Castle Mills: Then & Now | Whose Gallery is it Anyway?

About

Whose Gallery is it Anyway? asks questions about mark-making, art curation and the relationship between artist and audience, upturning the powerbase to give people and communities agency to take over our large light filled street facing gallery space. The rules are simple: anyone can add work and/or choose to co-curate the exhibition by moving artworks in the space in ways that make sense to them. 

The exhibition will respond to our shared heritage: as a members’ organisation with 57 years of creating exceptional prints in four locations across Edinburgh; our role as the recent guardian of a Grade C listed industrial building in Fountainbridge where thousands of local people have worked; and our social role as a centrum for a new community collectively shaping future heritage through sharing stories and charting them through visual expression of all kinds. 

People will be able to rearrange artworks on the wall, add their own creations, remove pieces that don’t align with their vision for the space on the day they occupy it, as well as produce new artworks, including performative works, in the space. The exhibition will be a real-time, in-person interactive experience. We want everyone learn about art and talk about art in a friendly and welcoming environment, informally through chatting and through the talks and tours taking place over the duration of this project. 

With an open call for any and all to contribute artworks to the show, the exhibition will freely showcase a wide array of artistic expressions, including printmaking, drawing, textile, sculpture, and performance. As the public continuously modifies the exhibition, it will never remain exactly the same, prompting a reflection on printmaking and the visual arts that goes beyond a single curator’s selection. 

Through this exhibition, Edinburgh Printmakers aims to redefine the communal gallery space by exploring the dynamics of public curation, and raising the fundamental question – Whose Gallery is it Anyway?

Using money raised by National Lottery players, The National Lottery Heritage Fund supports projects that connect people and communities with the UK’s heritage. Castle Mills: Then & Now is made possible with The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Thanks to National Lottery players, we have been able to explore our heritage, and boost our sustainability to strengthen heritage’s contribution to the local economy.