Inside Out: Alexander Nasmyth’s Princes Street in Context Walking Tour. Starting inside the Scottish National Gallery, historian Alastair Learmont will take a closer look at Alexander Nasmyth’s Princes Street with the Commencement of the Building of the Royal Institution 1825 before moving outside to look at Princes Street in the context. Please come dressed for the weather, and be ready and able to walk. Booking is recommended to avoid disappointment as spaces are limited to 15. 12.45-1.45pm, Tuesday 10th May, Scottish National Gallery, The Mound. Free but ticketed: tickets are available in advance from the Information Desk in the Gardens Entrance of the Scottish National Gallery or by calling 0131 624 6560.
Architects’ Conversations – Neil Gillespie OBE, RSA (Design Director, Reiach and Hall Architects and Visiting Professor at Scott Sutherland School of Architecture, Aberdeen) and Tony Fretton
(Principal, Tony Fretton Architects and Emeritus Professor TU Delft) discuss Abstraction and Familiarity. ‘In my practice I advocate that abstraction is necessary in order to reconnect with the social aims of modernism. At the same time I aim for familiarity. The resolution will be the subject of the discussion with my valued colleague Neil Gillespie’ (Tony Fretton). 
This series brings together a number of Scotland’s leading architects with other leading international architects to discuss shared themes, interests and influences in how we make the places around us. For ages 14+. 6.45-8.15pm (drinks reception from 6pm), Tuesday 10th May, Auditorium, National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street. Tickets £6 – booking is essential and may be made by calling 0300 123 6789 or online here.
Notable Works on Paper: a new exhibition including pieces by Anne Redpath, Robert Colquhoun, Sir David Wilkie, Sir William Oliphant Hutchison, John Byrne and others. 10am-6pm Wednesday 11th May, then 10am-6pm Monday to Friday, 10am-2pm Saturdays, The Fine Art Society in Edinburgh, 6 Dundas Street. Ends 4th June 2016. Image: Still Life with Lobster by George Leslie Hunter.
‘Everyone an Artist, Everyone a Scientist!’ – Fun Palace Scotland Open Meeting. Fun Palaces is a national campaign for culture for everybody, centred around the first weekend of October. Fun Palaces are community-led events that celebrate arts, sciences, making and learning in whatever form the imagination can come up with.
Last year, there were 142 Fun Palaces across the UK, of which 8 happened in Scotland – ranging from a Curiosity Forest springing up in Edinburgh, to a Mad Hatter’s Party in Dumfries and Galloway, and even a community Science Ceilidh. This year the weekend will fall on 1st and 2nd October, and the organisers are looking for even more people to get stuck in. Come along to this open meeting, held as part of Voluntary Arts Week, and find out more about Fun Palaces, hear what happened last year, meet other people passionate about community arts and sciences, and start making plans for this year! 6-8.30pm, Wednesday 11th May, Gayfield Creative Spaces, 11 Gayfield Square. Free (with snacks and soft drinks provided) but please book via eventbrite here. Pictures: Chris Scott.
Portrait Gallery Curator’s Tour: Scots in Italy. A chance to chat to the Portrait Gallery curators about current exhibitions. This month Lucinda Lax, Senior Curator Eighteenth-Century Collections, gives a talk on the Scots in Italy: Artists and Adventurers exhibition. 5-5.30pm, Thursday 12th May, Scottish National Portrait Gallery, 1 Queen Street. Free and unticketed.
The Drawing Room – May: an informal, artist-led drawing session. Each session is developed by a contemporary artist and reflects concerns within that artist’s own work. All materials are supplied and no experience necessary. 5.30-6.45pm, Thursday 12th May, Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art ONE, Belford Road. To book your place call 0131 624 6410 or email education@nationalgalleries.org. Image (c) Emma Bowen.
The Scottish Endarkenment: Art & Unreason 1945 to the Present. A thematic exhibition, curated by Bill Hare and Andrew Patrizio (University of Edinburgh) in collaboration with Dovecot, providing a radically new and fascinating presentation of the shared concerns which have obsessed many of the most important Scottish artists since the end of World War Two. The Scottish Endarkenment explores a wide range of disturbing and provocative topics, from ever-escalating international conflict, social inequality and unrest, gender identity and sexual prejudice – all fired by the dialectical struggles within the Scottish psyche between good and evil, Self and the Other. 
All these subjects are imaginatively treated within a variety of different interpretations and mediums – from the out-and-out horrific to the darkly satirical. Included amongst the forty or so exhibits are works by major Scottish artists including David Shrigley, Joyce Cairns and Steven Campbell. Opens Friday 13th May, then 10.30am-5.30pm, Monday to Saturday, Dovecot Gallery, Infirmary Street. Ends 29th August 2016. There will be a conference held in connection with the exhibition at Dovecot on 17th June and a programme of related films at the Filmhouse during the Edinburgh Art Festival in July and August. Image: Calton Hill, 2014, © Jock McFadyen, courtesy the artist.
No Woman is an Island: an annual exhibition, now in its fourth year, featuring work by Rona MacLean, Aileen Grant and guest artists and makers, including painters and printmakers plus award-winning sculptor Elaine Allison, established tapestry artists Fiona Hutchison and Jane Binks, accomplished basket-maker Janice Hall and East Lothian cabinet-maker Michaela Huber. The artists are in an informal Edinburgh-based network of women artists and makers who meet regularly to go sketching and discuss the development of their work. Private view 6.30pm Friday 13th May, then 11am-6pm daily until 28th May, Gallery 3, St Margaret’s House, 151 London Road. Image (left): Stacks aquatint by Aileen Grant, (right): Moorish Garden by Cat Outram.
Stills Taster: Lewis Baltz. A hands-on photography session for young people aged 14-19, inspired by Stills’ current exhibition Lewis Baltz with works by Carl Andre and Charlotte Posenenske. Stills Tasters are designed to provide the opportunity to engage with the skills and techniques used by artists in Stills’ exhibitions in an informal and relaxed environment; they are suitable for beginners and those who want to expand their knowledge. Following a quick tour of the exhibition, artist David Grinly will lead a practical session drawing on the themes and aesthetics of Baltz’s game-changing topographical photographs. 2.30-5.30pm, Friday 13th May, Stills, Cockburn Street. Free but places are limited and booking is essential: call 0131 622 6200 or email info@stills.org.
Outskirts: a collective show of abstract painting, featuring the work of Joy Arden, Alan Chapman, Jacqui Higgs, Steven Hood and Mary Walters. The title refers to a state of the peripheral, the margins of space we tread infrequently. Private view 6.30-9pm Friday 13th May, then 10am-6pm daily until 28th May, Gallery 1, St Margaret’s House, 151 London Road.
Wee Treasures – May: storytelling for early years children and their families, inspired by a different portrait each month – delve into the magic treasure chest to find out what the story will be! With fun rhymes and songs, puppet characters and lots of opportunities to join in. For children aged 2-4 and their parents and carers. 10.30am or 11.30am, Saturday 14th May, Scottish National Portrait Gallery, 1 Queen Street. Free, but places are limited – sign up on the day.
Drop-in Sessions Inspired by the Works of Wilhelmina Barns-Graham: led by printmaker Sarah Gittins, learn about some printmaking techniques and try simple experiments to help in your understanding of the process. 2-4.30pm, Saturday 14th May, Scottish Gallery of Modern Art TWO, Belford Road. Free, no booking required. Also at same times on Sunday 15th May. Supported by The Wilhelmina Barns-Graham Charitable Trust. Image: Summer (Yellow), Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, 1999 − © The Barns-Graham Charitable Trust.
Crafts in Architecture: a Festival of Architecture 2016 exhibition celebrating local craft skills which enrich the built environment in the five mediums of Wood, Glass, Metal, Stone and Earth. Craft skills bring to our culture much of what is beautiful, humane and delightful in Architecture. The Craft in Architecture Project is conceived and presented by the Edinburgh Architectural Association. The intention is to show, that even in the digital age, architecture is nourished and enriched by vibrant craft traditions; the exhibition showcases thriving craft skills and production in Fife, the Lothians and the Scottish Borders. 
Today there will also be a talk by Graeme Murray and Lise Bratton of Real Wood Studios about the making of their display piece, Rhythms Through Time: Spirit of Palmyra, crafted in honour of Khaled al-Asaad, 
the Syrian archaeologist and Head of Antiquities for the ancient Semitic city of Palmyra in present day Homs. He was publicly crucified and beheaded by terrorists in August 2015 for refusing to reveal the location of many of the city’s most precious architectural artifacts and artworks. 10am-4pm, Saturday 14th May, then daily until 24th May, Gayfield Creative Spaces, 11 Gayfield Square. Talk: 2pm, Saturday 14th May.
Discover the Art of Parliament: in this one hour guided tour you will discover a selection from the Scottish Parliament Art Collection. The collection on display throughout the award-winning Parliament building includes artworks from over 40 Scottish contemporary artists, showcasing a variety of types of work and media – from oil paintings to sculptures, photography, textiles and installations. 12 noon, Saturday 14th May, Scottish Parliament, Holyrood. Free but advance booking is essential. To enquire about availability please telephone 0131 348 5200 or email visit@scottish.parliament.uk.
Joan Eardley: A Private View. Join Stellar Quines and Heroica Theatre companies for two full cast performed readings of Joan Eardley: A Private View; a new play on the life and work of artist Joan Eardley. Writer Anna Carlisle, director Marilyn Imrie and the cast are inviting audience feedback on the play and will be discussing the development of the full production which will be touring UK galleries in 2017. 6-7.30pm (doors open 5.30pm), Saturday 14th May, Hawthornden Lecture Theatre, Scottish National Gallery, The Mound. Tickets £10 (transaction fee applies) from eventbrite here. Also at same time on Sunday 15th May. Image by Audrey Walker, courtesy of The Scottish Gallery.
Samuel Harriman: Colourimetry. a new exhibition of light installation and painting by the Oxford-based artist. Harriman’s work consists primarily of light, however, by using painterly processes, he combines the media of light installation and painting to intonate the point that the use of light is a form of painting. He uses both white wall gallery spaces and sites such as sheds or residential settings to install his work. Open Preview 7-9pm, Saturday 14th May, Patriothall Gallery, 1 Patriothall, off Hamilton Place, Stockbridge. Exhibition ends 22nd May 2016. Image: Ben Harris.
Gallery of Modern Art Highlight Tours – May: monthly tours of the Gallery’s permanent collection, focusing on key works. 2-2.45pm or 3-3.45pm, Saturday 14th May, Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art ONE (meet at main entrance), Belford Road. Free and unticketed.
Davy Brown: New Works. From 1988 to 2002, Davy was Principal Teacher of Art at the Douglas-Ewart High School in Newton Stewart and continued to exhibit in one-man shows in Scotland and England.In 2002 he retired from teaching to become a full-time artist. Opening event 11am-1pm, Saturday 14th May, then 11am-6pm Monday to Friday, 10.30am-4pm Saturdays, The Torrance Gallery, 36 Dundas Street. Ends 28th May 2016.
Bags of Art – May: Cool and creative fun with artists Tessa Asquith-Lamb and Louise Fraser. 2-4pm (drop-in), Sunday 15th May, Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art ONE, Belford Road. Free and unticketed. Supported by the Friends of the National Galleries of Scotland. Image © Alicia Bruce.
Hearing Impaired Tour – Scots in Italy: a free tour of the exhibition, with portable hearing loops, led by Tessa Asquith-Lamb. 11am-12 noon, Sunday 15th May, Scottish National Portrait Gallery, 1 Queen Street. To book a place please contact the Information Desk on 0131 624 6560.
