New exhibition of works by renowned glass artist Keiko Mukaide and glass maker Clare Wilson opens at Duff House in Banff on May 23

EDINBURGH, 2015-5-18 — /Travel PR News/ — A new exhibition is set to open at Duff House, in Banff, which will display a collection of unique glass works by two leading Scottish-based artists.

Opening to the public on Saturday 23rd May and running for six weeks, the historic House’s Long Gallery will play host to the Coast exhibition – as part of this year’s Coast Festival. This one off exhibition will provide visitors the opportunity to view installation works by renowned glass artist Keiko Mukaide and glass maker Clare Wilson.

This exhibition at Duff helps signal the start of the annual Coast Festival of the Arts, which runs from Friday 22nd May until Sunday 24th May. The weekend-long celebration will feature a number of community events taking place up and down the Banffshire coastal towns of Banff and Macduff, exploring this year’s theme of ‘light’.

Both Mukaide and Wilson, who practice a range of different techniques in glass working, have selected signature pieces that draw inspiration from this year’s theme.

Japanese artist Keiko Mukaide, now living in Edinburgh, has exhibited her work internationally, creating both small and large scale glass installations which are inspired by and respond to the natural environment.

One such piece that will feature in this new exhibition at the House is Mukaide’s ‘Light of the North’, which was previously displayed at the Tate St Ives in 2006. This large installation makes a nod to both Scottish and St Ives’ maritime heritage and features a beehive lighthouse light and shards of glass to create a brilliantly coloured display.

Emerging Edinburgh-based glass maker Clare Wilson, currently Edinburgh College of Art’s Artist in Residence, makes the most of traditional blown glass techniques and hand working to create contemporary glass pieces. Wilson’s latest pieces which will feature in the exhibition include a small selection from her ‘Cane Studies’, using the Venetian technique to produce glass with a modern twist.

Commenting on the Coast exhibition at Duff House, Lorna Ewan, Head of Head of Visitor Experience, Content and Learning for Historic Scotland, who operate the House, said: “The Coast exhibition at Duff House, which will showcase the work of two renowned Scotland-based artists, is a first for the house, as it features an all glass art exhibition.

“Running for six weeks this exhibition, which coincides with the annual Coast Festival, is the perfect opportunity for visitors to explore this year’s festival theme of ‘light’ in a new and exciting way and to discover more about the techniques used to create works of art from glass.”

The Coast exhibition, which opens to the public on Saturday 23rd May, will run until Sunday 5th July 2015 and is included within the admission price to Duff House. This is free for Historic Scotland members.

As part of Coast Festival of the Arts, Duff House will be offering free entry over the course of the weekend, Saturday 23rd and Sunday 24th May, to coincide with the launch of the new exhibition.

For more information on Coast Festival of Arts, please visit: www.coastfestival.org.uk

Notes for editors:

• Duff House is masterpiece of baroque architecture and one of the most important buildings in the North of Scotland.  It was designed in 1735 by the renowned Scottish architect William Adam and is now a five-star visitor attraction, run in partnership by Historic Scotland, the National Galleries of Scotland and Aberdeenshire Council.  The National Galleries provides most of the artworks on permanent display in the House, including important paintings by El Greco, Gainsborough and Raeburn, and contributes to the regular programme of exhibitions and displays.
• Historic Scotland is an executive agency of the Scottish Government charged with safeguarding the nation’s historic environment. The agency is fully accountable to Scottish Ministers and through them to the Scottish Parliament.

• Historic Scotland and RCAHMS are creating a new public body, Historic Environment Scotland (HES,) which will come into effect in October 2015. See the Transition Programme section of our website for further information www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/historicenvironmentscotland

• Register for media release email alerts from www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/news. If you wish to unsubscribe at any time, please email hs.website@scotland.gsi.gov.uk

• 2015 is the Year of Food and Drink, a celebration of Scotland’s natural larder and the role that food and drink plays in shaping our economic success. Scotland generates over £2.5m per day through food and drink tourism. A series of themed months will create an appetite for key areas of Scotland’s food and drink industries – from seafood and whisky to berries and high-quality meat. To find out more visitwww.visitscotland.com/tastescotland.

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