The Herald - The Herald Magazine
Pop in to view the art of a true legend
Admirers of the late Scots artist Eduardo Paolozzi will soon be treated to a new tribute at the Baird Institute in Cumnock. By
VISITORS can brush up on Scotland’s impact upon the ‘pop art’ phenomenon – and also view the best of Ayrshire’s contemporary talent – at various exhibitions this summer. A forthcoming celebration of Scottish pop art icon Eduardo Paolozzi’s work at Cumnock’s Baird Institute is set to complement the continuation of a popular series of events showcasing evocative works by local artists at Kilmarnock’s prestigious Dick Institute.
Housed in a stunning Victorian building, the Dick Institute’s magnificent art collection already includes works by Scottish artists such as Sir David Wilkie, Sir Henry Raeburn and William McTaggart.
Previous major exhibitions have included Quentin Blake, Wallace and Gromit, Bill Viola, Michael Morpurgo: A Lifetime in Stories, Robert Colquhoun, Abram Games, Pop Art in Print and Gerhard Richter, often in partnership with national institutions including the V&A and National Galleries Scotland.
The works of some of Scotland’s leading contemporary artists such as Christine Borland, Dalziel and Scullion, Nathan
Coley, Rachel MacLean and Graham Fagan have also been shown through creative commissioning programmes that support artistic talent by linking with major national initiatives.
And running from 13 May to 10 September at the Baird Institute, an exciting new exhibition titled General Dynamic F.U.N will host 50 magnificent screen-prints and photolithographs by late the Scottish master of pop art Eduardo Paolozzi. One of the pioneers of the movement in the UK, Paolozzi was a compulsive collector and a jumbler of icons. He is equally revered for his sculptures and his kaleidoscopic print projects.
The artist, who described himself as ‘a wizard in Toytown’, transformed the ‘mundane, the derelict and the massproduced’ into images that zing with electric eclecticism and impress with their complexity.
Paolozzi’s canny alchemy is vividly apparent in General Dynamic F.U.N, which shines a spotlight on a series work created between 1965 and 1970. Visitors will learn how Paolozzi employed the technologies of massreproduction on his idols – household names and familiar faces of consumer advertising, high fashion and Hollywood.
The prints, which bear idiosyncratic titles such as Totems and Taboos of the Nine-to-Five Day; Twenty Traumatic Twinges and Cary Grant as a Male War Bride, do not occupy a rigid sequence but can be assembled and viewed in any order.
The event coincides with the Dick Institute’s current Open Art Exhibition – running as part of East Ayrshire Leisure’s 10th Anniversary celebration programme - which is giving a prominent platform to the Ayrshire-based talent.
Since the beginning of the year, thousands of visitors have gained an insight into the diverse range of current contemporary practices of over sixty regional artists in the building’s Main Gallery.
Through a broad selection of high quality work, the exhibition demonstrates originality and innovation both conceptually and technically whilst providing relevant and thought-provoking themes to visitors.
Awards presented for outstanding works include the Robert Colquhoun Prize, the Dick Institute Purchase Award, the People’s Choice and a Young People’s Award.
Visitors should note that the Dick Institute also offers a variety of educational programs for children and adults including art classes, history talks and nature walks. The institute also has a library that is open to the public, offering a valuable resource for the local community and visitors.