News

Young people on our Creative Pathways
programme in Edinburgh have been getting experimental in their work,
playing with colour, drawing and collage while exploring the relationship
between sound and vision.

Working with Impact Arts’ artist-in-residence
over the past six weeks at Canongate Youth’s centre, they were initially
inspired by the way sound can be expressed visually. Working individually and
collaboratively, they have built up a portfolio of work through listening to sounds
and representing them as colours, textures, shapes and line.

They have also
been designing sound sculptures – art objects which produce sounds. The large range of artistic
techniques they have tried have been bolstered by inspiration and research trips to various art
exhibitions in Edinburgh.

The group have carried out sonic experiments using pick-ups to amplify sounds and trying out unusual materials along with contact pick-ups and guitar amps. Using everything from plastic to beans,
wire to glass jars, and shells to elastic bands, the group have been
experimenting, learning and creating as a group.

Taking inspiration from the working process,
the young people have created a final sculpture and incorporated into their
own formed and patterned design.

A workshop at the Out of the Blueprint studio in Leith
will also help translate their collage works into graphic art prints. Now
working in pairs, the young people are designing two-coloured risograph prints –
an environmentally-friendly form of screenprinting.

Morvern Odling is lead tutor on the Edinburgh Creative Pathways programme. She praises the young people’s desire to explore new ways of working:

“This showcase is the culmination of each of the young
person’s commitment to challenging themselves and stepping out of their comfort
zone to try something new,” said Morvern.

“The sculptures are surprising, elegant, humorous and
wildly original. They are difficult to describe, but we call them The Art
Noise Orchestra.”

The young
peoples’ achievements will be displayed at an exhibition showcase at Canongate
Youth on Thursday 16th March. The exhibition will be open to the public from
4pm – 6pm. The young people will be there to give an insight into the musical
instruments they have created and to talk about their work. Refreshments, art
noise and inspiration will be provided!