The Reporter went along to see the David Mach exhibition yesterday afternoon and we have to admit that until we saw it in the flesh the enormity of it had not quite gripped us.
When you enter the front doors of the City Art Centre the first sight to confront you are the three massive wire coathanger sculptures in the ground floor area forming the Golgotha tableau. Three male figures all set on crucifixes tower above you, and offer some indication that the theme here is a biblical one. The most recently completed collage was a depiction of The Last Supper.
The seventy pieces of work are all different, although the theme is common to all. There are the sculptures, and there are the huge collages. These are not paintings however. They are mixtures of photographs cut out of magazines, books, comics and any other medium that the artist and his team, who have been working on site have chosen. If David Mach is not a which is familiar to you, then you need only think of the Big Heids at the side of the M8 on the way to Glasgow and you will immediately know who he is!
There are a couple of heads here too: the Devil and Jesus. Controversially the artist set fire to the heads, which are made of live matches, thereby creating a new piece of sculpture rather than destroying it. The vivid red colour used in the Devil’s head became shades of black and grey, and there is a video of the artist explaining his reasoning behind it in the exhibition.
On the top floor you are reminded of the importance of the King James Bible in today’s vocabulary. There are excerpts from the first version of The Bible to be produced on a mass scale some 400 years ago, all of which will be familiar to most visitors to the exhibition.
And now there are only a few days left to see this range of work, as the critically acclaimed exhibition approaches its final day on Sunday 16 October.
The show concludes its hugely successful showing at the City Art Centre with a series of events that focus on the religious and spiritual significance of the exhibition.
Councillor Deidre Brock, Culture and Leisure Convener, said: “David Mach‘s Precious Light exhibition has been the ‘must-see’ exhibition in Edinburgh for the last couple of months and there are only a few days left to catch it before the run ends. The show has been immensely popular with visitors and critics alike, attracting glowing reviews in the press and scooping a prestigious Herald Angel award for visual art. Don’t miss it!”
Art and Faith days
Tuesday 11 and Wednesday 12 October
An opportunity to walk around David Mach’s exhibits in the company of faith leaders, discussing their meaning within contemporary religion.
Tours leave from the ground floor every 15 minutes from 11am.
The Agony and the Ecstasy
4pm, Wednesday 12 October
Organised in partnership with the Chaplain of the University of Edinburgh, this will be short multi-faith ceremony focussing on the theme of breaking apart and coming together; breaking down and being united. It will conclude with the sharing of a simple meal together.
Film presentation: The Book that Changed the World
1.30pm, Thursday 13 October
The extraordinary story behind the most extraordinary of books.
Acclaimed actor John Rhys-Davies (Lord of the Rings, Indiana Jones) leads us back into a darker time to discover this fascinating tale of saints and sinners, power and passion. The greatest translation of the Bible emerged into a world and culture that would never be quite the same again.
Film by award-winning Writer and Director Norman Stone
All the events are free with an exhibition ticket. Prior booking is not required.
The Precious Light exhibition finishes on Sunday 16th October. Admission prices £5 /£3.50. Open Monday to Saturday 10-5, Sunday 12-5
David Mach Precious Light: A Celebration of the King James Bible 1611-2011 opened on 30 July. The explosive exhibition covers five floors of the City Art Centre in Market Street. Over three years in the making, Precious Light explores the themes and legacy of the King James Bible in the year of its 400th anniversary.
The Turner Prize-nominated artist’s largest solo show to date, it features more than 70 of his trademark collages and large-scale sculptures composed of thousands of mass produced objects such as coathangers and live matches.
