Capital to
Host Centenary Exhibition Showcasing
Scotland's
National Treasures
Edinburgh City Art Centre, 25 October 2008
The City Art Centre in Edinburgh
will host a major centenary exhibition featuring Scotland's
treasured places from the collections of the Royal Commission on the Ancient
and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS) from 25
October 2008 to 18 January 2009.
The free exhibition, Treasured Places, comprises over 180
fascinating drawings and photographs over two floors of the City Art Centre,
many on public display for the first time. It will explore the unique
role that RCAHMS has been undertaking since 1908, in creating a collection
recording Scotland's
buildings, archaeology and industry for the nation. This work and this
exhibition reflect the lives of the people of Scotland from our earliest history
to the present day - within the places in which we live, work and
gather.
Places we live, places we work and places
we gather are timeless concepts that connect us to the buildings, monuments and
structures that feature in all our lives. Treasured Places explores our own relationships with Scotland's
architecture and archaeology, from the everyday vernacular features of the
built environment such as farmsteads and bungalows, to the great anchors of our
past such as standing stones and hill forts. Treasured Places, combining both modern and historical photographs
and drawings, showcases the wealth and diversity of RCAHMS'
collections. The exhibition also reflects the different techniques the
organisation uses to collect historical material and to create new material.
Exhibition highlights will include stunning aerial photographs
such as that featuring Woden Law, an iron age hill fort revealed through the
light of a winter sun and a dusting of snow; intricate survey drawings such as
that of the Pictish cross slab at Glamis, which reveal the skill of
RCAHMS' draughtsman; fascinating original architect's drawings
including the stunning W. H. Playfair elevation of Donaldson's School for
the Deaf, Edinburgh; survey photographs offering a glimpse back in time to the
rapidly changing face of our industries, from textiles to shipbuilding, as well
as captivating historical photographs from the 1901 International Exhibition at
Kelvingrove, Glasgow.
Also
featured in the exhibition are the places the nation voted as their top ten
treasured places through a vote, launched by RCAHMS in September 2007.
The winner, Lady Victoria Colliery, announced in January 2008, will be shown
alongside the specially commissioned poem by Valerie Gillies, Edinburgh Makar
from 2005-08. A selection of the comments and reflections left by the
public throughout the vote about the places they treasure, act as reminders and
offer an insight into the many reasons why these varied places from across our
history are important.
Treasured Places will also include activities for families throughout the exhibition and a small
public events programme.
Rebecca
Bailey, Head of Education and Outreach, RCAHMS said:
"Now
that RCAHMS has reached its landmark centenary and we look to the next century,
we are even more aware that we are creating a record for the future. It
was wonderful to see our collections being used in such an exciting way
throughout the Treasured Places public vote and workshops. The poll was an ideal opportunity to involve
the public in shaping the future of our collection, and indeed this exhibition.
"A
sense of belonging is increasingly important to people and this is an
exhibition about people and their places, and a reminder that our collection
has something for everyone in every part of Scotland. The images and
other items in this new and exciting national exhibition represent places and
spaces that are "treasured" for many reasons, both on a personal
and national level."
City
Culture Leader, Deirdre Brock, said:
"Scotland
is a nation with a rich history stretching back thousands of years and a range
of stunning architecture that is truly unique. This fascinating
exhibition puts on display a sample of the vast record of Scotland, developed by RCAHMS over
the past century, and the City Art Centre has the privilege of exhibiting many
of these images for the very first time. The collection is of huge
national importance and Treasured Places is an exhibition not to be missed by anyone with a love of Scotland."
Both Treasured
Places and the touring exhibition Creative
Connections will also be available to view online. For further
information please visit www.treasuredplaces.co.uk. In
addition, a full-colour souvenir book will be published to celebrate the Treasured Places exhibition. The
book will also contain an account of the fascinating history of RCAHMS by Head
of Collections Lesley Ferguson, exploring the importance of recording the built
environment and explaining its continuing relevance to the people of Scotland
today.
RCAHMS
Helen Loughlin at Colman
Getty Scotland
Consultancy
0131 558 8851 [email protected]
Edinburgh City Council
Chris
Wilson at Edinburgh
City Council
- RCAHMS is the national record of Scotland's built environment, whose
mission is to identify, survey and
interpret the archaeological, architectural and historical environment of Scotland,
to preserve and add to the collection, and to promote public understanding
and enjoyment of items in the collection. - Treasured Places was set up by RCAHMS to help celebrate its centenary in 2008. The
project is funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund and the Scottish
Government, and run by RCAHMS. - To complement the national Treasured Places exhibition, Creative
Connections - a
touring exhibition launched in August 2008 and running until May 2009
- will visit ten venues across Scotland, close to the
communities that participated in a series of workshops which ran alongside
the Treasured Places vote. The creative outcomes from the workshops
will be showcased alongside reproductions of the archive material that
inspired them. - The City Art Centre, 2 Market Street, Edinburgh, is one of the UK's
top temporary exhibition spaces hosting some of the best international
touring exhibitions every year across fine art, photography, design and
much more. Other exhibitions taking place alongside Treasured Places are Space Age; Exploration, Design and Popular
Culture, Quick on the Draw and A Time and Place: Paintings
from the City Collection.
The City Art
Centre is open Monday to Saturday, 10am-5pm and on Sundays from 12pm-5pm.
For further information please visit www.edinburgh.gov.uk/cityartcentre
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