DPAG Staff Selected for Edinburgh Trips

DPAG Staff Selected for Edinburgh Trips

Dunedin (Tuesday, 15 July 2014) Two Dunedin Public Art Gallery (DPAG) staff have been invited to Edinburgh on separate programmes designed to foster international cultural exchange, just as the city’s festival month makes it the artistic centre of the DPAG Public Programmes Manager Robyn Notman and Curator Aaron Kreisler will be in the Scottish city during late July and early August.

Ms Notman is one of seven successful New Zealand applicants to this year’s MOMENTUM Edinburgh Festivals international delegate programme, run by the British Council and Creative New Zealand.

MOMENTUM delegates will be able to take advantage of a range of activities between 30 July and 7 August. These include bespoke itinerary planning, access to in-demand shows and high-level meetings with relevant cultural figures, including directly engaging with the directors of Edinburgh’s 12 major festivals and arts organisations. The programme meets delegates’ accommodation and travel costs.

Ms Notman says, “MOMENTUM enables New Zealanders from across the cultural professions and practices to go to the UK, and particularly Scotland, to develop strategic opportunities and partnerships and relationships leading towards reciprocal projects.

“MOMENTUM will gather together all its invited curators and artists in a shared programme relevant to our professions, and make tailored appointments with other professionals, so we can meet each other face to face.

“Art projects may come back here and we’d also look at what we could take back.

The DPAG is looking for reciprocal opportunities and the possibility of tapping into international shows generated from the UK and Scotland. No one person can make these things happen on their own, but I may be able to start conversations about getting some significant shows here.”

Mr Kreisler is one of five curators from Commonwealth countries New Zealand, South Africa, India, Canada and the UK – selected to contribute to the major group Edinburgh Art Festival exhibition, “Where do I end and you begin?” featuring more than 20 artists. The project springs from a partnership between the Edinburgh Art Festival, the British Council, Creative Scotland, Creative New Zealand and the DPAG. It is the first gallery-based exhibition developed by the Edinburgh Art Festival, which has previously generated site-specific and performance-based projects across Edinburgh.

Named after a neon work by Indian artist Shilpa Gupta, the exhibition considers what it means to join ‘common’ with ‘wealth’, reflecting on the notion of the Commonwealth as a deeply loaded cultural association. Each curator has incorporated artists’ works from their respective nation themed around the ideas, ideals and myths which underpin notions of community, common-wealth, and the commons. The exhibition coincides with the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Edinburgh’s month of international festivals, the Scottish independence debate and Homecoming Scotland 2014 events.

Crates of Mr Kreisler’s selections left from the DPAG loading dock on 2 July holding works by Kushana Bush (Dunedin painter), Steve Carr (Auckland photographer, sculptor and film maker), Gavin Hipkins (Auckland photographer and film maker), Shannon Te Ao (Wellington video and performance artist) and Yvonne Todd (Auckland photographer).

Mr Kreisler arrives in Edinburgh on 27 July to oversee the works’ installation in the City Art Centre in the heart of Edinburgh, ready for the 1 August opening (his travel and accommodation costs are being met by the Edinburgh Art Festival).

All five curators and most of the artists will gather in Edinburgh for the opening of “Where do I end and you begin?”.

Mr Kreisler says, “Edinburgh is the place to be for artists for the next six weeks, with numerous festivals bringing thousands of international artists, musicians, writers and more together, creating a cultural hub that more than doubles this grand city’s population.

“Between all the different festivals on in the next few weeks, Edinburgh will see the efforts of some 200 New Zealand musicians, writers, actors, artists and performers.

It’s the biggest calendar event for New Zealand artists and culture this year. From this, artists will look to develop new links and future endeavours and we will seek to both send more projects to that part of the world and return with fresh ideas and new exhibitions for Dunedin audiences.”

Ms Notman adds, “It’s wonderful for Dunedin and New Zealand to be able to tap in to this really generous resource and to have investment support from external arts organisations as significant as Creative New Zealand, the Edinburgh Art Festival, Creative Scotland and the British Council.”

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