AN artwork created in response to the genocide in Gaza is to go on show in Aberdeen.
The new textile work is made from seams and offcuts of repurposed hospital scrubs by artist Kirsty Russell working with a local embroidery group.
It will go on show on both the interior and exterior walls of a formerly disused space in Aberdeen’s historic Shiprow.
The Shiprow building will continue to be used by Outer Spaces beyond the exhibition for artist-led community engagement.
The In Our Spaces exhibition, which runs from March 1-16, includes two other Aberdeen-based visual artists. Together with Russell, Lauren McLaughlin and Maria Muruaga will present the outcome of a six-month Outer Spaces commissioning project.
McLaughlin’s creative workshops invited mothers and caregivers to reflect on their daily lives by making lists. These lists, ranging from the mundane to the deeply emotional, reflect the multifaceted roles that mothers play and the often overwhelming mental load they bear.
Tasks, desires and frustrations are captured. Incorporating text from the lists, McLaughlin has created a large-scale quilt intended to serve as both a metaphor for the emotional and physical labour of motherhood and as a manifestation of the burdens that are often carried in silence.
Muruaga invited participants to work with porcelain. These pieces, produced collectively by workshop participants, form part of the larger installation that will be exhibited, where the individual works come together to reflect how individuals are ultimately interconnected.
“We are thrilled to continue our support for artists in Aberdeen with In Our Spaces, an exhibition that makes public the vital work artists are doing with their communities and showcases Outer Spaces’ commitment to cultural renewal,” said director Shân Edwards.
“As well as this commission opportunity for local artists and previous work in Aberdeen, Outer Spaces currently supports 88 artists with free space for their creative practice across 20 properties in the city. We look forward to sharing more exciting news from Outer Spaces in 2025.”
The organisation has so far supported more than 900 artists in 120 properties across 13 local authorities. Since 2021, it has harnessed unused commercial spaces for the public good by removing financial barriers to visual artists looking for access to space for research and experimentation, encouraging collaboration and cultural renewal in the arts sector.
