THE Edinburgh Art Festival is to return after coronavirus forced the cancellation of last year’s event.
Organisers said the 17th edition will include more than 35 exhibitions and new commissions in visual art spaces across the city. This will be alongside an online programme of events and digital presentations.
Sorcha Carey, director of Edinburgh Art Festival, said: “Festivals have always offered a space for gathering, and this year more than any, we are proud to come together with partners across the city to showcase the work of artists from Scotland, the UK and around the world.
“Some exhibitions are newly made in response to the seismic shifts of the past year; others are the result of many years of planning and careful research – but all are the unique, authentic, and thoughtful products of our city’s extraordinarily rich visual art scene.
“The past year has revealed how precarious things can be for artists and creative freelancers, as well as for the institutions and organisations that support the production and presentation of their work.
“As galleries begin to reopen across the city, and we look forward to welcoming audiences safely back to the festival and our city, now more than ever we need the space for community and reflection that art and artists can provide.”
The festival is due to return from July 29 to August 29, and will see a series of festival-led commissions and premieres created in partnership with visual arts organisations.
There will also be a specially invited programme of new commissions curated in partnership with an associate artist.
Among the works will be the UK and European premiere of Isaac Julien’s Lessons of the Hour, presented in partnership with National Galleries of Scotland.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here