The next generation of artists, film-makers, designers and architects will show their playful and challenging work as part this year’s Edinburgh College of Art Degree Show. Lionel Ritchie music videos from the 1980s, the urban fabric of Mumbai, and US gun laws are among the inspirations for works at this year’s show. For nine days in May, the College (ECA) will be transformed into the capital’s biggest gallery space as it celebrates the work of more than 500 graduating students. Previous shows at the College have launched the careers of BAFTA and Turner Prize winners. Edinburgh College of Art Degree Show 2014 The show is free. The Degree Show will open late on 28-29 May, between 11am and 8pm. Saturday 24 May 2014, 11.00am Sunday 1 June 2014, 5.00pm Edinburgh College of Art Main Building, 74 Lauriston Place, Edinburgh, EH3 9DF Find ECA Main Building on the campus map Visit the official ECA Degree Show website Collaborations For the first time, the show is based solely in the Lauriston Place campus. The impressive work and intricate models of the School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture will also make its debut in the ECA Sculpture Court. History of Art PhD students will also bring their knowledge and insight to bear on the show. Painting and sculpture The exhibition is open to the public and promises to excite and stimulate audiences with a vast array of work. In Sculpture Richard Phillips-Kerr will project a live, interactive image of himself onto a plaster cast of his body, while in a humorous response to Lionel Ritchie’s music video for the song, Hello, Dylan McCaughtry has created 16 busts of the singer’s head. Beverley Hughes has used 100,000 grains of rice painstakingly attached to a canvas to bring texture and layering to her work. Elsewhere in Painting, Sophie Hopkins’ work takes horrible wallpaper and makes beautiful objects using their edges. The playful and the practical In Intermedia, Sarah Lawrence’s work plays with the concept of doubles, projecting images of celebrities who are often mistaken for one another, such as Natalie Portman and Keira Knightley or Mark Wahlberg and Matt Damon. Kirsty Roxburgh creates arresting, large-scale posters daubed with slogans such as ‘I’m Ready To Drop Out Of School And Start A Family With Harry Styles’. In Product Design Henry Collingham has devised a way to create a refrigerator from cheap car parts, a breakthrough with potential benefits in the developing world. Other students have made swimming goggles for the visually impaired, a bike-powered winnowing machine, and birdhouses from waste carpet fibre. Graphical Gatsby and interactive independence Interior design student Simon Palmer’s project involves using virtual reality technology to turn Glasgow’s Gallery of Modern Art into an interactive game that asks participants to make decisions related to the Scottish Independence. Depending on their choices they will end up in either a virtual independent Scotland or remain part of the UK. Among the colourful and accomplished work by Illustration students Hannah Botman’s work has cartoon dinosaurs playing with balloons, while Emma B Lacour has illustrated The Great Gatsby. John McNair is experimenting with combining textiles and concrete, embedding velvet into tiles, while Jenny Ellery is working with some unusual materials to produce tactile textiles for fidgeters. Forgotten poems and intricate models In Graphic Design Josh Peter has responded to gun regulation debate in the US through his work, including building his own bunker. Matilda Craston has brought the forgotten poetry of her Great Uncle, who died in 1937 aged 17, to life through graphic design. As part of their final project Beth Wilson and James Gilchrist are staging their own Scottish Design Festival in October. As well as exhibiting in the Sculpture Court, students from the School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture will also showcase their work with the University’s India office and partner institutions in Mumbai. Masters of the Multiverse The Master of Contemporary Art students have curated Masters of the Multiverse, a distinct show within the Degree Show. Inspired by a Norse myth Philip Obermarck has hung upside down a lifesize limewood sculpture of Kvasir, a man so wise that people became poets by drinking his blood. Suzanne van der Lingen’s work, Exotica!, splices together footage from 1950s adventure films of people lost in the jungle, such as The African Queen and The Naked Jungle, to question the depiction of women and indigenous cultures. Precious metals and old time love In Jewellery and Silversmithing Hazel Thorn has experimented with base and precious metals to create objects that look more fragile than they actually are. Joe Metcalfe’s work takes inspiration from bold architectural and mechanical visuals, with his jewellery marked by intricate stamping and etching. In Film and TV Stuart Edwards’ documentary ‘A Wee Night In’ is about his 95 year-old gran finding love with a 90 year-old boyfriend who comes to stay at weekends. Scott Willis’ documentary, Pigeon, features Andy - a man who is determined to use the film as a way of getting his messages about politics, homeopathy for animals, potatoes. The 2014 ECA Degree Show promises to be a great celebration of talent across the college. This year we are especially pleased to see all aspects of the show come together at Lauriston Place. The show demonstrates the strong disciplinary foundations upon which students build their practice and ECA's unique ability to foster cross-disciplinary collaboration. We congratulate all those whose hard work will be on show. Professor Chris BrewardPrincipal of Edinburgh College of Art Related links The Edinburgh College of Art Degree Show 2014 Undergraduate Study - School of Art Undergraduate Study - School of Design Undergraduate Study - School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture Undergraduate Study - History of Art Undergraduate Study - Reid School of Music Edinburgh College of Art - Postgraduate Study Publication date 15 Oct, 2015
