Since 2004 Scotland’s national orchestra has been committed to its Out and About programme – annual, week-long residencies in areas of the country which are not frequently visited by a national performing arts organisation. In partnership with Shetland Arts and supported by Creative Scotland; Loganair; TOTAL E&P UK Limited; Capital Solutions; NorthLink Ferries; and Shetland Islands Council, 70 RSNO musicians will journey from the Orchestra’s base in Glasgow to Shetland and integrate with the local communities by learning, creating and performing music.

The RSNO has been preparing for this trip for well over a year. In 2011 the RSNO commissioned Shetland-born composer and award-winning traditional fiddler Chris Stout to compose a substantial work for orchestra which will serve as the centrepiece of the Orchestra’s Sunday evening concert.

Chris also wrote a motif which has been used as the starting point of a composition and performance project, driven by collaboration between RSNO and Shetland musicians. Four groups from the RSNO visited the Islands last October and made contact with a number of Shetland-based traditional musicians, armed with Chris Stout’s ‘musical kernel’. Since the initial visit the four groups have worked together with Chris in Shetland, in Glasgow and online, producing four distinct works inspired by his original melody.

Award-winning traditional musician and composer Chris Stout said: “I’m delighted that the RSNO will be visiting Shetland. It’s a nice feeling to know that the excitement and anticipation felt by the visiting musicians will be shared by the local community. This project allows musicians to share ideas on a huge scale and I’m certain everyone will come out of it feeling energised and fulfilled.

“It is this sense of sharing knowledge which has been the main inspiration behind my piece Tingaholm. Although it exists as a complete work it stays true to the tradition that I have been brought up with. It is open to the interpretation of some of the finest musicians in Shetland, in collaboration with members of the RSNO. I can’t wait to hear the results!”

On Friday 2 March the four ensembles will perform their new works as well as traditional tunes and contributions from the RSNO musicians at separate locations in Shetland’s outer isles, each marking geographic points of the compass; Unst (Baltasound Junior High School), Outer Skerries (Skerries Junior High School), Foula (Primary School) and Fair Isle (Primary School). They will perform concerts connected via live video link to each other as well as transmitted live to the Garrison Theatre in Lerwick. The Outer Isles Project starts at 7.30pm and all associated events in the outer isles are free of charge, but booking is recommended. To book tickets for each respective event, please click on the event you’d like to attend: Unst, Outer Skerries, Foula, Fair Isle.

The RSNO Brass Quintet will present Bigton Brass Concert, an afternoon programme featuring music by Bizet, Beethoven, Gershwin and Mancini, at Bigton Hall on Saturday from 3.00pm. To buy tickets for this event, please click here. Also on Saturday is Busta Recital; RSNO Violin Paul Medd will be performing a solo recital in the Long Room of the historic Busta House Hotel on the shore of Busta Voe at 2.30pm. To buy tickets for this event, please click here.

On Friday RSNO Leader James Clark will provide masterclasses for local young string players before they join the RSNO to perform at St Columba’s Church, Lerwick on Saturday night. Members of the RSNO will also be offering mentoring opportunities to members of the Shetland Community Orchestra.

St Columba’s Church, Lerwick on Saturday 3 March is the venue for the Big Kirk Chamber Concert, with the Orchestra’s Leader James Clark joined by strings, brass and woodwind from the RSNO and local young musicians side-by-side. As part of the programme James will perform Mozart’s First Violin Concerto which he previously performed at 2011’s Edinburgh International Festival to universal critical acclaim. The concert starts at 7.30pm to purchase tickets, please click here.

The RSNO returns to its symphonic proportions for The Sunday Symphony, on 4 March at the Clickimin Leisure Complex, Lerwick – for the Orchestra’s 21st anniversary since its last full performance in the town. The programme, conducted by Austrian David Danzmayr, includes Britten’s Four Sea Interludes, Sibelius’s Symphony No1 and the world première of Fair Isle-born musician Chris Stout’s Tingaholm. To purchase tickets for this event, please click here.

On Monday 5 March the full force of the visiting musicians will be heard once more, this time for the RSNO’s schools concert Heroes and Rogues. One of the finest presenters and animateurs in the business, Paul Rissmann will guide the young concert-goers through a musical journey, exploring key musical concepts linked to the curriculum. The school groups attending the concert have been preparing for the visit by participating in an online workshop with Paul Rissmann and RSNO musicians using the online community for Scottish schools, Glow.

Two groups of RSNO musicians present specially adapted versions of the Orchestra’s award-winning concert programme for pre-school children, Monster Music, at Brae High School, Clickimin Leisure Complex, Lerwick, Sandwick Junior High School and Mid Yell Community Hall. Tickets are £3 per child and free for accompanying adults. To book tickets for the respective events, please click on the event you’d like to attend: Brae, Lerwick, Sandwick, Yell.

Working with Shetland’s Community Mental Health team, members of the Orchestra have devised a tailor-made creative workshop for patients, to be held at the Clickimin Centre on Saturday. RSNO musicians are also catering for those who are unable to attend the RSNO performances, with a number of informal performances planned in residential care homes across the islands during the visit.

Ellen Thomson, Director of Education and Community Partnerships said: “Bringing together two fantastic musical traditions was the source of inspiration for the RSNO’s Out and About week in Shetland and I am delighted that we’ve been able to do this in such a creative way. This project brings with it the usual RSNO ingredients, full orchestral concerts, inspirational music making for young people, tailor-made community workshops and small-scale performances as well as collaboration with some of Shetland’s finest musicians.”

Shetland Arts Director Gwilym Gibbons said: “This is a hugely ambitious and exciting project and one that has been a long term ambition of Shetland Arts and the RSNO. I am delighted that Shetland Arts and RSNO are working in partnership to bring the orchestra to Shetland. It is very rare for a full symphony orchestra to commit to overcoming the enormous logistical challenge of getting to an island location like ours, let alone head out to our own outer isles of Fair Isle, Outer Skerries, Foula and Unst.”

For more information on the activities of the RSNO during Out and About in Shetland go to www.rsno.org.uk or contact Shetland Box Office on 01595 745555 or www.shetlandboxoffice.org

The Wicker Tree will be screened at The Garrison Theatre on Wednesday night at 7:30pm. Although tickets are free you are advised to book a place through the Shetland Box Office.

At this time Shetland Arts and its Design Team don’t have a detailed and fully completed programme of works from DITT Construction Ltd on which to make a judgement as to whether or not the building will be completed on 25 May 2012. The period of delay to date and changing picture gives Shetland Arts great concern.

In light of this it is with great regret that the Board of Shetland Arts has concluded that it cannot confirm any dates in relation to the opening of Mareel or subsequent events until DITT Construction Ltd hand over a fully completed building. This difficult decision comes after carefully reviewing the information available and taking into account previous multiple assurances of completion dates followed by notification of significant delays. Clearly this makes it very difficult for Shetland Arts to programme activity in the building with confidence or for promoters wishing to make bookings to have faith in the dates we offer.  In order to reduce further distress to those who wish to use the building and for Shetland Arts to mitigate loss wherever possible, we will now only confirm bookings for events after practical completion is certified, which will likely result in the first events taking place in Mareel 6 to 8 weeks after the keys have been handed over.

There are many rumours circulating regarding reasons for construction delays, including recent claims by DITT Construction Ltd on specific aspects of the construction. It is the view of Shetland Arts that it is unprofessional to play out contractual issues within the public arena. Such issues should be dealt with either pre or post completion of the contract through due process between Shetland Arts, our professional advisers, and our contractor. So although Shetland Arts would like at times to contest what is being said and offer counter factual information, we believe that such action would be unhelpful, given our desire to see a building completed to the standard for which DITT Construction Ltd are known, in as quick a time as possible.

Jim Johnston, Chair of Shetland Arts said: “The Board of Shetland Arts supports the efforts of our Director, staff and the Mareel Design Team to hold DITT Construction Ltd to their obligations under the construction contract and the subsequent delivery of Mareel. We are very frustrated by the announcement of further delays; however we will continue to strive towards delivering a venue of which we can all be proud.”

The Wicker Tree is a film adaptation of Robin Hardy’s 2006 novel, Cowboys for Christ, and contains similar elements to his 1973 film The Wicker Man, but it is neither a sequel nor a remake of that film.

The film focuses on Texas pop star turned gospel singer, Beth (Brittania Nicol) and her boyfriend, Steve (Henry Garrett), both devout evangelical Christians sent on a mission to spread the word of God to the people of Scotland.  Beth and Steve decide to begin their preaching at the May Day celebrations in the village. In an attempt to impress the locals, they agree to becoming the local Queen of the May and the Laddie for the festival, not realising the consequences of their decision and what awaits them.

Robin Hardy began his directorial career in Canada and the US, where he was mainly involved in making television drama. In the 1960’s he returned to London and became involved in making commercials and informational films for the company Hardy Shaffer Ferguson Avery, which Hardy formed with writer Anthony Shaffer.

As a result of this partnership, the two men were involved in the creation and production of Hardy’s feature debut, the pagan horror masterpiece The Wicker Man. Although now considered a classic (at the time, its star Christopher Lee regarded it as his finest work), the film suffered after its producers made extensive cuts. Thanks partly to the subsequent disappearance of the original negative, it took nearly thirty years for the full-length version to be released in Britain.

Lisa Ward, Marketing Officer at Shetland Arts, said: “This is a unique opportunity to see a new film by celebrated director and writer Robin Hardy. I expect there will be a lot of interest in the screening.”

The screening is free of charge but Shetland Arts strongly recommends booking tickets to ensure a seat. Tickets can be booked through Shetland Box Office online at http://www.shetlandboxoffice.org or by calling 01595 745 555.

Joy is thinking about holding a one day workshop on acting for the screen, which if there was sufficient interest, could be combined with drama directing skills, since the two are inter-dependent. The workshop is aimed at adults.

Actors – actors would learn how to tailor their performance specifically for the screen, although all acting techniques will be covered, including how to be successful at auditions, rehearsal skills, warm-up exercises, understanding on-set techniques, differences between stage and film set techniques, etc.

Directors – this could be a compressed version of a one-week workshop Joy ran at the BBC for 13 or so years, for in-house directors, which included a day on acting for directors, so they could come to understand the actor’s perspective, learn to get the best performances from their cast, and why they may be failing to get a good performance!

Directors would be required to act in order to fully understand the actor’s role and how they can get the best from their cast.

Techniques that will benefit both actors and directors include:

Audition – script interpretation and how to get the most out of any script.

Rehearsal Warm up exercises (what and why)

Character development

Actors’ notes – how and when to give them

On-set notes for quick fixes (since time is money on a film set)

If there are sufficient people, Joy will organise a day that suits as many as possible.

Please tell her if you are interested in the acting or directing part, or both, and what, if any, experience you have of either.

All levels of experience are welcome, and there will be plenty to interest even those with a lot of experience, since the BBC courses were tailored for professional directors, producers and actors, as well as those new to the profession.

For more information or to express an interest contact:  Joy Perino Saloschin: saloschinj@mac.com

The Creative Learning Network is an opportunity for artists, school and community based staff to come together for inspiration on new creative ideas for learning. The event is not open to the general public.

This informal session held in partnership with Shetland Arts is on Monday 13 February at Bonhoga Gallery. We are delighted to announce that Dennis Coutts has agreed to give a talk about his work and accompanying exhibition. Denis has been photographing Shetland’s society for over 60 years and his work is a fascinating catalogue of life throughout the islands. For this exhibition work has been selected from the 1960’s and represents Shetland in the pre-oil era. The exhibition will appeal to anyone with an interest in stories and characters from this period in Shetland’s history. While life was very different then, these stunning black and white photographs reflect a character of life in Shetland which is timeless and remains in many ways unchanged today.

There will be coffee, tea and refreshments at 4pm and the talk will start at 4.30pm. The event will finish at 6pm.

To reserve a place please contact:

email: noelle.henderson@shetland.gov.uk

tel: 01595 744 013

Pub. Thames and Hudson 2011. ISBN 978-0-500-51585-3

£24.95

Reviewed by Angela Hunt

Senior Lecturer in Creative Industries, Shetland College.

The New Artisans, researched and collated by Olivier Dupon, is an elegant and thoughtfully designed book which profiles 75 contemporary creative makers from around the world in a selection which Dupon states is “the antithesis of uniformized, mass-produced, disposable, anonymous and low quality goods we are saturated with.” The publication is timely with the imminent closure on the nations’ high streets of several hundred retail outlets selling “fast fashion” by the Arcadia group and a number of home furnishings stores. There could never be a better time to test the public mood and desire to  purchase and value unique hand made objects, which product designer Sarah Cihat of the USA suggests aim at “challenging the commercial culture of buy, buy, throw it away; get the next new thing”

Dupon’s ability to select has been honed through his career as a retail buyer and product manager which began at Christian Dior and more recently through his blog:  www.Dossier37.tumblr.com And the internet plays a role in the book, with each designer profiled having their websites included. Whilst compilations of new designer/artist profiles have become common place, for example those published by Taschen and Phaidon such as “Fashion Now 2,” this is a genuinely new hybrid: paper publishing with web links.

The New Artisans is raised above what could have been a designer shopping catalogue by the integrity of the makers, many of whom are committed to ecological ideals and are engaged in the examination of human relationships, class and gender through decorative symbolism and above all, an exciting investigation into the development of materials and processes to create art and craft imbued with fresh thinking.

Lithuanian artist Severiga Inčirauskaitė-Kriaunevičnė drills into car hoods to embroider with cross-stitch. Her rusting frying pan embroidered with three fried eggs is an extraordinary celebration of ordinary life. Ann Wood creates imaginative outcomes from unassuming materials, and her piece“The Cardboard Castle,” is made from salvaged boxes. Swiss artist and silversmith Wiebke Meurer combines precious metals with porcelain to subvert designs which once represented the power and wealth of the ruling classes of eighteenth-century Europe. Her seductive and beautiful artworks encourage contemplation of why gold continues to confer status in the luxury goods market.

12 makers from the UK have been selected, and remarkably 2 of the artisans originate from Whalsay, Shetland. Andrea Williamson creates her lively product range of knitted textiles from her garden studio on the island, and Jen Deschênes (neé Irvine), designs and makes in her studio in Lochaber in the Scottish Highlands. Deschênes re-works vintage fabrics and uses her strong drawing skills to transfer images through embroidery and silk screen printing to interior products and vintage silk stockings, each piece she creates is unique and brings carefully selected historical reference to life.

Williamson photographed her Russian doll cushions and knitted cuckoo clocks on a bright pink mantelpiece found in an empty play house on Whalsay; this surprise element of colour and cheerfulness is an antidote to cliché fictions of a landscape of windswept bleakness and gives the reader a glimpse of Shetland’s special quirkiness.  She describes her combination of machine knitting and hand embellishment with refreshing honesty and has an equal enjoyment of the high and low-tech processes.

The book’s 850 illustrations are supplied by the selected artists, designers and artisans and the quality of these images underpin the success of the publication for they enable the inclusion in each profile of scenes from studios and of the makers’ tools.

The photographs evidence the transferable skills of visual communication in design education, which let established art publisher Thames and Hudson take a risk rather than commission photographs. It would be impossible to finance a photographer to travel the globe to visit these studio spaces to produce this book at the accessible retail price of £24.95.

Care has also been taken with the design and typography to ensure the book works as an object which feels good to hold. The cover reproduction of embroidery on Belgian linen is a sympathetic translation of Richard McAdam’s one-off art piece to mass production.

Dupon is passionate about the artisans and their works, and the language of the introduction can verge on the fetishistic “They represent the epitome of customization, a love declaration: an object made for you, just for you”.

These are extravagant claims, but if ever a product could inflame pagan adoration it would be “Recipe bowl”, made by Australian ceramicist Mel Robson; an exquisite tracing paper thin translucent membrane of slipcast porcelain holds the indigo tattoo of a hand written recipe text and it glows with light like a winter moon.

The commitment to strong ideals of quality, care and consideration evidenced in the book will ensure the artworks and artisans continue to be cherished long after the epithet of new wears off.

During this year’s Christmas exhibition at Bonhoga Gallery, Shetland Arts will launch a new publication by Thames & Hudson – “The New Artisans – handmade designs for contemporary living’’. The book, by international design expert and acclaimed style blogger Olivier Dupon, profiles Whalsay born textile designers Andrea Williamson and Jen Deschênes, along with over seventy other selected artists and designers. The launch starts at 6.30pm and is free to attend.

The beautifully illustrated book captures the new global preference for a return to the unique and the handmade, and includes a directory of hundreds of the ‘new artisans’ products, recommended shops, websites and blogs.

The seventy five new artisans carefully sourced by Olivier Dupon are described as the cream of the contemporary design world, from Australia, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UK, Ukraine and USA.

Both Shetland designers attended Whalsay School and the Anderson High School in Lerwick. Andrea Williamson’s degree, after a year at Shetland College, was a BA (Hons) in Fashion Textiles from the University of Brighton, followed by placements in design studios in London and Italy. She returned to Shetland in 2006 to set up her studio in Whalsay and produce her collections of bright knitted accessories and interior pieces. Andrea will attend the launch and book signing at Bonhoga Gallery.

Andrea said: “I’m delighted to have been included in The New Artisans alongside so many talented people from such a range of disciplines and different countries.  It was really exciting to receive a copy of the finished book in the post, turning the pages is like an inspiring journey and I’m pleased two Shetland lasses are part of it.”

Jen Deschênes studied screen-printed and embroidered textiles at Glasgow School of Art and mixed-media textiles at the Royal College of Art in London, before moving to the Scottish Highlands where she established her practice in print and embroidery.

Jen said:  “I’m very proud to have been chosen to be part of ‘The New Artisans’. The book is beautiful and full of inspiring artisans from all over the world. I’m really pleased the launch will be in Shetland and think it is fantastic that two Shetlanders, both from Whalsay should be involved.”

Hazel Hughson of Shetland Arts said: “Jen and Andrea work in dissimilar techniques, but share an imaginative and artistic approach to textiles and continue the Shetland tradition of placing textiles in an international arena.  Shetland Arts congratulates them both on being selected with ten other UK artisans and hope their achievement will inspire other Shetland based designers and craft makers.”

Olivier Dupon commented: “While importing independent designers’ creations for my own shop, Lola et Moi in Sydney, Australia, I could experience first hand the resurgence for craft and customers’ craving for anything unique and hand-made. Once I closed the shop, I thought about how I could pursue my passion for scouting and promoting talented makers. Highlighting these ‘artisans’ in a book appeared to be the best venue as a paper volume as such is a perfect match for a project about Craft.”

“It is an invitation to get inspired or ultimately be directed to a designer for a purchase. It attempts to cover as many techniques and base materials as possible, feature as many countries of origin as possible, and introduce a wide range of creative styles – from the functional via decorative to purely artistic objects. It is a labor of love and a tribute to all the talented makers who strive to make our world a more beautiful and meaningful place to live in.”

Shetland Arts supports the development of contemporary craft made in Shetland at all levels. The support is provided through projects for the creative and professional development of individual craftmakers; exhibition of craft at Bonhoga Gallery; by mentoring individuals and groups, or awarding small grants to full-time and part-time craftmakers through the Craftmaker Awards Scheme – Working Up; in partnership with Creative Scotland and Shetland Islands Council.

Andrea Williamson and Jen Deschênes, along with Wendy Inkster of Burra Bears, were selected by Hi-Arts Craft Development to take part in the Stroud International Textile Festival in May 2009 with three other textile makers from the Highland region. Sponsored by Shetland Arts, they attended the opening and exhibited in Stroud during the festival.

www.andreawilliamson.co.uk

www.jendeschenes.co.uk

Andrea Williamson is part of Text-isles, a marketing collective of young Shetland designers and textile artists: www.text-isles.com

Olivier Dupon’s style blog:   http://dossier37.tumblr.com/