05.08.2016
An art installation which celebrates the opening of the 2016 Edinburgh International Festival was unveiled today at the Scottish Parliament.
The Anything That Gives Off Light installation was the result of a collaborative project between the Edinburgh International Festival and 1000 school pupils from 22 primary schools across the city.
It features 1,000 one feet tall yellow figurines which have been placed on wooden plinths inside the Parliament’s ponds. Each figurine was painted by a primary seven school pupil who also created poetry about how light has inspired them. Their poetry will be placed around the perimeter of the ponds.
The installation will be exhibited outside the Scottish Parliament until Monday 29 August.
Deputy Presiding Officer Christine Grahame MSP was at the unveiling of the installation and she said:
“This project is a wonderful way to give recognition to the role of young people in art and culture in Scotland and I am pleased that the Scottish Parliament is able to play its part in showcasing their work.
“It is also a wider celebration of the art and culture that embraces each and every part of the city throughout August. I hope that visitors to Holyrood will explore this installation as part of their visit. It will certainly be an interesting talking point.
“I also encourage the young people involved in this exciting project to come to the Parliament with their families to see their art work on show.”
Festival Artistic Director Fergus Linehan said: “The International Festival is committed to put Young People at the centre of the Festival, not only encouraging them to attend as audience members but also using their creative minds as a core part of our programme”
This summer the Scottish Parliament will host a number of events and exhibitions which support culture in Scotland, including the Festival of Politics, the Harry Benson: Seeing America exhibition and the Edinburgh International Culture Summit.
Inspired by the title of one of the performances in this year’s Festival programme, Anything That Gives Off Light, the Edinburgh International Festival worked with 1,000 Primary Seven pupils from across The City of Edinburgh to explore their aspirations and asked them to consider light as a form of inspiration and what this might mean to them as an individual, and as part of a collective.
Each figure within the pools was painted by, and represents, one of the 1,000 pupils who took part in the project throughout May and June this year. They worked with a team of professional writers and artists to develop painting skills and to learn writing techniques.