Spring Fling at 20, an exhibition celebrating the success of Scotland’s leading open studios weekend, has just opened in Dumfries.
Visitors can see work by around 30 of the artists who have taken part in Spring Fling which has grown into one of the best-loved events in Scotland’s arts and cultural calendar since it began in 2003.
The exhibition, which is free and takes place at Gracefield Arts Centre, 20 Edinburgh Road, Dumfries until 2 July, presents a rich variety of works including glass, jewellery, metalwork, printmaking, painting, photography and ceramics.
Visitors can also see this year’s three special commissions (details in notes below).
The first, called Earthlight, combines ceramics and projected digital drawings, and is a collaboration between Ruth Elizabeth Jones and Emma Varley (who will run free workshops at 2pm each day during Spring Fling, book in advance via the website).
The second is a short film to mark Spring Fling’s 20th event, highlighting the impact it has had on the region and its creative community, and has been made by locally-based photographer and filmmaker Colin Tennant.
Between 2003-19 Spring Fling attracted 162,600 visitors who made around 487,000 studio visits. In 2020 and 2021 the event was online and attracted 26,000 visits to artists’ and makers’ websites. From 2003-21 over £3.3 million of art and craft was bought from studios or online. The event has brought in over £16 million to the local economy.
This year the organisers hope that Spring Fling will once again attract visitors to the region and bring sales for artists as they begin the tentative recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 20th Spring Fling has also been marked by a third commission which has seen Wigtown-based printmaker Sarah Stewart create a special limited edition of 20 prints called The Maker’s Toolkit, which show 20 of the tools used by artists and craft makers.
A special opening event for the exhibition saw around 100 guests, including many Spring Fling artists, gather at Gracefield on Friday evening. Eva Milroy, chair of Upland CIC which runs Spring Fling, and Rebecca Coggins Dumfries and Galloway Council Principal Officer Arts and Museums, made brief speeches about the origins and success of the event – and what this year has in store.
The artists present included Bea Last whose Red Bags “sculptural drawing” project has seen a vivid and colourful artwork created on the lawn outside the gallery – this will continue to evolve and grow for the duration of the exhibition.
Others present included the Corsock slipware potters Fitch & McAndrew, New Abbey ceramicist Archie McCall, and Castle Douglas painter Hazel Campbell.
Joanna Jones, Assistant Director of Upland which delivers Spring Fling, said: “We are delighted to present this celebratory exhibition with long-time partners, Gracefield Arts Centre. The event began here so this is the perfect place to celebrate the 20th event.
“The exhibition showcases a mix of exhibitors from this year’s event, some new and some long-time Spring Flingers, as well as artists who have taken part in the past and some that are sadly no longer with us.
“We couldn’t include all the 2022 artists and makers so we urge visitors to get out to see their work in the studios next weekend.”
The Spring Fling open weekend itself takes place from 2-5 June and will see close to 100 studios, all across Dumfries and Galloway, throw open their doors to the public.
The event has been specially extended to four days this year to coincide with the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
Brochures can be downloaded from the website and there are a series of six colour-coded routes which visitors can follow.
Earthlight workshops, bus tour bookings and Sarah Stewart’s special edition commemorative prints are available for sale on the Spring Fling website at www.spring-fling.co.uk.
Picture by Kirstin McEwen Photography.
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Notes for editors
Creative Bursary: Ruth Elizabeth Jones and Emma Varley
The Creative Bursary supports artists and makers to develop and present new work at Spring Fling which enables experimentation and risk taking. It aims to create space for work which may not fit within the traditional realm of an open studio setting.
The bursary has been awarded to Ruth Elizabeth Jones and Emma Varley, who are presenting Earthlight at Gracefield Arts Centre. Earthlight (series) is a collaborative temporal installation combining ceramics with projected digital drawings, exploring tradition and technology whilst evoking feminine forms.
About Ruth Elizabeth Jones: Ruth’s work explores harmony of form and surface in clay vessels. Made through the meditative actions of hand-building and throwing, the works evoke a holding and containing space – feminine forms, often with wide hips and generous bellies.
About Emma Varley: Emma’s practice highlights the way that process can steer and expand into other disciplines. The circle and sphere have developed into ‘shape-shifting’ personal worlds which are suspended in form and colour and influenced by my immediate environment. Integral to this process, is exploration of analogue and digital techniques.
Film Commission: Colin Tennant
Colin has produced a short film to mark and celebrate Spring Fling’s impact on the region and its creative practitioners. It reflects the original premise of Spring Fling, including sharing artists’ processes and getting behind the closed doors of studios. Colin has been connected to Spring Fling for 13 years, assisting with the development and delivery of the event. Additionally, for the last 10 years, he has been the festival’s principal photographer.
Design Commission: Sarah Stewart
To mark the 20th event of Spring Fling Open Studios, we have commissioned printmaker Sarah Stewart to create a limited edition set of prints commemorating the event. Sarah is based in Wigtown and works primarily with relief and silkscreen printing processes. She creates contemporary prints inspired by the past, by the thrown away and the pre-loved, by ghost writings and by objects which were once treasured.
The Maker’s Toolkit prints portray the variety of tools used by our artists. The two-colour half-tone prints, each in a different colour-way, feature 20 tools to represent 20 years of the event.
Artists with work on show in the exhibition
Amanda Simmons, Amy Winstanley, Andrew Adair, Anne Waggot Knott, Archie McCall, Gyllian Thomson, Hazel Campbell, Ian Mckinnell, Janet Ibbotson, Jesse Ball, Margaret Walty, Morag Macpherson, Natalie Vardey, Pamela Grace, Peter Wareing, Rory Laycock, Samuel Sparrow, Savannah Crosby, Silvana McLean, Steven Burnie, Suzanne Stuart Davies, William Spurway, Bea Last, Bella Green, Briony Anderson, Cathy van Hoppe, Clare Dawdry, Clare Melinsky, Fitch & McAndrew, Gail Kelly, Geoff Forrest, Gloria Newlan, Jo Gallant, Joanna Shennan, Joshua Miles, Kate Bentley, Kaz Robertson, Kim Ayres, Laura Derby, Lisa Rothwell-Young, Liz McQueen, Maggie Ayres.
About Spring Fling
- Brochures can be ordered from the Spring Fling website and a downloadable version is also available. For further details visit www.spring-fling.co.uk.
- The organisers will ensure that all government COVID-19 guidance is followed so visitors and participants can take part in a safe Spring Fling.
- Spring Fling made its name as Scotland’s premier visual art and contemporary craft open studios event covering all Dumfries and Galloway, South West Scotland. It is the flagship annual event of Upland CIC.
- For further details visit www.spring-fling.co.uk or contact [email protected]
- Spring Fling is pleased to once again have support from Dumfries & Galloway Council as one of the region’s Signature Events.
About Upland
Upland CIC (Community Interest Company) supports artists and makers based in, and with connections to, the region. It delivers events, training, networking, support and opportunities as part of a year-round programme to benefit the region, its artists, communities and economy. Upland CIC runs the annual Spring Fling contemporary visual art and craft open studios weekend in Dumfries and Galloway. It will work closely with other arts bodies in the region to further strengthen the sector. Upland is based at Gracefield Arts Centre in Dumfries and exists to:
- produce and deliver festivals, events, and experimental projects of the highest quality
- nurture an environment where artistic excellence thrives and grows
- inspire and educate a wide range of audiences, customers and clients to understand, celebrate, be actively engaged in and supportive of visual art and craft practice
- raise the profile of visual artists and makers locally, nationally and internationally fulfilling a crucial role in the culture and tourism of Dumfries and Galloway
- build strategic partnerships at regional, national and international level
- maintain a financially sound and adaptively resilient organisation
- work to the benefit the local economy and the sustainability of local communities.
Its funders are Creative Scotland, D&G Council, The Holywood Trust, The Barfill Trust.
About Creative Scotland
Creative Scotland is the public body that supports the arts, screen and creative industries across all parts of Scotland on behalf of everyone who lives, works or visits here. We enable people and organisations to work in and experience the arts, screen and creative industries in Scotland by helping others to develop great ideas and bring them to life. We distribute funding provided by the Scottish Government and the National Lottery. For further information about Creative Scotland please visit www.creativescotland.com. Follow us @creativescots and www.facebook.com/CreativeScotland.
For media information contact Matthew Shelley on 07786 704299 or at [email protected] or call Upland on 01387 213 218.