From colossal wind turbines to gargantuan offshore supply vessels, a new display inspired by the monumental infrastructure of the energy industry is now open to visitors at Aberdeen Art Gallery.
Art and Energy highlights Aberdeen Archives, Gallery & Museums’ commitment to collecting artworks and objects that tell the story of Aberdeen as an energy city. It features a range of works on paper dating from the 1970s to the present day, including drawings, prints and photographs, by artists Donald Addison, Tony Clayden, Kate Downie, Fay Godwin, George Mackie, Kate Steenhauer and Sue Jane Taylor.
Many of the artworks on display were created as a result of close working relationships between the artists and people working in the energy industry. Sue Jane Taylor, a graduate of Gray’s School of Art, is well known as a visual documenter and interpreter of technology, engineering and people of the UK offshore energy sector. Over the years she has gained access to remote and publicly prohibited offshore installations. In her work she raises questions about the relationship between art, environment and industry. A selection of her working drawings for the Beatrice Wind Farm Demonstrator Project are featured in the exhibition.
One of the many highlights in Art and Energy is a new large-scale charcoal drawing by Kate Downie RSA, commissioned with funding from the National Fund for Acquisitions and the Aberdeen Art Gallery Trusts. A graduate of Gray’s School of Art, Downie’s prolific art practice spans 45 years and a range of disciplines including painting, drawing, printmaking, performance and film. In 2008 she was elected a member of the Royal Scottish Academy which is celebrating its 200th anniversary this year. The drawing’s title – Feng Shui – translates literally as ‘wind-water’, highlighting the importance achieving a balance between human life and the natural environment for a sustainable future. The new commission captures Aberdeen’s developing renewable energy industry, with Aberdeen Bay Wind Farm appearing above the Donside Hydro, along with depictions of testing at the Wind Campus at Altens.
Kate Steenhauer is a visual artist and filmmaker. Born and raised in the Netherlands, Kate came to Aberdeen to undertake a PhD in coastal engineering. In her etchings on display as part of Art and Energy she focuses on the methods of transporting workers, supplies and equipment to offshore oil and gas installations.
Visitors to Art and Energy can listen to Kate Downie, Kate Steenhauer and Sue Jane Taylor talking about their artworks on the free digital guide to the Art Gallery on the Bloomberg Connects app. The app can be downloaded at bloombergconnects.com
Shona Elliott, Lead Curator at Aberdeen Archives, Gallery & Museums, said: “Aberdeen Art Gallery has been collecting works of art for 140 years and we now care for over 13,000 works on paper as part of the collection. With these annual displays we are bringing more works out of storage and into the Gallery to share the richness and diversity of the collection with visitors. Art and Energy also highlights our commitment to collecting artworks and objects that tell the story of Aberdeen as an energy city.”