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Edinburgh Seven tapestries on display at the V&A, London, March-May 2024
The three tapestries that result from the creative partnership of Scottish contemporary artist, Christine Borland, and Edinburgh’s Dovecot Tapestry studios have just gone on show at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. They will hand in the Renaissance Galleries from March until May 2024 before returning to Edinburgh where they will hang in the University’s Edinburgh Futures Institute, originally the Royal Infirmary.
Christine Borland was commissioned to work with Dovecot in 2019 on a project to commemorate the seven female medical students who were matriculated into the University of Edinburgh in 1869, the first female university students
Edinburgh Seven tapestry on the loom.
in the UK. While the University increasingly supported their studies, the city authorities forced their removal and those who became doctors achieved their qualifications on the Continent. Their leader, Sophia Jex-Blake returned to Edinburgh in 1878 where she set up a practice on Manor Place. There are several fascinating items in the University’s Centre for Research Collections witnessing to her work, and her support of other women.
Laurence Winram’s Edinburgh Seven
In 2020 Edinburgh photographer, Laurence Winram, was commissioned to make a photographic reworking of Rembrandt’s Anatomy Lesson of Dr Nicolaes Tulp which now hangs in the Sophia Jex-Blake common room in the Chancellor’s Building at Edinburgh BioQuarter.
Carol’s article on the tapestry and Christine Borland’s rich vein of history and connections will feature in issue 5 of the Journal of Scottish Yarns, out in May.
This past academic year the History of Art department partnered with 25 cultural institutions, based across Scotland and beyond, resulting in a rich array of work placement opportunities for our undergraduate and postgraduate students, from curatorial work to arts management and beyond. Through this programme students and institutions were able to work together to further/support institutional projects, including contributing to web and social media platforms, outreach programmes, marketing and research and conservation tasks. While there were many success stories this past year, here are a few examples showcasing the programme’s potential for both the students and the participating/partner institutions.
As part of her placement at the Summerlee Museum in North Lanarkshire, undergraduate student Neha wrote a blog post about an overlooked in Art History Scottish woman artist Amelia Frood, which is available to read on the North Lanarkshire Council’s CultureNL website. To help expand her research on the artist (which Neha undertook across a variety of Scotland-based archives), Neha also reached out through an article in a national newspaper to the wider public to find members of the local community who may have personally known Frood or her circle. Following the end of the placement, Neha went on to co-curate an exhibition on Scottish artist Millie Frood, which is currently held at the North Lanarkshire Heritage Centre in Motherwell from 3rd February to 6th May.
Working for the Digital Lab for Islamic Visual Culture & Collections, undergraduate Fine Art student Aisha and postgraduate MSc student Isabella collaboratively helped co-edit and design a spring edition of the newsletter (image on the left), highlighting the Digital Lab’s latest projects, such as the development of Digital Munya 2.0, which is ‘an immersive 3D digital experience and imaginative visualisation of a medieval Islamic villa (Arabic munya)’. The newsletter sign-up information can be found on the host institution’s website.
Postgraduate student Jie and undergraduate student Rachel did their placement at the Alasdair Gray Archive, organising and cataloguing digital assets, or creating video content among other tasks. The students worked as part of a team to make the artist’s writing and artwork more accessible and found the archive’s education activities to be inspirational. Learn more about Jie and Rachel’s experiences on the placement in the archive’s video series: In the Archive – Student Stories: Gao Jie and In the Archive – Student Stories: Rachel Hartley.
Among other tasks, undergraduate student Charalambia contributed to researching potential ideas and speakers for the Talbot Rice Gallery’s series of events Friday Tours. For example, Charalambia’s research helped with the organisation of the talk (in conjunction with the exhibition The Accursed Share) by Owen Kelly of the University of Edinburgh Business School and the Edinburgh Futures Institute (image on the right), who reflected on the interconnection between debt and justice through the lens of the philosophical thought of Aristotle, Plato and the Byzantine Emperor Justinian. Read more about the event here.
As part of her work supporting the major exhibition of Peter Howson’s work at the City Art Centre, postgraduate student Mia helped to produce a podcast series When the Apple Ripens. In conversation with the show’s curator, she delved into a single painting in each episode to facilitate our understanding of these challenging and complex artworks. Find out more by listening to the podcast.
We look forward to sharing more success stories in the coming year.
The Work Placement Team
-Dr Alina Sinelnyk (Undergraduate History of Art Work Placement Course Organiser)
-Dr Keava McMillan (Postgraduate History of Art Work Placement Course Organiser)
-Dr Elysia Lechelt (History of Art Work Placement Programme Director)
ECA students aiding artist Antonio Pichillá in laying out and preparing a design for weaving, ECA Campus, May 2023
This May we had the privilege of hosting a textiles workshop with Maya Tzʼutujil artist Antonio Pichillá Quiacaín for History of Art and Art students at the ECA. Organised together with the School of Art, this bi-lingual event (in Spanish and English) consisted of an introduction to Pichillá’s practice, followed by a demonstration of traditional Maya Tz’utujil weaving techniques and pattern design.
Weaving Workshop with Antonio Pichillá, ECA Campus, May 2023
I have known Pichilla for almost a decade, and have previously spent some time conducting research in his home town San Pedro La Laguna on the shores of Lake Atitlán in the Guatemalan highlands. While deeply invested in working with textiles, Pichillá’s practice expands across multiple media, including painting, sculpture, installation and performance. The artist explained some of the main concepts behind the practice of weaving in relation to Maya cosmovision. A fascinating discussion concerning the use of textile in contemporary art ensued, with participating students and faculty members considering current trends in global museums, and the implications for indigenous communities which continue to use ancestral pattens and motifs in their everyday. Pichillá spoke of the ways in which his work as a contemporary indigenous artist is in dialogue both with his community and with international audiences.
Artist Antonio Pichillá showing pattern layout and design in preparation for weaving, ECA Campus, May 2023
Students and staff had an opportunity to participate in the workshop, learning how to design a pattern in preparation for weaving. Pichillá then demonstrated the use of backstrap loom, the type traditionally used by Maya communities throughout Guatemala. Generally, the loom would connect to the weaver’s belt and be supported by the trunk of a tree. As he explained, the most arduous task is laying out and counting the threads, making sure that the pattern is clearly established before one can begin to weave. After that, it is a question of patiently weaving the textile, building up one line at a time.
Artist Antonio Pichilla demonstrating techniques for using a Maya backstrap loom. ECA Campus, May 2023
Thank you to all who participated and especially to Antonio for his generosity in sharing his knowledge and work with us!
Artist Antonio Pichilla explaining the main features of a Maya backstrap loom. ECA Campus, May 2023
Antonio Pichillá Quiacaín is a Guatemalan artist, born in 1982. His work has been exhibited at numerous international venues, including the Museum of Contemporary Art Santa Barbara, the Kathmandu Triennale, the Hessel Museum of Art / CCS Bard, and is included in the permanent collection of the Museo Reina Sofía, Tate Modern and Kadist Art Foundation. A selection of recently acquired work is currently on view at Tate Modern.
Written by: Dr. Ileana L. Selejan, Lecturer in Art History, Culture and Society, History of Art, ECA
