AT THE centre of Lachlan Goudie’s breezy and readable book The Story of Scottish Art, the central paradox of a cultural conundrum the non-existence of Scottish art is served up on a plate.
The Scottish attitude to art has never recovered from the Scottish Inquisition that was the Calvinist Reformation led by John Knox. He and his followers destroyed the images that decorated churches, and forbade “Pope-ish” representations of religious themes.
The deadly influence of Knox lingers on in Free Church congregations and in the national psyche as wilful philistinism a deliberate ignorance of, and entrenched scepticism towards, art.
As we creep blinking out of our homes into a vaccine-enabled version of normality, some semblance of order should return to the world of arts and entertainment. In that spirit, and with the usual caveats, here are 21 reasons to look forward to 2021. Television Line Of Duty Filming on series six of the BBC’s blockbuster drama about a police anti-corruption was curtailed by the pandemic. It has now finished so it won’t be long before we’re once again gripped by questions both large (is Adrian Dunbar’s Superintendent Ted Hastings really H, the criminal mastermind the team have been chasing for years) and small (why does Martin Compston’s Cockney accent never slip?). This season’s star turn comes from Kelly Macdonald as DCI Joanne Davidson. Date: March.
City Art Centre reveals exhibition highlights for 2021
Charles H. Mackie, There were Three Maidens pud a Flower (By the Bonnie Banks o Fordie), c.1897. City Art Centre, Museums & Galleries Edinburgh.
EDINBURGH
.-The City Art Centre, Edinburghs own public venue dedicated to championing historic and contemporary Scottish visual arts and crafts, announces exhibition highlights for 2021. All exhibitions are free to attend, but timed slots must be booked in advance.
Adjust / Adapt
Free Admission
The Scottish Furniture Makers Association (SFMA) and Visual Art Scotland (VAS) in partnership present, Adjust / Adapt. The exciting new members exhibition at the prestigious City Art Centre, showcases work by Makers, Designers and Artists working in Scotland with a creative response to how domestic interiors are being adapted in light of the Covid pandemic and climate emergency. The exhibition explores how our homes and outdoor spaces are working harder for occupants; as multigene