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talc. sparks, drifts and rain 2016 started with an exciting youth-led project, called sparks, drifts and rain. funded by tts.digital, creative scotland, it covered weekly drop-in sessions, monthly experimentation days, an arts & music summer school, walks and d.i.t. (do it together) projects. these included conductive painting, kinetic, interactive and light sculptures, electronic textiles, augmented landscape, digital photography, drone filming, music and sound programming. young people’s thoughts and ideas shaped the year’s workshop programme, which was realised with talc.’s project partners artmap engage, argyll youth arts, artsquest, argyll & bute youth forum, scottish natural heritage (snh), scottish canals and scottish waterways. the programme focussed on young people aged 10–25. all workshops were a combination offering analogue and digital artist’s skills. this made some of the programme modules quite comprehensive and it helped young people to understand that digital art is not only to be run on a screen. most popular workshops included being outdoors for walks, digital photography, sound recording and drone filming. these focussed on moine mhòr national nature reserve, corryvreckan whirlpool and tarbert castle. a great addition to our arts programme were the bog walks, knowledgeably led by gordon campbell from snh. next to the regular programme, workshops were booked for young people groups or school classes to come to talc. – or the artists to travel to the group or school. we loved the d.i.t. projects, for example the projections sculptures being made in lochgilphead and tarbert, with some young people focusing on the sound, others on the imagery with drone filming or the making of the sculpture – some covering it all. this was possible especially because of talc. offering week-long arts & music summer schools in tarbert and lochgilphead. for talc. to to get the chance to deliver a regular arts programme for young people in the area either to come on a regular basis to work on an arts project – or to have full days to work and experiment intensively made it an amazing year. we were proud to be able to offer a young artists scheme at talc., which gave three young people the opportunity for 1:1 sessions with digital and analogue artists to discuss and to realise the project they had in mind. a lot of hard work was involved in their projects: beth qualter-buncall (16) was a young artist for e-textile, isaac stanesby (16), young artist for kinetic sculpture and eoghan condie (17) was young artist for sound installation. there was also time to shine – presentations and exhibitions – including creative scotland’s tts unconvention in glasgow and the ignite walking exhibition event in lochgilphead with artmap engage. additionally, we are hoping this publication is to be another opportunity for the the young to shine. it particulary showcases the artworks of the young people who came either regularly to our weekly sessions in tarbert or lochgilphead – or for a couple of full day workshops. some faces you will see several times throughout the publication – like daniel’s (13) who came to 22 drop in sessions in lochgilphead, 10 talc.’s arts & music summer school days, 5 of talc.’s experimentation days, 2 school stages – next to 3 immersion weekends, delivered by 6 | sparks, drifts and rain

artmap engage — well done! it was extremely encouraging and satisfying to see young people solder for the first time, to make a motor move, programme a code, to connect sounds to paintings or to use a microcontroller, a sensor, led lights – all for the first time. the collaboration of the two organisations – talc. and artmap engage – allowed us not only to deliver a weekly regular programme in tarbert, but also in lochgilphead. artmap engage’s own programme (funded by argyll youth arts) focussed on the making of lanterns and light objects for the former lantern parade – now being transferred into lochgilphead’s ignite walking exhbition. several places in lochgilphead show young people’s work within the festival atmosphere of fireworks on bonfire night. with talc. being the “digital” partner for it – supporting the young people to create led light sculptures and screens for the event – is another example of successfully collaborating as two small organisations in a rural area to make something “big”. the challenge to deliver an arts programme in an area like argyll and bute is that it is vast in many ways – not only in terms of travel distances. how do you access young people to take part in art projects, when the last bus after school to their home, departs directly after school? or none or poor public transport at the weekend or in the winter? we did not yet find a satisfactory answer to this, but we were very lucky that enthusiastic art teachers gave some of their time for extracurricular activities at talc. thanks to lynne girdwood (tarbert academy), alec ohnstad, neill cinnamond (lochgilphead joint campus) and alison mcalpine (both schools). we tried to find new ways of creating access to digital arts, creative experimentation and making and developed “the school stage” – offering short workshops during lunchtime at schools. this proved to be a great way to have some fun and to get access to all pupils – not only the “arty” ones. we are certain, we will explore this further! this magazine style publication is dedicated to the young people participating in the tts.digital project sparks, drifts and rain. one very important factor of this publication is to be – again – interactive. wherever you can see the ar+ symbol, then you can scan the page or picture with your tablet or smart phone, using a free app called aurasma. as soon as the page or picture is recognised, you will see little film snippets or listen to sounds the young people created as an overlay. please feel free to play, to connect and to share! mary y. smith · chairperson of talc. nicole heidtke & stefan baumberger · talc.’s digital artists and arts programmer www.talc.org.uk | 7

the missing element the creative sector in scotland is characterised by small scottish owned businesses. in 2008, there were 8,485 registered enterprises in the creative industries in scotland, five per cent of all registered businesses in scotland. of these, 97 per cent have fewer than 50 employees. the creative industries are also well-educated, employing a higher proportion of graduates than the economy as a whole. they are also naturally multidisciplinary, combining creative, technological and business skills in fast moving and competitive global markets. as such, they operate very much at the intersection of science and creativity, challenging the notion that clinical disciplines, science, technology, engineering and maths (stem) and creativity should be considered different worlds. from ‘scotland’s creative economy: the role of universities’ 2010 at a time of concern about school curricula, uncertainty about employment futures and change in patterns of rural and urban economies alike, one thing that is generally agreed on is the importance of stem subjects (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). increasingly, however, there’s recognition that there’s an element missing. communication skills and confidence develop through making, sharing and reflecting on the world around us. we need to talk of steam subjects; all of the above, with the catalytic addition of art. art and design skills introduce young people to ways of understanding, interpreting and adding to the world, developing critical skills in making as well as analysing. the results of creativity, particularly in the age of the digital, are more than images of the world; they are part of the fabric of reality. we see the world as it comes to us through our digital devices, our screens, and our news feeds. so we need to understand and contribute to the world in order to participate in shaping our reality. we need to be able to use the opportunities for new ways of working – where remoteness is not the absolute barrier to participation that it used to be – to involve and engage communities in dialogues about where we are going and how to shape our futures. the projects and outcomes of talc.’s innovative and timely programme are ideally suited to challenge young participants. in addition, the combination of digital and physical techniques offer a multitude of pathways for discovery, inventiveness and collaboration. 8 | sparks, drifts and rain

for art, design and architecture course admission selectors, who are faced yearly with a large studio packed with portfolios from young hopefuls around the country, it can be a daunting process to find the best, the most promising, and the ambitious. notwithstanding the best efforts of dedicated and passionate school art teachers, the exams based and often prescribed art education outcomes don’t always help to show the real potential that is out there. talc.’s offer to the participants enables clarity, a sense of discovery – and beauty. like room 13 (but mostly outwidth schools), they have hit upon a winning formula to support and extend the possibilities of youth art education. gair dunlop · course director (time based art & digital film), duncan of jordanstone college of art & design and arts advisor for talc. www.talc.org.uk | 9

h ow t o a r + a u ra s m a i s a f re e a p p w h i c h c a n b e d ow n l o a d e d f ro m t h e a p p s t o re o r g o o g l e p l ay o n t o i p h o n e s a n d i pa d s , a n d a n d ro i d p h o n e s a n d t a b l e t s ve r s i o n 4. 0 a n d a b ove . 1 ) l a u n c h t h e a u ra s m a a p p , c re a t e yo u r ow n f re e a c c o u n t “ d i s c ove r a u ra s ” a n d t y p e i n :“ t a l c t a r b e r t ” , g o t o 2 ) c l i c a u ra s ” a n d f o l l ow u s ’s pu b l t o n t o o p e n i c k o n “ t a l c t a r b e r t 3 ) g o b a c k t o t h e h o m e s c re e n , p re s s t h e p u r p l e s c a n b u t t s h ow s a b o u n c i n g t h e v i ew f i n d e r . w h e n t h e v i ew f i n d e r i s o p e n , i t l o c k s s c a n n e r t h a t i s“ l o o k i n g” f o r s o m e t h i n g t o re c o g n i s e . a s s o o n a s i l c h a n g e t o a p u l s i n g t a rg e t l t h e n i n o n a n a c t s h a p e . d e p e n d i n g o n yo u r n e t wo r k o r w i f i s p e e d , t h e a p p w i l a u n c h t h e a u g m e n t e d re a l ive i m a g e , t h e s c a n n e r w i t y e x p e r i e n c e . l l i 52 | sparks, drifts and rain

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young artists at talc. we believe that art is for all; creative skills are needed in any aspect of life and profession. nothing is more satisfiying than making something – and making artistic decisions boosts self esteem and confidence. the young artists at talc. were given time, space and resources to realise an own artwork. they received a small artists fee, a material allowance and 1:1 time with digital and analogue artists to learn the skills needed. on the other hand the young artists had to respond to critical questions about their project and to communicate their ideas during exhibitions and presentations. and there was time to shine, too. www.talc.org.uk | 141

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i originally worked with two topics, moine mhòr, a local woodland and nature reserve run by the snh and the corryvreckan, which is a local whirlpool between the islands jura and scarba. as i live between the two of these landmarks, it meant i could very easily venture into their naturalistic elements. the earlier designs were taking inspiration from both the woodland and the whirlpool taking shape into a dress. as i went on, my love for the ocean drove the design to become more and more aquatic. ferns turned to seaweed, still acting in much the same way as ivy climbing around a tree – but now the seaweed fronds wind and drape around a swimming body. i then began experimenting with the different digital equipments – the laser cutting machine becoming an evident favourite. i learned from scratch how to use adobe illustrator and photoshop which i now benefit greatly from. i began experimenting with simple shapes such as flowers, ferns and eventually seaweed which greatly inspired my final design. as well as the laser cutter, i experimented with digital print by manipulating and repeating shapes and colours to create a pattern. 144 | sparks, drifts and rain

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 i met with karen liversedge, a local fashion designer to discuss the next step. we made the bodice, underskirt lining and skirt, using pattern cutting, pressing/moulding and sewing. it was amazing how much i learned in this process which i would have never thought of if attempted myself. after the meeting with karen, i hand sewed the back of the skirt and then added the leds and digitally printed fabric to the front (not shown in pics). the final result reflects my design very well. it reflects the feeling of the water/waves wrapping around the model and the front of the skirt shows the undulating currents bubbling away. the back has knots and crinkles which show the fighting undercurrents. the original blue colour was swapped with a cool grey which reflected the murky/icy sea water. egg wrack seaweed was chosen as it is a local, well recognised plant, which i was able to manipulate into the shape of the body and neck. the fabric was chosen to represent the frothing waves under the layers of calm linen. the ivory of the fabric reflects the local, bare and natural landscape. the simple, unfurled bodice shows the calm waters entering through the channel meeting the opposite current. this then creates the churning water in the skirt. i have so many different interests including film and photography, but getting to really explore this new craft was awesome. model holly smith photography beth qualter buncall 146 | sparks, drifts and rain

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when the opportunity came up to be a young artist at talc, i was keen to take part because i have done a lot of arts and crafts, just making things as they come to mind with whatever materials available and have also always enjoyed constructing things to solve the problem of a function. i wanted to combine these interests in one project. at the start of the project, i had the option of choosing whether the concept would be inspired by the corryvreckan whirlpool or the moine mór bog. after much thought i chose the corryvreckan because i was more familiar with the whirlpool than the moine mhòr. additionally the whirlpool already had so many kinetic aspects to it that i wanted to study. i knew from the beginning that i wanted the sculpture to involve a spinning motion because of the whirlpool but apart from that wasn’t sure of anything so i looked at some pictures of the corryvreckan. the features that i noticed were the waves that were created by the whirlpool and also the shape of the white water that looked like a leaping fish. with this as a starting point, i started exploring the idea of several rings of cut out fish that would spin and become an animation of fish leaping. i decided not to follow this idea as i did not want to use the necessary strobe lighting because it would prevent the sculpture representing the constant, flowing force of the corryvreckan. i was still interested in the fish shapes being included and i knew i wanted them to be arranged in a spinning ring and so they had to be pliable. keeping this in mind i decided to laser cut the shapes out of 3mm ply - because, when cut it would have burned edges which would give it a rustic, aged look, reflecting the length of time the whirlpool has been about - except in order to remain as pliable could not be solid shapes. this was when i had the idea to cut the shapes out of a tangle of sine wave curves which would possibly solve the problem of pliability as well as showing the wave aspect of the corryvreckan. 156 | sparks, drifts and rain

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 quite late on, i came to the conclusion that several rings of fish shapes would spin round a central axis, with each ring getting smaller as they progressed down the axis in a general whirlpool shape. also, the rings would rotate around a point off centre, in order to create an overall fluid shape, reflecting the water that is the corryvreckan. before i started this process, i had never really worked with computer software or a laser cutter in my art but i found it very useful as making structures, for example, is much less trial and error because they can be planned and designed with more consideration. furthermore, it made any material much more versatile in its uses, enabling me to be more creative with slightly less restrictions than normal. saying that, the whole process of coming up with a concept, then trying to figure out ways to make it real without stripping away too much was difficult, but it showed me another way for artists to work. that’s where it was really great working with nicole and stefan because, as professional, experienced artists, they had lots of ideas on how to get around problems and the best techniques to suit the artwork. i learned a lot from the questions they asked me to try and understand what i intended, because it showed me how much i needed to question my ideas to help them develop and take shape. www.talc.org.uk | 159

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 162 | sparks, drifts and rain ar+ i pitched my idea of a large texturised, reactive painting of the river add. as a basis for this project i started with exploratory and preliminary sketches. most of the artistic maps that i viewed, had a exaggeration of features and a strength of vivid colours – traits that i definitely wanted to incorporate into my work. however, because textures are very important to my design, i was drawn to miniature sets as a inspirational source for 3 dimensional mapping. my idea was to produce a large scale interactive painting of the river add. i used satellite imagery to get the rough idea and actually traced the river over a photoshopped image. the river surface is interactive with tinfoil integrated into it (surrounded by a body of paint). it is painted across a large canvas made of plywood and it is surrounded by highly texturised landscape, such as raked acrylic fields and knobbly mountains.

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side effects artmap engage first became involved with talc’s sparks, drifts and rain through a shared belief that tools, materials and creative experimentation should be freely available to all young people. we also shared an understanding that our local young people were particularly disadvantaged for opportunities and experiences by our sheer physical remoteness from any major urban centres. immersion studios offered time and space to explore, play, challenge and become competent in new ways of making art over two days. we knew that two day workshops could be twice as exciting, as often when day one is ending, big creative triumphs are starting to be made. sleeping with a mind full of inspiration and returning to resolve and advance the previous day’s exploration has proved to be successful. we joined together for three immersion studio weekends focusing on kinetic sculpture, conductive painting and electronic textiles. we also collaborated at (aya) benmore residential weekend, talc’s arts & music summer school and lochgilphead’s ignite festival exploring animation, robotic bugs and projection sculptures. the challenges and experimentations on offer were inspiring and tested the ways we had previously worked as both educators and artists. what excited us most was to use the technologies available with young people and be inspired by the unique natural environments on our doorstep. experiencing this environment through fresh eyes and the different dynamic imagery it inspired was a real privilege. through sparks, drifts and rain our young people have learned that art & design today is increasingly about including new technologies and they can now successfully develop their own creativity while producing exciting kinetic and interactive works as never before seen in this remote rural area of argyll. it is always important as artist educators to continue to learn and develop and it is this that has been most rewarding about our work with talc. the relationships we have started to develop with young people and organisations in the area need to now be nurtured and invested in to see our young people bring their creativity and future artwork to a wider national and potentially international audience. sian macqueen · director artmap engage & collaboration partner of talc. www.talc.org.uk | 165

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immersion weekends (benmore & tarbert) conductive painting immersion weekend (lochgilphead) kinetic sculpture immersion weekend to introduce laser cutting, acrylic painting and conductive elements using graphite-based conductive paint. scratch and soundplant were used to programme sounds via the connection of makey makeys. aya’s young promoter emily organised a group from bute to come to talc. (sian macqueen joined nicole heidtke) immersion weekend to explore and advance the design of lochgilphead’s traditional willow lanternmaking through paperfolding and the introduction of programmable lights and sensors. (jane walker joined stefan baumberger) photo beth qualter-buncall

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1:1 graphic design young graphic designer robyn glendinning (21) came to talc. to design the programme leaflet for ignite walking exhbition in lochgilphead, 5th – 6th november 2016. animation jam last chance workshop workshop last chance to make a work to bring along or wear tonight. our artists will be on hand from 10am until 12.30 for you to drop in and make. last chance to make a work to bring along or wear tonight. artmap engage artists will be on hand from 1am for you to drop in and make. make your own very cartoony cartoon to be shown make your own very cartoony cartoon to be shown during the live music performance of stu brown‘s during the live music performance of stu brown‘s twisted toons in the evening. 2d drawn and cut- twisted toons in the evening. 2d drawn and cut-out out animation. think ‚road runner‘ style dynamite animation. explosions, anvil falling and cliff jumping action! think “road runner” style dynamite explosions, anvil falling and cliff jumping action! magic@maaa.org.uk to book a place magic@maaa.org.uk to book a place venue mayds, 50a union street time 5/6 november, from 1pm 8 sparks, drifts and rain exhibition 8 venue 1 colchester square time 5/6 november, 7-9pm talc.‘s sparks, drifts and rain exhibition in the community centre is where you should start walking the ignite festival‘s exhibitions and events. meet here for a chat with the young artists who created the artworks – like conductive paintings, projection & kinetic sculptures, augmented reality, e-textiles, led- and sound installations. sparks, drifts and rain was inspired by the landscape and seascape we are surrounded by, like corryvreckan, moine mhor and loch fyne. the offered drop-in sessions in tarbert and lochgilphead, experimentation days, the arts & music summer school and talc.‘s young artists scheme combined analogue with digital skills and seeked to encourage cross-disciplinary creativity. sparks, drifts and rain project was organised by the templar arts and leisure centre in tarbert (talc.) and funded by tts.digital (creative scotland). 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 sparks, drifts and rain (talc.) community centre, manse brae 5th nov, 4–7pm, 6th nov 10–5pm what nature brings 48/50 argyll street, 5th & 6th nov, 6–8pm walk the labyrinth 1 colchester square, 5th nov, 6–8pm flock of ideas front green, poltalloch street, 5th nov, 6–8pm pixel reef front green, poltalloch st, 5th nov, 6–8pm a night of jazz in the drill hall cadet’s drill hall, manse brae 5th nov, 9pm–1am lorne st stag car park street dance random locations along the route from the community centre to front green afternoon rehearsals and wild weather alternative: lochgilphead baptist church, union st, 5th nov 9 poltalloch st 10 last chance workshop & animation jam mayds, 50a union street 5th nov, from 1pm round table lorry stage – none the wiser from 6pm mid argyll round table bonfire & fireworks 5th nov, 7.15pm — where to go manse brae 6 t s l l y g r a 2 e r a u q s r e t s e h c l o c 7 u nio n st 3 4 5 manse brae 8 1 a free shuttle bus service will be running from tarbert harbour street to lochgilphead community centre on the 5th of november. departure tarbert: 5pm departure lochgilphead, stag car park: 8.30pm booking is essential. email: info@talc.org to book. a showcase of light installations around lochgilphead 5th – 6th november ignite is a walking exhibition around lochgilphead of light works created by young people. come and enjoy the festival atmosphere before the fireworks on bonfire night. ignite is brought to you by artmap engage and talc., tarbert who came together with a shared belief that tools, materials and creative experimentation should be freely available to all young people. bringing together the traditional analogue skills of artmap artists and the new digital media experience of talc’s artists adds an exciting exploratory layer to our collaboration. both organisa- tions also work across the generations and across the communities of argyll and are keen to work with any groups, individuals or communities with an open mind to the benefit of the arts. if you have a desire to get involved or explore the possibilities please get in touch at info@talc.org.uk artmap engage has been funded during 2016 through “argyll youth arts.” what nature brings installation flock of ideas installation bugs and beasties of argyll provided the inspiration for this pop up installation designed by local young artists with help from wilma mackenzie and kirsty brady. thanks to macleod construction for the use of the stables window for the past few months to display work from the project and to midton acrylic for donation of materials for this work. also thanks to snh for resource materials. a flock of traditional lanterns representing the collective “idea” of a lantern and the possibility of where it could go? find them around town and flocking on the front green. made by 19th argyll scout group with help from jane walker, melanie chmielewska and sian macqueen. thank you to martin waterhouse of mrc, barcaldine for the recycled lifejacket lights and to bill baille for archive lanterns@10 image. a night of jazz public performance “dick lee swingtet“ and “stu brown‘s twisted toons“ bring a bottle if you wish, buffet provided. delight in the results of the kids animation from the afternoon‘s workshop at mayds. tickets £15 adult £5 children from argyll book centre http://www.maaa.org.uk/festival.html 2 venue 48/50 argyll street time 5/6 november, 6–8pm 4 venue front green, poltalloch st time 5 november, 6–8pm 6 venue cadet’s drill hall, manse brae time 5 november, 9pm-1am walk the labyrinth installation pixel reef installation a chance to walk a meditative light labyrinth and see the new designs by young artists projected with help from rob walker and margaret ker. don’t forget to wear your t-shirts from the workshop on the 26th oct and try out our glow screen to draw your own labyrinth. thanks to the square peg for power and burgh electrics for use of the space. street dance public performance — every piece of plastic ever made still exists — — use less — recycled reef sculpture lit by programmable led lights, created by the digital drop in group and the learning centre at lochgilphead high school, with sian macqueen, stefan baumberger and rob walker. thank you to the learning centre for collecting bottles and also to the square peg for milk bottles. 1 venue community centre, manse brae time 5 nov 4-7pm, 6 nov 10am-5pm 3 venue 1 colchester square time 5/6 november, 6–8pm 5 venue front green, poltalloch st time 5 november, 6–8pm “all or nothing“ have been working with students from lochgilphed high school to explore contemporary dance as part of ignite and argyll youth arts festival. a troupe of young performers from lochgilphead will present bite-sized dance explosions as festival goers make their way to the bonfire site. afternoon rehearsals at: lochgilphead baptist church. dance performances will take place in the baptist church hall if weather is not on our side. thanks to lena carter and the pe staff from lochgilphead high school. 7 locations along the route from community centre to fireworks www.talc.org.uk | 171

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talc. acknowledgements thank you to all young people who contributed to sparks, drifts and rain. thank you for being creative, experimental and open enough to combine the analogue with the digital & the digital with some fresh air. sorry, not all of you or your work is photographed or shown – we hope you are not dissappointed about our laziness... ... you will surely shine (or spark) in the next talc. magazine! to scan the pages with the ar+ symbol, please download the free aurasma app. for "how to", please check page 50. talc.’s young artists during sparks, drifts and rain beth qualter-buncall · e-textile isaac stanesby · kinetic sculpture eoghan condie · sound installation niamh adams mcgilp · graphic design for talc. robyn glendinning · graphic design for ignite talc. tutors for sparks, drifts and rain stefan baumberger & nicole heidtke · programme lead, digital, sculpture gordon campbell · snh reserve manager john grant · music composition karen liversedge · textile design wilma mackenzie · glass engraving john mackinnon · wood philip price · wildlife photography sian macqueen · project partner, painting, sculpture adam staff · sound programming thanks to melissa james for her support of our little drama experiments! talc. collaborations for sparks, drifts and rain argyll & bute council youth services artmap engage (funded by argyll youth arts) artsquest scottish canals scottish natural heritage scottish waterways thanks to lynne girdwood (art teacher) & neil mcknight (headteacher), tarbert academy alec ohnstad, neill cinnamond (art teachers), lochgilphead joint campus and alison mcalpine (art teacher) for promoting sparks, drifts and rain; to give us time and a room, if necessary. duncan johnson, it technician lochgilphead joint campus for connecting us :) mary kenny for proof reading and special thanks to sian macqueen again for working with us so beautifully! and lots of thanks to creative scotland for funding sparks, drifts and rain with a tts.digital grant! other funders: young start, for artmap engage: aya. 178 178 | sparks, drifts and rain | sparks, drifts and rain r e g r e b m u a b n a f e t s : y h p a r g o t o h p | e k t d i e h e l o c i n : n g i s e d c i h p a r g | t r e b r a t . c l a t ©