Latest news with #JupiterArtland
Daily Record
21 hours ago
- Daily Record
'Avoid getting on a plane and head to these stunning Scottish locations instead'
If you are looking for some stunning locations to explore this year, especially while the UK experiences some gorgeous weather, then you may want to skip getting on a plane and stay in Scotland instead A man has revealed that for those seeking breathtaking spots to visit this year, particularly during the UK's splendid weather spell, you might want to consider staying grounded and staying in Scotland instead. Chris Lawlor has taken to TikTok to showcase five spectacular Scottish locations that are likely new to many. His video is so compelling, it'll leave you itching to explore each destination. With many not wanting to go abroad this summer due to our gorgeous weather, there are many places in Scotland where the Scottish native recommend that you visit. They're all certain to take your breath away and leave you wondering why you've never visited before. 1. Whaligoe Steps, Caithness Describing the site, he mentioned it feels like "something from Game of Thrones" when you're there, a sentiment that's easy to share. The Whaligoe Steps carve their way down the cliffs just south of Wick in Caithness, situated on Scotland's northeasternmost shoreline. 2. Gearrannan Blackhouse Village, Isle of Lewis Nestled on the Atlantic coast of the Isle of Lewis, Gearrannan Blackhouse Village dates back to the 19th century and features nine meticulously restored traditional blackhouses. 3. Gateway, Edinburgh He explained: "This is called Gateway, within the grounds of Jupiter Artland". Gateway emerges as an art piece merged with a fully operational swimming pool and landscaped garden, located at the Jupiter Artland outdoor sculpture park, conceived by artist Joana Vasconcelos. 4. Cramond Island, Edinburgh He advised: "But to reach Cramond Island, cross the causeway two hours before low tide, walking along a line of concrete pillars during the safe times that are found online". Cramond Island sits amongst the cluster of islands in the Firth of Forth off the east coast of Scotland, a stone's throw from Edinburgh. It's crucial that if you do decide to make this journey, you visit during safe hours, otherwise you risk becoming marooned on the island. 5. Forvie Nature Reserve, Aberdeenshire He described the location as a "haven for wildlife," but cautioned that between April and August, visitors must "take extra care, following signs to protect breeding birds". Chris also emphasised the importance of giving seals "sufficient space" when encountering them. Forvie Nature Reserve spans nearly 1,000 hectares of sand dunes situated between the North Sea and the River Ythan estuary in Aberdeenshire. In the comments section, viewers revealed they had "never heard" of these locations previously, marvelling at their stunning beauty and expressing their desire to visit "ASAP". "I spent three weeks there and barely scratched the surface. A stunning country," one person gushed.
Scotsman
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Art reviews: Mike Nelson
Installation view of Mike Nelson's show at the Fruitmarket Gallery. Picture: Ruth Clark Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter, get the latest news and reviews from our specialist arts writers Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Mike Nelson: Humpty Dumpty Fruitmarket Gallery, Edinburgh ★★★★☆ Jonathan Baldock Installation view of WYRD by Jonathan Baldock at Jupiter Artland. Picture: Neil Hanna Mike Nelson's major new installation work for the Fruitmarket Gallery is something of a coup for Edinburgh, and looks set to be one of the highlights of Edinburgh Art Festival. Nelson, who represented the UK in Venice in 2011 and has been shortlisted twice for the Turner Prize, has carved out a practice making immersive installations from salvaged materials which are suggestive of stories. But they're big works and the chance to see a new one built from scratch is rare. At the Fruitmarket, the 'story' is woven between the three distinct spaces of the gallery. Nelson has been based in the Warehouse space for two months, building the work on site. The three elements appear separate, but are part of a single vision. The magic of the show ignites when the three work together, but this is also risky: I suspect it might not work for everyone. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The lower gallery houses a series of photographs Nelson took in the Turkish city of Mardin, in the predominantly Kurdish south-east region, in 2012. The pictures show a city in flux as new infrastructure is installed for drainage and broadband: trenches dug everywhere, piles of rubble on every corner. It's like a giant earthwork and Nelson plays on this idea, part prehistory, part Robert Smithson. Ancient foundations are dug up, the past of this intriguing multicultural city briefly exposed, then filled in again or destroyed. Detail from WYRD by Jonathan Baldock at Jupiter Artland. Picture: Neil Hanna He makes the gallery feel a bit like a subterranean excavation with the photographs mounted low on the wall next to tiny benches and lit by workmen's lamps. It's like a pause in time in which different eras collide, and old foundations become part of modern reconstructions. Upstairs, the focus shifts to the Heygate estate in South London where Nelson worked on a major project with Artangel in 2014. He had hoped to deconstruct an empty block of flats from the 1970s estate, which was then awaiting demolition, and build sections of them into a pyramid or zigurrat. But the project fell apart amid criticism that the art was part of the gentrification of an area from which working-class residents had been evicted. The estate was later demolished, and replaced by new largely private developments. Here, Nelson's photographs of the vacated flats are shown large-scale, back-to-back, mounted in sculptural structures made from timbers and girders, some from Nelson's previous works, others from sites around Edinburgh. Almost life-size, they convey a sense akin to being in these now-demolished spaces. The melancholy of peeling wallpaper and discarded objects like a hamster cage lying in grass covey traces of the lives once lived here. It's powerful stuff. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The hairs on the back of my neck were prickling nicely by the time I got the Warehouse space where Nelson delivers his pièce de résistance. Inside it, he has built a lifesize replica of sections of two of the abandoned flats. One room houses a huge digital photographic printer dating from 2014 (now considered obsolete technology) on which all the photographs in the show were printed. The detail is masterful: the rusting desk lamp, William Hill calendar, dust mouldering in the corners, the Stairway to Heaven graffiti on the printing machine. It has the uncanny chill of abandoned spaces with enough left in them to evoke the presence of past inhabitants. Although it has just been built, it feels like it has been here for years. The whole thing has an elegant circularity which threatens to tie bits of the brain in knots. The photos were made here, in this time capsule, which are themselves time capsules. And, just in case that wasn't enough, one of the rooms contains a scale model of the ziggurat he hoped to build from flats like these - perhaps even from these very materials. The self-referentiality could become insular, but Nelson knows better than to let the whole thing turn in on itself. This is about places where people live, how they are shaped by a wider political context: inclusion, idealism or submission to market forces. Improvement and demolition happen, outside of most people's control. The past is part them – built into them, or destroyed in the building. Nelson's own practice makes art out of what is discarded. This latest installation is not only clever and well made, it's perhaps also a profound reflection on his own modus operandi. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Meanwhile, a new commission by London-based Jonathan Baldock has been unveiled at Jupiter Artland for Edinburgh Art Festival. WYRD, in the Ballroom, is an assembly of animals immaculately crafted from textiles and ceramics. There are pairs of cats, lizards, giraffes, penguins, constructed in part using toy-making manuals from the 1970s and 1980s. Look closely and you will see that some also have human features – faces, hands, feet – which are modelled on the features of Baldock himself and his partner Rafal Zajko. The accompanying text explains that all are species which have been scientifically observed to engage in same-sex sexual behaviour. Queerness, then, is part of the natural world, indeed evidence of it has been underreported. Baldock uses the old Norse 'wyrd', with its overtones of supernatural otherness or transformation. All of which is fine. The creatures are more quaint than uncanny or transgressive. There are bows and appliqued hearts. The penguins are so adorable I could steal them. But I don't feel it is telling me anything new. A further installation, Warm Inside, first shown in Sweden in 2021, is in the Lower Steadings Gallery until the end of July. This is a collection of suspended pods, cocoon-like structures, beautifully made of basketry and hand-spun, naturally dyed wool. Through small openings, we glimpse a ceramic face or a hand, again modelled on the artist's own body. The scent of the dried lavender used in some of the cocoons – a natural sedative and antiseptic – permeates the warm, dark space. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Changes – internal, external – need safe spaces in which to happen. This work is about bedding in, allowing things, ideas, lives to incubate. It's about taking the time you need, being kind to yourself, knowing when you need to retreat. Again, all good, in fact, impossible to argue with. However, as with WYRD, one finds oneself in a closed circle. Instead of opening up a space for thought, these works let you know, in the nicest possible way, what you should be thinking. All you can do is agree that, yes, you are, and quietly take your leave.
The Herald Scotland
30-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
Dept Q studio to become Edinburgh Festival pop-up venue
Lewis Walker's show - which will explore 'the human search for authenticity in a world based on repetition' – will close the Edinburgh Art Festival programme this August. Read more: Other art festival art festival will be staged at the Royal Botanic Garden, the sculpture garden attraction Jupiter Artland, St Giles' Cathedral and The Grange cricket club. Walker's hour-long performance at the Leith warehouse complex will offer a rare public opportunity to see inside the warehouse complex which has been used by screen industry giants Amaxon, Sony and Netflix for major productions since the official launch of the studios five years ago. Part of the FirstStage Studios complex in Leith will be opened for this year's Edinburgh Art Festival. (Image: Supplied) Previous productions include two seasons of supernatural thriller The Rig, which were set in the and the Arctic Circle, the feature film The Outrun, for scenes set in London's nightclub scene and the time travel fantasy saga Outlander, for a final series set during the American Revolution. Most recently, FirstStage was used for extensive filming on the Dept Q, the Edinburgh-set crime thriller, which has been a global ratings winner for Netflix. The studios complex was the base for the production for most of last year and was used the filming of key scenes, including those set inside a fictional Edinburgh police headquarters. Walker's show has been jointly commissioned by the art festival and the Serpentine Galleries in London, will be staged in the former industrial building in Leith months after it was performed in a 19th century chapel in London. The art festival's programme states: 'Bornsick reflects the idea that we inherit illness, born into a system that shapes us before we can define ourselves. The gymnastics and dance performance sees a body built, piece by piece: a character assembled through learned movements, imposed behaviors, and artificial layers. 'Through conditioning, we create a machine. Through unlearning, we return to the animal. The cycle continues, revealing that there is no final, fixed truth, only endless adaptation. Bornsick suggests that humanhood is a paradox; we search for something real, yet everything we are is borrowed.' Art festival curator Eleanor Edmondson said: 'Lewis Walker will close the festival with Bornsick, transforming the cavernous warehouse space of FirstStage Studios in Leith into a site of emotion and collective resonance. 'Rather than offering a fixed narrative, Walker channels what feels urgent and relevant in through movement — allowing meaning to unfold through the audience's own experience. Their practice is grounded in deep care, holding collaborators and participants with attentiveness and generosity.' Walker said: 'Bornsick reflects the idea that we inherit illness born into a system that shapes us before we can define ourselves. 'The gymnastics and dance performance explores identity as a compulsive act of referencing, an endless cycle of borrowing and reshaping of what came before.'
Daily Record
15-06-2025
- Daily Record
Seven great Scottish day trips near Glasgow to make the most of summer
With summer approaching, it's a great time to plan a day trip or weekend escape from Glasgow to somewhere new and scenic With summer just around the corner and hopefully brighter weather on the way, it's the perfect time to start planning days out, or even weekend escapes, away from the hustle and bustle of city life. Glasgow offers plenty of green spaces and parks for enjoying the sunshine, but if you're craving a change of scenery, Glasgow Live rounded up some fantastic lesser-known spots within easy reach of the city. Whether you fancy a coastal trip for classic fish and chips or a family adventure in Dumfries and Galloway, these destinations promise something special for everyone. Close to home... Chatelherault Country Park Just 25 minutes from Glasgow near Hamilton, Chatelherault is one of Scotland's oldest and most beautifully designed estates. It's a perfect family day out, especially if you have pets, with plenty to explore. The striking country house features an in-house coffee shop to refuel, while the grounds boast immaculate greens, stunning views, woodland walks, and even an adventure park where kids can burn off energy. On Sundays, visitors can browse the local market for unique finds. Caldermill Waterfall Popular with cyclists, Caldermill Waterfall in Lochwinnoch lies just 40 minutes from Glasgow. True to its name, it features a charming waterfall tumbling beside a cycle path, making it a scenic and refreshing spot to visit. A little further afield... Crawick Multiverse For something truly unique, head about an hour from Glasgow to the Crawick Multiverse near Dumfries. Once an open cast coal mine, this major land art project has been transformed into nine new 'landforms,' each representing different aspects of space and the universe. It's a fascinating blend of education and natural beauty. Nearby, families can stay in a lovely stone barn conversion at Sanquhar, which also welcomes dogs. Jupiter Artland West Lothian's Jupiter Artland is a whimsical sculpture park and art gallery that has recently caught attention online for its enchanting amethyst cave, reminiscent of Minecraft. The park features interactive and unusual artworks, including massive ground sculptures and an outdoor swimming pool. For a family stay nearby, The Snug Gate Lodge in West Calder offers cosy accommodation. The Devil's Pulpit This spot is best suited for older children or adventurous visitors due to the tricky access. The path includes slippery rocks known as the Devil's Steps, so caution is advised, and it's wise to visit in a group. The reward is a stunning gorge with emerald green walls and blood-red water, a location so striking it has appeared in TV shows like Outlander. Visitors can paddle in the water but should be careful. It's also a great place for Instagram-worthy photos. Nearby, Ellandaerroch Holiday Cottage in Drymen provides a beautiful base for exploring. Lochgoilhead Just over an hour from Glasgow lies Lochgoilhead, a charming village famed as one of Scotland's most beautiful spots. Part of the Loch Lomond area, it offers unspoiled scenery along peaceful river walks where the sunlight dances on the water. Wildlife watchers might spot deer, badgers, squirrels, or even the occasional eagle. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. The village's highlight is The Boat Shed café, perfectly positioned by the water with breathtaking views. For a nearby stay, Heatherbank in Garelochhead is a picturesque four-bedroom property featuring a hot tub. Kelburn Castle, Largs For a splash of magic and whimsy, Kelburn Castle in Largs offers a colourful day out packed with adventure. Visitors can enjoy a mini-zoo, an adventure playground, woodland trails, and even arts and music festivals, ensuring there's something fun for all ages. So whether you're looking to stretch your legs close to the city or embark on a scenic journey, these spots make excellent choices for memorable days out this summer.
Scotsman
20-05-2025
- Scotsman
16 magical beauty spots in and around Edinburgh that are well worth a visit
People travel from all over the world to visit the Scottish capital and take in the stunning views and scenery that it offers. We have taken a look at 16 magical beauty spots in and around Edinburgh which prove that our city's status as one of the most picturesque in the world is wholly justified. Many of these spots are perfect for a quick walk when you're trying to escape the hustle and bustle on your lunch break, while others can be visited on a day trip when you need a slightly longer escape into nature. Take a look through our gallery to see just 16 of many beauty spots in and around Edinburgh. 1 . Jupiter Artland Jupiter Artland is a contemporary sculpture park about half an hour's drive from Edinburgh. The 100-acre site combines artwork with nature in a striking way, including this piece by landscape architect Charles Jeneks. Photo: Jane Barlow Photo Sales 2 . Arthur's Seat Arthur's Seat is a focal point in the city and anyone who climbs in can take in beautiful panoramic views of the city from the top. | Third Party Photo: Third Party Photo Sales 3 . Princes Street Gardens Princes Street Gardens is in the heart of Edinburgh city centre and offers stunning views of the Edinburgh skyline. | National World Photo: Callum McCormack Photo Sales 4 . Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh is a beautiful and tranquil spot in the city where visitors can see a variety of plants from around the world. | Visit Scotland Photo: Visit Scotland Photo Sales Related topics: Edinburgh
