What’s On
The Axe Forgets, But The Tree Remembers by ALBERTA WHITTLE (N/C 12+)
As part of the Crafted Selves exhibition at Gracefield, Fife Contemporary present The Axe Forgets, But The Tree Remembers. Featuring stories of the Windrush generation and their descendants, Alberta Whittle’s film highlights the animosity experienced by those who first migrated from the Caribbean to the UK.
Curated by Glasgow based Cat Dunn, the exhibition features the work of 13 Scottish artist and makers who each express their ideas about dual identities, some born from having a cultural heritage which is both Scottish and one which is rooted in another cultural home and others exploring identity such as their sexuality, disability, or trans and non-binary selves.
Alberta Whittle is one of Scotland’s leading artists representing Scotland at the 2022 Venice Biennale with her work recently shown at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art.
The film screening will be introduced at 7pm, followed by an in-conversation event with refreshments and Q&A. End approx. 8.45pm. Film running time: 52m.
Weavers of Grass | In Association With D&G Arts Festival
In a multi-media performance award winning poet Chrys Salt and acclaimed saxophone player Richard Ingham explore the fascinating stories of Angus MacPhee and Ötzi the Iceman - two weavers of grass separated by 5000 years.
Angus MacPhee, a crofter from South Uist went off to war in 1939, fell ill with a form of schizophrenia and was sent to Craig Dunain, a hospital for the mentally ill outside Inverness. For the next fifty years Angus became electively mute, but using the ancient skills of the Islands went about weaving amazing garments from the grass and leaves he harvested from the hospital grounds.
Ötzi the Iceman is a well-preserved mummy of a man who lived over 5000 years ago. He is Europe’s oldest known natural human mummy. . Bronze Age man also wove garments out of grass, something Chrys discovered when researching Angus’ fascinating story. The exact circumstances of his Otzi’s death remain unknown.
A rich and enthralling exploration of mental health, the creative process, human frailty, and ancient traditions.