On Thursday, 19 March, every surface of the ECA’s Sculpture court was covered in the work of Fine Art’s second year students. Titled Half Baked, the exhibition marks the halfway point in the student artist’s degree, and is a testament to the diversity of practice and the strength of talent at work in this cohort.
Weaving through the sculpture court, I was overwhelmed with the scale of the exhibition, which, despite the vastly varying approaches of the artists, retained a sense of cohesion between pieces, moving from the playful, to the personal, to the political. Frequent flurries of confetti fell from the second floor of the gallery, courtesy of Ayaana Tuansi, who invited visitors to cover the space in the brightly coloured pieces, which seemed to coat every surface by the close of the exhibition. Such invitations to playfully participate in work was a recurring theme. In the foyer, Aoife Moffatt served espresso to guests which, could, if disliked, be thrown to stain a large sheet laid across the floor, while Ottilie Whiteman’s drawing inspired by the art of circus, and childhood craft announced ‘FUN FOR ALL!’ While Zooey Jones’ multimedia blocks could be arranged and rearranged by visitors to create new structures and shapes.
It was exciting to see so many visitors. The space packed out almost the moment it began, engaging enthusiastically with the work, discussing, picking their favourites, and immersing themselves within the pieces on the display. The personal and the political were explored resonantly in a number of works—I was particularly struck by the haunting images of Charlie French, who explores violence against LBGTQ people across the UK in his paintings of obscured and distorted faces. The work’s multimedia intricately painted sculpture of a Chinese pagoda by Kevin Zhao explored a complex relationship to Chinese identity.
Attending the exhibitions was a great opportunity to peek into the vibrant world of the ECA. This second year exhibition was an impressive testament to the burgeoning talent abounding in Edinburgh’s artistic community.
Images provided by Bel Cardona for The Student