Bio

I am a multi-media artist based at Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop in Edinburgh. My work revolves around the archaeological imaginary and is rooted in a process-led practice. I am proud to be one of the founding members of the Hidden Door Festival and have been actively involved since its inception in 2010. Currently, I serve as the visual art curator and a board member of the festival. In addition to my art practice, I have a wealth of experience as an educator. Following a two-year residency with George Watson's College in 2012, I established Look and Draw Workshops, a small art school that offers a year-round program of events and is based in The Heart of Newhaven Community. I have also led workshops at various institutions such as the Leith School of Art, the National Galleries of Scotland, and the Dovecot Studios. Recently, I completed my MA in Contemporary Art Practice at Edinburgh College of Art in August 2022.

Artist Statement

My work aims to engage audiences by creating new mythological narratives that explore the relevance of prehistory in contemporary society, often through the lens of urban life and cultural phenomena. Centred around a process-led exploration of the archaeological imaginary, I create puzzles of the past from fictional futures.

Working with glass, bronze, and clay, I use ancient processes and materials to create 'fake' artefacts to forge a new mythology, which connects the ancient past to recent subcultures and challenges archaeological certainty.  These objects are drawn together through modular construction, often employing repetition of form,  to create large-scale installations. Lighting plays a crucial role in the final presentation of my work, and I carefully consider my material choices for their transparency or light-reactive qualities.

My current work is inspired by the folklore of Edinburgh alongside historical books of beasts which contain animals both real and fictional,  presented side by side in fantastical terms. I am building from these oral traditions and historical archives with more recent media stories to create a contemporary bestiary of the burgh.

These sources reveal surprising tales of unusual city dwellers: an elephant residing in a tenement flat, a lion strolling through Princes Street Gardens, and a taxi-riding llama. These tales are influencing a new series of sculptures taking form as animal heads on sticks, masks, figurines, and vessels. Their final appearance will be aged or broken, alluding to the archaeological uncanny as I chart a new mythology of Edinburgh and the creatures that purportedly roam the streets.

Exhibitions / Projects

July 2024 ‘Elpendier’  collaborative walkabout performance, Kelburn Garden Party 2024
March 2024  ‘pick a pigeon’, Pigeon Fanciers, Sett Studios
June 2023 ‘Orbital’, Hidden Door Festival
August 2022 ‘Orbital’ Degree Show, Edinburgh College of Art
May 2022 - ‘Tough Crowd’ Group Show MA CAP, Whitespace Gallery
March 2021 - ‘An Unraveling’, Group Show MA CAP, Embassy Gallery
October 2021 - ‘ First Marks’, Group Show MA CAP Embassy
September 2018  - ‘NewFangled >OldFangled’, Colony of Artists
September 2018 - ‘Fun of the Fair’, Art Walk Porty
October 2018 - ‘ Seeing the Unseen’, Watermill Gallery, Aberfeldy
May 2018 - Ghost Lines, Hidden Door Festival
September 2017 – ‘Re/covered < > Re/formed’, Edgelands Project, Art Walk Porty
June 2017 – ‘Fossil’, Hidden Door Festival
May 2016 -  ‘E.R.R.R.’ (EJECT RELOAD REWIND REPLAY), Hidden Door Festival
February 2016 – Stratigraphic, Gayfield Creative Spaces
May 2015 – 'The Space in between’, Hidden Door Festival
April 2014 - 'Spadework' Vault 5, Hidden Door FestivalSeptember 2014  – Colony of Artists
June 2013 - Leith Late Festival- 'Composite Landscapes', The Old Ambulance Depot
June 2012 - ‘Clang Clang Goes The Last Tram’, George Watson’s College
February 2012 – Society of Scottish Artists / Visual Art Scotland, RSA
November 2011 – Royal Scottish Academy Open, RSA
June 2011 – ‘East’ George Watson’s College, Edinburgh
October 2010 – Hidden Door, Roxy Art House, Edinburgh
May 2010 – Dr Neil’s Garden Exhibition, Duddingston
March 2010 – Art Space2let, Edinburgh
February 2010 – Visual Art Scotland Annual Exhibition, RSA
January 2010 – Hidden Door, Roxy Art House, Edinburgh
April 2009 – Leith School of Art 20th Anniversary Exhibition, Edinburgh
December 2008 – The Henderson Gallery Christmas Exhibition, Edinburgh
October 2008 – ‘Temple’ Leith School of Art, Edinburgh

Awards / Residencies

Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop Graduate Residency 2022

Hopescott Trust Award, 2018

Anne Redpath Award, Visual Art Scotland 2012

George Watsons Residence 2012 - 12

Eliza Clifford Prize 2007