Chorus has flown again!

We were delighted when the opportunity to install the ever popular community art project Chorus into the members area of the Scottish Parliament building was offered by Jean Urquhart.

After passing all the security checks, Eleanor and Chris from the Macphail centre, were allowed in to install the bird boxes much to the delight of the ministers it would seem.

The feedback is that the display was regarded by some as "The best they'd seen" of course we agree! Wonderful to see the flock out for yet another airing.....

As part of Bridge House Art's 20 year celebrations, the Ceilidh Place are hosting an exhibition of selected works from the portfolio course alumni. The exhibition is being curated by John and Sarah Colles and Les McMinn, all ex-students of the course.

The Ceilidh Place has a special place in the hearts of all Bridge House Art students, not only as a place to meet, relax and enjoy great food, also a venue for always finding a selection of unknowing life models and sometimes as a part-time employer, thereby helping some students afford to embark on this often life-changing course.

Bridge House Art has also had vital relationship with An Talla Solais, Ullapool Visual Arts during the last 10 years. The provision of larger studio spaces has enabled us to offer places to 12 students a year, rather than the 7 places at Bridge House Art studios. During the exhibition all commissions are kindly being donated by the Ceilidh Place to An Talla Solais for their ongoing fundraising efforts.

Last chance to catch this exciting exhibition by our very own Eleanor White and fellow artist Joanna Wright. 

There will be a pop-up cafe on Saturday 13th and Sunday 14th - yummy cakes and fantastic coffee to stimulate your viewing pleasure. (all proceeds towards funding a young students gap year community work in Africa)

Here's what Eleanor and Joanna have to say about how the exhibition came about;

The resolution behind this work for me was to make the transition from teaching to my own practice. The subject arose out of the gifts that people would bring when they visited: flowers from allotments, petrol stations, supermarkets and local gardens.  Whichever it was and whenever they arrived I painted them. This gave immediacy to the work as the subject would soon lose vitality and freshness.  Seeing was the key, and the application of expressive paint led the way. Given time I aim to continue with the compulsiveness of working from the gifts that friends bring.  Eleanor White

Last October Eleanor and I made a resolution to make a drawing or painting each week - this exhibition is the result.  I made a series of small pictures of pots and cups on paper, which led to working in the same way on board and with collage, trying to look at the objects as two-dimensional patterns made up of arrangements of shapes.  This led to working with patterned panels, partly inspired by the Islamic idea of repetitive images signifying the boundless presence of God.   Being able to arrange and rearrange the panels to make their own infinite compositions has been part of the pleasure of working in this way.  Joanna Wright

Looking forward to seeing you there!