, 624 6200. Interested in art, but worried you don’t know enough about it to hold forth at dinner parties? Art historian Ola Wojtkiewicz gives discussion-based tours for those who want to find a way into this sometimes intimidating world. Art for Absolute Beginners: Making Art Thu 25 Aug, 1.30–3.30pm. £12 (£10). Scottish National Gallery, The Mound, 624 6200. Hands-on sessions in artmaking, aimed at the total newbie.
Mobilise: The Anti-Cuts Festival
L A V I T S E F 86 THE LIST 18–25 Aug 2011
Well, this is going to be interesting. A week’s worth of themed days, each running workshops, debates and comedy around a different issue, from ‘Defend the NHS’ to ‘Our City’s Not For Sale’, addressing impending privatisation. It’s all run from the Unison Scotland Building, and run by a surprisingly well-known gaggle of self-described ‘raging lefties’: Carol Ann Duffy is making a few appearances, and each night at 8.30pm The Mobilise Show will features a different selection of guest comedians, from Vladimir McTavish to Robin Ince. Full programme at unisonmobilise.blogspot.com ■ Unison Scotland Building, 60 Belford Road, times and prices vary, until Sat 20 Aug.