Entries are welcome from amateur, professional and student artists, aged 18 and over, who are linked to Shetland by birth, education or residency.

This year’s theme is Landscape.

In addition to the Shetland Open a Bairns Open will run concurrently in the Lower Gallery.

For information on how to enter work into the Open see:
Open 2012 Call for Entries details (PDF)

Public opening: 20 January, 5.30-7.30pm, Gallery talk: 21 January, 2.30pm

Shetland Arts is delighted to announce that the work of eminent local photographer Dennis Coutts will be showcased at Bonhoga Gallery for the first exhibition of 2012 on Friday 20th January. Dennis 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 1960s and represents Shetland in the pre-oil era.

 The exhibition will appeal to anyone with an interest in the 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.

Dennis worked as a commercial photographer from his studio on The Street, combining press photography with family portraiture, social reportage and his own interests in natural history and the landscape. Dennis’ incredible talent for photography – particularly portraiture – is highlighted by the quality of composition, at a time when the art of photography was quite different to that of the digital age today.

All the photographs in the exhibition have been hand-printed by Dennis’ son, John, using traditional darkroom processes and are for sale, mounted and signed by Dennis. This is a rare opportunity to obtain a traditional print from this unique archive.

Everyone is welcome to the opening of the exhibition on 20^th January from 5.30-7.30pm. Dennis will be giving a short talk about his work in the gallery on Saturday 21^st January at 2.30pm, which will provide an opportunity to hear some of the fascinating tales of Dennis’ life, career and the subjects of his work. The talk is free, no booking required.

What’s On @ Bonhoga Gallery 2012

Download Bonhoga 2012 Exhibition programme here (PDF)

Chris Forbes was recently voted one of the Best Upcoming Scottish Comedians in 2011 by The List magazine and regularly plays top UK comedy venues, as well as further afield in Canada where he was a finalist in the internationally acclaimed Great Canadian Laugh Off.  His conversational, laid back and friendly style gives him a likeable on-stage persona, and he’s not afraid of making the most of his wiry frame with some great physical comedy.

The inaptly named Gary Little burst onto the comedy scene in 2003.  At six foot three, Gary is an imposing presence on any stage.  Gary’s humour is honest, refreshing and in-your-face, with a wealth of material derived from a life lived to the full.  Gary has played every type of gig, from prisons to 5-star corporate events, and always gets the audience laughing.

The Garrison Theatre will also play host to Shetland Arts’ popular annual Up Helly Aa day concert, Fiery Sessions, at 2pm on January 31^st. Fiery Sessions will feature local musicians, including Kaela Jamieson & John Hutchison, Maggie Adamson & Brian Nicholson, Vair and Hansel, and a visit from the Junior Jarl Squad.

Lisa Ward, Marketing Officer at Shetland Arts said: “We are delighted to welcome Chris and Gary to Shetland to warm us up with a laugh and a smile after the Up Helly Aa procession. Last year’s Stand Up Helly Aa was a fantastic success and we’re looking forward to an excellent turn out again this year.

We’re also very pleased to be featuring a host of local musicians at Fiery Sessions. The concert is always a big hit and it’s great to see how consistently popular Shetland’s local acts are.”

Tickets for both events are £8, £6 for concessions, and can be purchased from http://www.shetlandboxoffice.org or by phoning 01595 745 555.

Together with the programme of concerts in the main auditorium, there will be a range of informal events in the café bar and other performance spaces. A variety of paid opportunities are available for those interested in working with Shetland Arts to coordinate and promote events including trad sessions, acoustic performances and DJ sessions.

Thursday evenings will see a regular traditional Shetland music session at Mareel, and the upper and lower café bar will also play host to regular acoustic, open mic and singer-songwriter nights and Sunday sessions.

There will also be opportunity for DJs of all styles to provide music at a range of events at Mareel including Club Nights, support for visiting performers and background music in the café bar in the afternoon and evenings.

Shetland Arts is also asking local bands and musicians to get in touch if they’re interested in performing in the main auditorium.

Details of the Expressions of Interest can be found at: http://www.shetlandarts.org/EOI-MusicAtMareel

Music Development Officer, Bryan Peterson, said: “I’m delighted that we’re nearing the opening date where the many years of planning will reach fruition.”

“We’ve had a huge amount of interest from local musicians and DJs but we want to make sure everybody has the chance to get in touch and register their interest in performing and getting involved. The Shetland music community and local musicians are the key ingredients to the success of Mareel.”

“As well as concerts and gigs in the main auditorium, there will be a weekly programme of informal events in the cafe bar for musicians to participate in and regular opportunities for local DJs.”

“There are loads of gigging bands out there, and many more that are just starting out. We’re looking for as many groups as possible to get in touch so we can ensure an eclectic mix of live music events for local musicians and audiences.”

Further information on how to get involved with activities in Mareel will be available on the Mareel website which will be launched early next year.

Shetland Arts has also put together a video-blog on this news which you can view below.

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. Andrea attended the launch with some examples of her work and was happy to sign copies for the many interested visitors.

The Gallery sold all but one copy of the book and have now restocked their shelves ready for more interested customers. The Shetland College has already purchased two for their Degree Course in Contemporary Textiles, and today a review of the book by Angela Hunt, Senior Lecturer in Creative Industries at Shetland College, was published in The Shetland Times. You can read the review here.

Weather-dependent, the Gallery will be open again at the usual times with our Christmas exhibition: “Cold Hands Warm Heart” – art and craft selected from Shetland and the UK: on Saturday or Sunday 10th/11th December.

If you need to contact the Bonhoga Gallery or have any queries please call the Shetland Arts office on 01595 743843.

The venue will open on Thursday 24 May 2012. There will be news to follow in coming weeks on the exciting plans taking shape for activities and events in Mareel from Spring next year.

Director of Shetland Arts, Gwilym Gibbons, has put together a short video-blog in celebration of the announcement and is planning to give the public a sneak peek at Mareel’s progress in another video-blog in the coming weeks. You can view the video-blog below.

Mr Gibbons added: “Shetland Arts is delighted to be making this announcement. The building is looking fantastic and although it has been a long haul for us all we are in no doubt that the quality of the venue and the experiences it will offer will in time complement Shetland’s other great cultural assets.”

Shetland Arts will take a UK-wide part in the London 2012 Festival that celebrates the London 2012 Olympic Games. Shetland Arts was invited to submit a proposal relating to Screenplay, our annual film festival, and came up with ‘A Hansel of Film – Shetland to Southampton and Back’, a relay of screenings of short films made by the public in every part of the UK, kicked off in Shetland on 10^th June by the arrival of the Olympic Torch in the isles as it reaches its UK most northerly point. The various programmes of films will be relayed between participating venues by ‘runners’, that is, creative and energetic individuals who will employ whatever means of transport they can devise to get the right films to the right venue on time. This will culminate in a marathon screening of over 120 short films at Screenplay 2012 between 4^th and 9^th September.

The project will take films made by Shetlanders and others to over twenty venues across the UK and will form a celebration of ‘home made’ short films similar to that which takes place annually at the Screenplay film festival. Head of Development Kathy Hubbard said “When we sat down and thought about what made Screenplay special, we all agreed that it was the evening of films made by local people and those connected with the isles.  The atmosphere is always really supportive, it’s tremendous to see the creativity of people of all ages – but most of all it’s fun. And it was that spirit which we wanted to offer as a hansel to other regions and nations of the UK during the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and to all those who will be taking part in the project.”

Acclaimed film critics Mark Kermode and Linda Ruth Williams, who are the curators of Screenplay, will be very active in promoting the project across the country. They will be greeting the ‘runner’ at The Harbour Lights Cinema in Southampton at the project’s half-way point, but will also be visiting other participating venues in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.  Said Mark and Linda, “We are delighted to be launching this exciting, nationally inclusive film relay, which will encompass all regions and nations of the UK and will spread the spirit of the London  2012 Festival from Shetland in the north to Southampton in the south and back again, taking in many points east and west along the way. We are looking forward to partnering up with cinemas and film-makers across the UK who are as enthusiastic as we are about people making their own films and taking movies on the road.”

Director of Shetland Arts, Gwilym Gibbons said: “Shetland Arts is thrilled to be taking an active part in the London 2012 Festival. It is a tribute to the creativity of our isles that Shetland has a role in delivering a UK-wide film project of this nature. It also comes at a very exciting time for us in the opening year of Mareel, Shetland’s new £12.2m music, cinema and creative industries centre. We will be inviting representatives from each of the participating regions and nations to come and join us back in Shetland for Screenplay 2012, making it a truly celebratory event.”

Ruth Mackenzie, Director of Culture at London 2012 said: “Thanks to Shetland Arts and all our cultural stars, in the summer of 2012 the London 2012 Festival will showcase our world leading cultural institutions, and demonstrate how dedicated we are at creating and celebrating world class talent.”

A ‘hansel’ is a Shetland dialect word meaning a gift that marks an event such as the launch of a new boat, the birth of a child or the creation of a new enterprise.  Mr Gibbons said: “‘A Hansel of Film’ will celebrate the special differences between our regions and nations, capturing stories through the diverse languages and dialects, landscapes and seascapes of the British Isles. The films that we will screen will be born out of the very different experiences we all have, and heavily influenced by the power of the places in which we all live.”

Hansel definition: ‘a gift to commemorate an inaugural occasion, the launching of a new boat, the birth of a child, a new home, new enterprise.’  John J Graham – The Shetland Dictionary.

About the Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 Festival: The London 2012 Cultural Olympiad is the largest cultural celebration in the history of the modern Olympic and Paralympic Movements.  Spread over four years, it is designed to give everyone in the UK a chance to be part of London 2012 and inspire creativity across all forms of culture, especially among young people.

The culmination of the Cultural Olympiad will be the London 2012 Festival, bringing leading artists from all over the world together from 21 June 2012 in this UK-wide festival – a chance for everyone to celebrate London 2012 through dance, music, theatre, the visual arts, fashion, film and digital innovation.

Principal funders of the Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 Festival are Arts Council England, Legacy Trust UK and the Olympic Lottery Distributor.  BP and BT are Premier Partners of the Cultural Olympiad and the London 2012 Festival.

Visit the project’s official website: http://hansel2012.org

For more details visit: www.london2012.com/festival

For press enquiries contact Lisa Ward, Marketing Officer: lisa.ward@shetlandarts.org or 01595 743 742

For project enquiries contact Kathy Hubbard, Head of Development: kathy.hubbard@shetlandarts.org or 01595 743 843

There will also be a free masterclass where people can learn about the group’s music and instruments in the Garrison Theatre at 3pm on the Saturday afternoon.

* Svara Kanti

Svara-Kanti brings together four acclaimed masters of Indian and Western music to play evocative ancient folk music re-imagined: virtuosic Indian classical traditions, the finest Bollywood film music (including compositions by Slumdog Millionaire Oscar winner AR Rahman) and new Indian music, all reinterpreted with contemporary Western, classical and jazz influences.

Svara-Kanti consists of Simon Thacker on classical guitar (Park Lane Group Award winner, RPS Award nominee, “startling virtuosity“: The Scotsman); incredible Carnatic South Indian violinist Jyotsna Srikanth, who has recorded over 200 Bollywood soundtracks and is a Trinity College of Music Fellow; internationally renowned tabla player Sarvar Sabri, who has a musical lineage stretching back ten generations to the Royal Court of the Mughal Emperor Akbar, and the beautiful voice of London based singer and actress Japjit Kaur. Japjit has performed extensively and written in various Indian languages and styles, including Bollywood, Bhangra and Indian classical, and was Musical Director and vocal coach for the Royal National Theatre’s production of Rafta Rafta.

Prior to the full group performance at each concert, Simon Thacker will also present a solo classical guitar recital.

Svara-Kanti is a virtuosic group of musicians whose members seamlessly blend Indian and Western styles. A taste of the exotic is the perfect antidote to autumnal blues.

The Guardian described Svara-Kantis’s music as “an exuberant virtuoso display” whilst the Glasgow Herald commented on the “marvellous interaction between Thacker and Srikanth …. strikingly intricate, powerful unison playing from all involved.”

Tickets for the concerts at Bigton on 14^th October and the Garrison Theatre on 15^th October, both starting at 7.30pm, are priced at £10 (£8 concessions) and are available from Shetland Box Office, Islesburgh Community Centre, 01595 745 555, or online at www.shetlandboxoffice.org.

Bookings for Saturday’ masterclass can also be made through the Box Office.

The next event in the Guitar Season will be the Shetland ‘Guitar Hero’ concert at the Town Hall on Saturday 19th November.

Biographies

Simon Thacker is Head of Guitar at Napier University and Honorary Fellow in Music at the University of Aberdeen. He has been nominated for a Royal Philharmonic Society Music Award and in 2006 was a winner of the 50th Park Lane Group Awards, resulting in his acclaimed solo Purcell Room debut. Simon has performed in Cuba, the USA, Spain, Malta, France and Belgium, and broadcast on Cuban TV and BBC Radio 3. He is founder of Camerata Ritmata, a unique collaboration with some of the UK’s leading jazz and world musicians, which he composes for. He is also a member of duo ¡Canto vivo! with opera star Claire Debono. In 2009 he led his ground-breaking East/West project The Nava Rasa Ensemble, featuring nine of Europe’s best Indian and Western classical musicians performing new concerti by Nigel Osborne and Shirish Korde, on a prestigious Tune Up tour across the UK.

Japjit Kaur was born in north India surrounded by classical and Bollywood music and dance. She first studied Indian classical music in Haryana at the age of 10 and was awarded a first class division as well as a distinction by the Pracheen Kala Kendra. Since moving to London she has performed extensively and written in various Indian languages and styles, including Bollywood, Bhangra and Indian classical. In 2004 Japjit worked with Flatline Team in collaboration with Motion Pictures on a project called ‘Dilruba’ as a singer-songwriter and an actress. This was also short listed for the LA short film festival. In late 2005 Japjit was appointed as a weekend prime time radio presenter by Panjab Radio and went on to study Hindustani vocals further at the Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan Institute with Smt. Chandrima Misra followed by tuition from Pandit Chiranjib Chakraborty. She has also been studying Qawalli and Sufi music from Ustad Ameer Khan Sahib. Since 2006 she has been working extensively with renowned composer Niraj Chag and was Musical Director and vocal coach for the Royal National Theatre production of Rafta Rafta.

Dr. Jyotsna Srikanth learnt the rudiments of the classical Carnatic music of southern India from her mother from the age of three and gave her first recital when she was just nine. Although she has a profound respect for her heritage and performs in the classical Carnatic style with an impressive combination of emotional expression and masterful technique, she refuses to be bound by tradition. She is also an accomplished Western classical violinist and Jyotsna has played violin for over 200 commercial Indian films and has released many albums internationally. She has received many national and international awards and was  recently conferred a Fellowship in Carnatic Music from Trinity College of Music, London.

Her many notable performances include: Queen Elizabeth Hall; WOMAD; BBC Radio 3; Red Violin Festival (Wales); Cleveland Music Festival; World Trade Auditorium (Singapore); East-West International Music Encounter (Bangalore).

Sarvar Sabri is an internationally renowned tabla player/composer whose versatility and passion for the rich diversity of the world’s musical traditions has spurred him to constantly experiment with other world-class musicians and composers, and to extend the boundaries of his own classical form. Sabri is proficient not only as a soloist but also works with many Indian classical vocalists, instrumentalists and Kathak dancers. He regularly participates in major music festivals held in India. He makes regular appearances at the South Bank, London and has also performed for the BBC, ITV and Channel 4 including the South Bank Show. As a soloist, he has worked with the BCMG in collaboration with composer Judith Weir, Bournemouth Sinfonietta, East of England Orchestra and Sinfonia Baltica. In 2006, he appeared with CBSO and in March 2007, he worked with Viva Sinfonia (Derby). Sabri’s work can be heard on numerous CDs playing with some of the world’s finest musicians.