July 2024
This month, Cove Park is welcoming artists travelling to us from the Isle of Bute here in Argyll, from across Scotland, the UK, Finland, Mozambique, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden.
July sees the final weeks of the residencies for visual artists Luis M S Santos, recipient of the Paolo Cunha e Silva Art Prize Residency, and Jere Vanio, awarded the 2024 Ecologies in the Making: Sculpting Futures Residency. Luis and Jere are joined by visual artist and writer Nikhil Vettukattil, taking part in a series of residencies hosted by the partner organisations of NAARCA: the Nordic Alliance of Artists' Residencies on Climate Action.
We are also delighted to welcome maker and multidisciplinary artist Sam Kilday, here for the two-week Argyll Heritage Craft Residency. July also sees other Awarded Residencies for visual artist and Cove Park Associate Justin Carter (one of our first residents in 2000) and printed textile designer Jane Keith.
Cove Park's Open Residencies continue with visual artist Elisabeth den Boer, artist and writer Tuna Erdem, Head of Fashion at the University of Westminster Virginia Grose, Associate Professor of Architecture at Northumbria University Lesley McIntyre, landscape architect and artist Anna Rhodes, pianist and composer James Ross, writer, screenwriter, and teacher Adam Vaughn, and playwright, dramaturg, and performer Billie Willett.
The Scottish Graduate School of Arts & Humanities Residencies - short residencies for artists and PhD researchers - continue in July with writers and researchers Niamh Gordon and Janine Mitchell.
We're looking forward to several new residencies taking place this year. Read on for final calls for applications for Sculpture House Residency, Smith Residency, and the Associates Artists in Schools Residency. We're also pleased to share a new call for Associates Early Career Residency 2024.
Scroll down for news of the 2024 Edinburgh International Book Festival Residency, a group residency for graduates of The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland's Contemporary Performance Practice programme, the launch at Cove Park of a new book by the Glasgow-based author Rodge Glass, the final episode of NAARCA's podcast Testing Grounds, the launch of a commissioned Evaluation Report on the Landscapes & Horizons Residency, our ongoing 2024 season of Open Fridays, and the announcement of our next Saturday Studios Workshop in August.
Finally, if you are interested in a short residency this summer, to make progress with an ongoing project or to focus upon new work, we are now offering Summer Micro Residencies during August. Read on for more information and how to take part in this year.
Images: Above, Cove Park in Spring (photography, Alan Dimmick); below, artists Luis MS Santos & Nikhil Vettukattil welcoming visitors to Cove Park in July (photography, Tommy Ga-Ken Wan).
Edinburgh International Book Festival Residency 2024 - Charlotte Wood
Our partnership with Edinburgh International Book Festival continues this year with a post-Festival residency for Charlotte Wood.
Charlotte is the Australian author of seven novels and three books of non-fiction. Her new book Stone Yard Devotional was described by the Guardian as ‘a quiet novel of immense power’ and has been praised by authors Anne Enright, Tim Winton, Karen Joy Fowler, Hannah Kent, and Paula Hawkins among others.
Her previous books include The Luminous Solution, a book of essays on the creative process; the international bestseller, The Weekend; and The Natural Way of Things which won a number of prizes including The Stella Prize and the Prime Minister’s Literary Award. Her features and essays have appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian, Literary Hub, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Saturday Paper among other publications.
She has produced a podcast of interviews with artists, The Writer's Room with Charlotte Wood, and in 2024 launched a monthly newsletter on the creative process titled Subtraction.
Image: Charlotte Wood (photography, Carly Earl).
The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland Contemporary Performance Practice
Graduate Residency
Cove Park established a partnership with The Royal Conservatoire Scotland's Contemporary Performance Practice programme in 2021, creating short residencies for graduates Sally Charlton, Nell O'Hara, and Margot Conde Arenas.
We are delighted this year to expand our partnership with RCS and to collaborate on a special group residency for the programme's 2024 graduates: Kate Bradley, Hope Kennedy, Florence Logan, Julienne Restall, Romi Sarfaty, Dale Thrupp, Jessica Paris, and Dale Williamson.
This week-long residency will include a facilitated workshop delivered by artist and curator Beulah Ezeugo and interdisciplinary artist nussatari.
Image: RCS Contemporary Performance Practice cohort, 'Into the New' 2024 Festival (courtesy of Florence Logan).
Book Launch
Joshua in the Sky: A Blood Memoir
6 September 2024, 6-8pm
We are delighted to host the launch on Friday 6 September of Joshua in the Sky: A Blood Memoir, a new book by Glasgow-based writer and former resident Rodge Glass. This will be Rodge's first stop on a UK tour and the ideal opportunity to meet the author.
Read more about Joshua in the Sky and find a recent interview with Rodge on this book here. The event is free, but places are limited. Please book your seat here. Refreshments will be served.
Rodge is the author of eight books published since 2005: three novels (No Fireworks, Hope for Newborns & Bring Me the Head of Ryan Giggs), one graphic novel (Dougie's War, with Dave Turbitt), one collection of short stories (Stories for the EasyJet Generation), two biographies (Alasdair Gray: A Secretary's Biography & Michel Faber: The Writer & his Work) and now Joshua in the Sky: A Blood Memoir (forthcoming, Taproot Press, September 2024). His work has been nominated for eight national or international awards including the Dylan Thomas Prize, he's the winner of a Somerset Maugham Award for Nonfiction for his biography of Alasdair Gray, and most recently won the Anne Brown Essay Prize in 2023, for 'On the Covenant', which is a chapter from Joshua in the Sky.
Image: Rodge Glass at Cove Park in 2023 (photography, Alan Dimmick).
Summer Micro-Residencies 2024
Building upon the success of our Spring Micro-Residencies, we are pleased to offer micro-residencies between Thursday 8 August - 1 September. This is an ideal opportunity to meet an upcoming deadline or focus upon new projects and research. Members of Cove Park's Associates programme will benefit from a subsidised rate for Micro-Residencies.
For more information please contact Nicola Jamieson.
Image: Cove Park's 50-acre site in Summer (photography, Alan Dimmick).
Sculpture House Residency at Cove Park
Final Call for Applications
This new residency is for a visual artist from Paisley (either currently living and working in Paisley or originally from Paisley). Developed by Cove Park in partnership with the town’s Sculpture House, this two-week fully funded residency offers time for self-directed studio work and the development of new ideas and projects.
Sculpture House Collective – an artist-run organisation including sculptors, ceramicists, textile artists, and painters – will also offer the resident support prior to and following the residency in the form of mentoring, access to workshop facilities, mentoring in relation to social practice, and taking part in Sculpture House’s programme of events.
Further information and the online application form is available here. The deadline for applications is Monday 29 July 2024.
We are grateful to Mārama Consulting CIC for making this residency possible. Mārama Consulting CIC is a small Scottish consulting firm established as a not for profit with a philanthropic business model, and interests in the creative sector.
Images: above, Sculpture House, Paisley; below, Sculpture House Collective - artists and former Cove Park residents, left to right, Nick Evans, Laura Aldridge, and James Rigler (photography, Keith Hunter).
The Smith Residency 2024
Final Call for Applications
The Smith Residency is a new residency for a visual artist and recent UK-based graduate (graduating from 2019 onwards) of either The Glasgow School of Art, Goldsmiths University of London, or University of the Arts London. This two-week fully funded residency offers time for self-directed studio work and the development of new ideas and projects. The artist will receive a fee, a travel allowance, and a research/materials allowance.
The residency is scheduled for Monday 14 - Sunday 27 October 2024. More information is available here and the deadline for applications is Monday 29 July 2024.
We are grateful to Cove Park Patrons, the Smith family, for making this residency possible.
Image: Winnie Herbstein, visual artist and graduate of The Glasgow School of Art at Cove Park in 2019 (photography, Alan Dimmick).
Associate Artists in Schools Residency 2024
Call for Applications
Cove Park's Artists in Schools programme continues this year through our partnership with John Logie Baird Primary School, Helensburgh. We are now inviting applications from former Cove Park residents and members of our Associates programme to work with pupils in the school's nurture unit on a creative project.
The artist will be offered a fully funded one-week residency at Cove Park at the time of the Artists in Schools activity, a fee, and a travel allowance.
More information and details on how to apply is available here. The deadline for applications is Friday 23 August 2024 and the residency is scheduled to take place from Monday 4 - Sunday 10 November 2024.
Image: Amber Lee Dodd at John Logie Baird Primary School, Helensburgh, 2023.
Associate Early Career Residency 2024
Call for Applications
This two week fully-funded residency is open to former residents - based in the UK and working in any art form - and members of Cove Park's Associates programme. The aim of the residency is to offer time for self-directed research and production.
The provisional dates for the residency are 4-10 November 2024. The participating artist will also be invited to work with Cove Park's Curator of Engagement on the design and delivery of one of our Saturday Studio Workshops, and a separate fee for this event will be paid to the resident.
Further information and details of how to apply is available here.
Image: Heiba Lamara, Cove Park Associate (photography, Alan Dimmick).
NAARCA Online Exhibition -
extended until 31 July
NAARCA: the Nordic Alliance of Artists’ Residencies on Climate Action has confirmed the extension of its online exhibition featuring the works of Rikke Luther and Nikhil Vettukattil. This exhibition introduces the artists and their projects through a rich blend of images, film, and a digital cookbook.
Rikke Luther and Nikhil Vettukattil’s art projects are part of NAARCA’s commissions aimed at fostering new knowledge and practices related to climate action in the Nordic-Scottish region.
Rikke Luther’s film, Dust & Flow: Muds, Movement, Time, Scale, delves into the emerging mud landscapes and their multifaceted impacts - social, political, and biochemical - on human and marine life. Watch the film here.
Nikhil Vettukattil’s project, Cantina, focuses on envisioning a healthy, affordable, and climate-friendly diet in the Nordics. He presents recipes categorised into themes of disaster, survival, and resistance, shared through online platforms, cooking sessions, and embroidered garments. Explore Nikhil’s project Cantina here.
NAARCA is a collaboration between Cove Park (Scotland), Saari Residence (Finland), Artica Svalbard (Norway), Baltic Art Center (Sweden), Skaftfell - Center for Visual Art (Iceland), Narsaq International Research Station (Greenland), and Art Hub Copenhagen (Denmark).
Image: a simulated image based on machine learning (courtesy of Nikhil Vettukatil).
Testing Grounds
Episode 9 - Reflecting on NAARCA
In this special episode, the NAARCA partners reflect on the first three years of the programme – exploring what’s been achieved, what the challenges have been, and where things might go next.
Listeners will also learn about all the work that’s been going on within NAARCA, beyond what this podcast series has so far explored – including the role of the Eco Coordinator, the art commissions and writing commissions, and the workshops and pedagogical toolkit for children and young people.
You can find Testing Grounds on your favourite podcast app or listen to this episode here. A captioned version of this episode is available on YouTube.
Image: Members of NAARCA at Saari Residence, May 2024 (photography, Jussi Virkkumaa).
Landscapes & Horizons 2024
Cross Borders/Luminate/Cove Park
Residency Evaluation Report
We are delighted to share the evaluation of the Landscapes & Horizons Residency, a collaboration with Luminate and Cross Borders at Scottish Refugee Council.
Six artists and cultural practitioners were selected by open call to take part and spent a week together at Cove Park. The residency aimed to support participants’ creative development through individual studio time and a series of bespoke workshops.
The evaluation report was undertaken by Culture Radar and is available to download here.
Learning from this pilot residency will inform our future planning and we are grateful to our partners and to Culture Radar for their support.
Image: View of Loch Long from Cove Park (photography, Ruth Clark).
Saturday Studio Workshop
Sights & Sound: Drawing & Mark Making
31 August 2024
Our Saturday Studio Workshops resume after the Scottish school holidays on 31 August. Join artist and printed textile designer Orla Stevens for a new drawing and mark making workshop outside, on Cove Park's beautiful 50-acre rural site overlooking Loch Long, and the chance to try a range of techniques and create new work connected to the landscape and our natural environment.
The workshops are for children aged 5+. To book you free place on either the morning or afternoon workshop and find out more, please visit Cove Park's Eventbrite page or contact Emma Henderson.
Image: Orla Stevens (courtesy of the artist).
Open Fridays - Summer 2024
After a successful first series in 2023, we are delighted to share news of Open Fridays in 2024. Visitors are welcome to drop in from 1pm - 4.30pm every Friday during the summer, up to and including Friday 30 August 2024. These are ideal opportunities to explore Cove Park's 50-acre site, meet the team, and find out more about our residencies and creative learning and engagement programmes.
Open Fridays are free, everyone is welcome, and there is no need to book. Please email Rona Grierson or call us on 01436 850500 for travel advice or if you have any questions about site accessibility.
We look forward to welcoming you to Cove Park!
Image: The Jacobs Building, Cove Park (photography, Alan Dimmick).
Space Hire 2024
Space Hire was launched in 2023 to welcome other arts organisations, companies, and community groups to Cove Park for meetings and away days. In the programme's first year we were pleased to host The Common Guild, Comhairle nan Leabhraichean / The Gaelic Books Council, Glasgow International, The Mount Stuart Trust, Scottish Opera, and the University of Glasgow (Contemporary Art & Curation).
In 2024 we will continue to offer beautiful spaces with outstanding views at very competitive rates throughout the year. Please contact Nicola Jamieson directly for more information and to discuss your specific requirements.
Mount Stuart Trust had a brilliant Away Day at Cove Park. We had a dedicated meeting room, fabulous views, and everything we needed: screen, refreshments, and lunch. I can honestly say that it was one of our most productive strategy meetings. So important to get away, and I can't think of a better space.
Sophie Crichton Stuart, Chair, The Mount Stuart Trust
Image: The Jacobs Building, Cove Park (photography, Alan Dimmick).
