There are so many interesting things to do in Edinburgh this week! Here are some to choose from:
Monday – the Woman Without Secrets:
Spiralling Anxiety: Hysteria Transformed in the Work of Louise Bourgeois: a talk by Elizabeth Manchester in the Studio, Modern Art One (Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art): 12.45 to 1.30. Free, but please call 0131 624 6200 to check details before setting off.
Tuesday – books, talks, and a question asked by many people: ‘What is Grammar For?’
Leo Du Feu introduces his new book, ‘Landscapes & Birds of Scotland: An Artist’s View’ at Blackwell’s, South Bridge, 6.30pm. Free: call Blackwell’s on 0131 622 8218 to book your place. (Leo will also be exhibiting at Bon Papillon Gallery with Susan Smith from 2nd May to 1st June.)
Edinburgh’s Trams & Buses: memories of the city’s transport with local author Gavin Booth: Piershill Library 6.30pm. To book your free place call the library on 0131 529 5685 or email them: piershill.library@edinburgh.gov.uk
Professor Nikolas Gisborne gives his inaugural lecture, ‘What’s Grammar For?’ at the University of Edinburgh, Lecture Theatre 175, Old Court, South Bridge at 5.15pm. Free.
What is socially responsible investment? A panel discussion chaired by Dr Kieran Oberman from the Just World Institute: 5.30 – 8.30pm at G.07 Meadows Lecture Theatre, Doorway 4, Medical School Teviot, Teviot Place. To book a free place, follow this link: www.eventbrite.co.uk
JD Fergusson and Margaret Morris: The Dance Behind the Movement. Alice Strang, Senior Curator at the Gallery of Modern Art, will be in conversation with Sara Lockwood and Kay Morrison, practitioners of the dance technique developed by Fergusson’s partner, the dance pioneer Margaret Morris. 12.45 – 1.30pm in the Hawthornden Lecture Theatre, Gardens Entrance, Scottish National Gallery (not the Modern Art Gallery) To obtain a free ticket call in at the Information Desk in the National Gallery, The Mound.
Wednesday – Art and the politics of art, the Qur’an, and – just Who is Tom Ditto?
Titian in Ten – a free, unticketed, ten minute talk delivered by NGS staff. 2pm at the Scottish National Gallery.
Tradfest & Blackwell’s Edinburgh present Alexander Moffat and Alan Riach, who will talk about their new book ‘Arts of Independence‘ in which they ‘take a hard look at the most neglected aspect of the argument for Scotland’s distinctive national identity: the arts.’ 6.30 – 7.30pm. To book your free ticket call Blackwell’s on 0131 622 8218
Professor Angelika Neuwirth: The Qur’an as a Text of Late Antiquity: Room G2, 19 George Square (University of Edinburgh): 5.30 – 7pm: free and unticketed.
Who is Tom Ditto? Find out by coming along to meet the author of this book, Danny Wallace, at the Mitre Bar, Royal Mile, 6.30-8.30pm. Danny Wallace is a Sunday Times best-selling author and a columnist for ShortList magazine; his previous books include ‘Join Me’ and ‘Yes Man’, the latter being made into a hugely successful film with Jim Carrey in the leading role. Who is Tom Ditto? has been described as ‘Gone Girl meets Nick Hornby with a dash of the IT Crowd on the side.’ For more details, call Waterstones Ocean Terminal on 0131 554 7732.
Thursday – busiest day of the week, so take a break with the Wild Myrtles
At Morningside Library Lin Anderson will introduce her new private detective Patrick de Courvoisier as he investigates The Case of the Black Pearl. 6.30-7.45pm. Free but please call the library in advance to book a place, as seating is limited: 0131 529 5654 or email: morningside.library@edinburgh.gov.uk
Meet author Lindsay Davis at Leith Library, Ferry Road 10.30 – 12. To book a free place call 0131 529 5517.
Lindsay Davis is also appearing at the Central Library, George IV Bridge, 7-8pm. She will talk about her Roman detective Falco, her new quick read ‘A Cruel Fate’, and her latest novel ‘Enemies at Home’ which was published earlier this month. To book your free ticket, follow this link: www.eventbrite.co.uk
Doug Johnstone launches his new novel, ‘The Dead Beat’ an Edinburgh-based thriller, at Looking Glass Books, 36 Simpson Loan, Quartermile (just off the Meadows.) A freelance journalist, musician and songwriter, Johnstone is the author of four books. Call 0131 229 2902 for more information.
Blackwell’s presents Patrick Richardson for the launch of his new book, In Search of Landfall ‘one man’s search for the answers to the questions we are all faced with,: who are we, what are we doing here and where are we going?’ Richardson writes about his childhood in 1950s Edinburgh, his life as a radical student here in the 1960s, his experience of the Amsterdam counterculture in the 70s and 80s, and his encounters with such diverse characters as Indira Gandhi and Robin Cook, Norman McCaig and Jorge Luis Borges. To book your free ticket call Blackwell’s on 0131 622 8218 or call in to the front desk of the shop.
Books in Focus: Wassily Kandinsky: the works of the Russian born artists and pioneer of abstraction,, examining copies of Der Blaue Reiter (The Blue Rider) and Klange (Sounds.) 11.30-12.30 Modern Art Two. Places are free but limited and must be booked on 0131 624 6268 or by emailing: gmainfo@nationalgalleries.org. One of a series of sessions focusing on artists’ books held in the special collections of the Gallery of Modern Art.
Easel Sketching on the main gallery floor of the Scottish National Gallery. Inspired by the Titian exhibition and working from a costumed figure. Free, no booking required.
Why Penelope was Right about Music, Marriage and the Gods: What it means to be a person in Homer – Professor Edward Mendelson gives the Isabel Dalhousie Lecture. 6.15-7.45, St Cecilia’s Hall, Niddry Street. Free, but booking essential via this link: www.eventbrite.co.uk
Will Scottish Independence Help Us to Create Better Leaders for Business? An opportunity to put your questions direct to leading figures on both sides of the argument. This is a joint event with ACCA and the Institute of Directors. 6.30 – 7.45pm, Auditoriu, University of Edinburgh Business School, Buccleuh Place. Free but registration required via this link: www.business-school.ed.ac.uk
The unaccompanied voices of Edinburgh’s Wild Myrtles bring you songs of love, sweet lullabies and songs to lift the spirit – from Germany to Georgia, Sweden to Shetland. 6-6.30pm, National Portrait Gallery, Queen Street. Free, unticketed.
Alice Greenway will launch her new book, The Bird Skinner, at Waterstones West End (Princes Street.) 6pm, free tickets available from the shop. More details on 0131 226 2666.
Friday – winding down with one more book, and some sketching
Easel Sketching at the Scottish National Gallery – see Thursday for details.
Blackwell’s, South Bridge presents the launch of ‘The Oversight‘, a new gothic fantasy novel for adults. Author Charlie Fletcher is a screenwriter and children’s author living in Edinburgh. His children’s books the Stoneheart trilogy and Far Rockaway have received great critical acclaim. The oversight is ‘ a dark Dickensian fantasy spinning a tale of witch-hunters, magicians, mirror-walker and the unlikeliest of heroes drawn from the depths of British folklore.’ 6.30-7.30pm: ticketed but free – call Blackwell’s on 0131 622 8218 to book your place, or call in to the front desk at the shop to collect a ticket.
Saturday – The Power of Portraiture
The Power of Portraiture: Portrait Gallery Thematic Tours. This month, Susanna Kerr, former Senior Curator, will demonstrate how symbols, style and composition in portraiture capture the essence of a person, revealing their status, fame and profession. 2 – 2.45pm and 3 – 3.45pm. Free and unticketed.
Sunday – Under 12? Make a masterpiece.
Art Maker Club at the Scottish National Gallery, the Mound. Make your own masterpieces with artists Tessa Asquith-Lamb and Louise Fraser. Drop-in event between 2 and 4pm for children aged 4-12. Free, sponsored by the Friends of the National Gallery.
There must be something here for you whatever your taste – so pick an event (or ten), go along, and support the writers, artists, singers and other Great Minds that make the city such a stimulating and exciting place to be. Then tell us how you got on!
