NEWS
PUT TO THE TEST
Rebecca Monks takes a look at a Glasgow summer school committed to speeding up the city’s urban regeneration process
COMING UP
MEADOWS FESTIVAL Community festival featuring the biggest outdoor market in Edinburgh. Plenty of family- friendly activities, too, so feel free to take the wee ones. The Meadows, Edinburgh, Sat 3 & Sun 4 Jun. NORTH HOP Craft beer, live music and street food: sounds good to us. This touring festival hits Glasgow. SWG3, Glasgow, Fri 16 & Sat 17 Jun.
SAY AWARDS Young Fathers, Kathryn Joseph, Anna Meredith – who’s next in line for the SAY Award? See page 41. Shortlist announced on Thu 15 Jun; winner on Wed 28 Jun.
REBUSFEST Ian Rankin curates this festival celebrating his beloved i ctional detective, John Rebus. Highlights include a quiz, a whisky tasting and crime writing workshops. Various venues, Edinburgh, Fri 30 Jun–Sun 2 Jul.
H ow do we occupy the post-industrialist city? It’s the eternal question that we all wrestle with on a daily basis. Happily, a select group of international participants are set to tackle this conundrum, once
and for all, as part of Test Unit 2017.
In a nutshell, Test Unit is a summer school / symposium, which aims to test new models for urban development. This means looking at vacant areas of Glasgow (in 2017, the focus is the Glasgow Canal), and imagining new ways of utilising the empty spaces for the benei t of the city and its community. Laying down its roots in Civic House, Tes Unit is Scotland’s i rst live city lab. During this week- long programme, architects, designers, producers and members of the local community will all come together to transform part of the Glasgow Canal area, with the goal of improving the city’s relationship to development and creation in the future.
The idea has its roots in practicality, and is all about getting something done without endless meetings and discussions blocking the route to productivity. Speaking about the motivation behind the project, Test Unit’s Rob Morrison says that when it comes to urban regeneration in the area, ‘there’s been a huge amount of consultation over the years – workshops, discussions and meetings – all reiterating the same points.’
He describes Test Lab as a way of ‘trying to bridge the gap between the consultation and construction phase in how we plan cities,’ which is an interesting approach. Simply put, isn’t about i lling this
14 THE LIST 1 Jun–31 Aug 2017
whiteboards in meeting rooms with ideas. It’s about practical regeneration in a city.
lead separate Throughout the project, a number of inl uential teams, exploring facilitators will different aspects of development. The teams then have a week to design and build prototypes that address issues in the area, which may inform and assist development in Glasgow in the future.
Notable facilitators include Turner Prize-winners Assemble, who are set to work with Glasgow agency TAKTAL on how we occupy and develop vacant spaces. International lighting designers Jason Bruges Studio will be exploring the role of responsive lighting in public spaces, and artist and architect Valentina Karga’s team will explore alternative forms of economy in an attempt to build a stronger and more resilient community. Organisers are hoping that this new interactive model will have staying power, and inl uence city structures in the future. ‘I think what we really want to see is that it becomes a recognised model of how we develop buildings and spaces around cities,’ Morrison explains.
‘A huge number of Scottish cities have a lot of vacant buildings and industrial sites. This is an opportunity to see how, through an education programme, we can generate some really interesting ideas about how these buildings can be used for public good.’
Test Unit 2017, Civic House, Glasgow, Sun 18–Sat 24 Jun; Symposium, Sat 23 & Sun 24 Jun.
EDINBURGH FOOD FESTIVAL Back for its third year, the Edinburgh Food Festival (above) celebrates all sorts of Scottish food and drink, with demos and workshops, too. George Square Gardens, Edinburgh, Wed 26–Sun 30 Jul. SUMMER NIGHTS The popular open-air gig series returns. 2017’s lineup features, among many, Brian Wilson, Tom Jones, Texas, Pixies, Arab Strap, Ladysmith Black Mambazo and Seasick Steve. Kelvingrove Bandstand, Glasgow, Mon 31 Jul–Sun 13 Aug.
EDINBURGH FESTIVALS Both the Fringe and the International Festival are celebrating their 70th anniversary this year, so it’s going to be a fun one. Keep up with the latest at list.co.uk/festival Various venues, Edinburgh, Fri 4–Mon 28 Aug. FRINGE BY THE SEA North Berwick’s multi-arts festival offers a respite from the madness of Edinburgh in festival season. Various venues, North Berwick, Mon 7–Sun 13 Aug.