LeithLate 2022 – Move Imagine and Share all weekend long

A packed three day programme has been announced for LeithLate 2022 running from 24 to 26 June in Venuses all over Leith. All events are either free or pay what you can.

One of the highlights will be a community dance project which will take place on the streets. Another includes the live music event at the Hibs Club and social enterprise Punjabi Junction will be back with a free family style Sunday lunch.

Camilla Crosta, LeithLate producer, said: “It is the first time I have collaborated with LeithLate, and I feel very fortunate to be in this position and to have had the opportunity to get to know, connect and learn more about Leith, the creative projects, the ideas, the people and the changes that are happening in the neighbourhood. Leith is unique in how people, groups and places are open to collaborations and projects.  I enjoyed every conversation I had in the past months with the people I met. It was interesting to learn and understand how things have changed and adapted and how much the pandemic and the current tram work affect the work and the practice of organisations, businesses and creative people. I hope the programme will reflect and acknowledge this moment of passage, a gentle return to cultural events and projects, to meet again and encounter.”

PROGRAMME OF EVENTS

Friday 24 June ‘Moving’

• You Belong Here, an exhibition of artwork created by young people from  LGBT Youth Scotland, in collaboration with The Fruitmarket Gallery and their associated artists Louise K Fraser, Eden Bø Dower, Heather Marshall and Bea Makan. (Exhibition opening 4pm – 5pm, Griffin Fitness; then running until 26 June)

Free

• Common Ground, live dance performance from Leith choreographer and performer Andrea Torres Viedma. Fusing elements of contemporary and Afro-Latin American dances with a feminist and decolonial approach, Andrea will explore how we move together as a community in both private and public spaces. The performance is open to members of the community to participate in, with free evening workshops on the 9, 16 and 23 June leading up to the performance. (Constitution St, specific location to be confirmed, 6pm, free and non-ticketed) 

• DIY record label OK Pals curating a night of live music from Blue Tiger, Hailey Beavis & Hank Tree  (Hibs Club, 8.30pm – 11pm, sliding scale tickets/by donation, tickets released soon)

• The Summer Solstice celebrated at Out Of The Blue with group installation Marseille Morning. A group of mystically-minded artists will take possession of the Drill Hall, springing from worn wooden dance floor to soaring glass roof, showcasing work from Abi Lewis, Aimée McCallum, Anupa Gardner, Bethany Thompson, Cecile Simonis, Cristiana Messina, Eugenia Barbisan, Gemma Valentine, Jessica Crisp, Lyndsay Fairley, Page Hardie, Robert Powell, Samantha Dick, Suzi Cunningham and Veronica Merlo. (Exhibition opens Tuesday 21st June 6 – 9pm. Then open 22 June – 2 July 10am – 5pm and open until 9pm Fri 24 June, Out of the Blue, free and non-ticketed)

• A summer showcase of work from little living room collective, a social enterprise dedicated to supporting creative career growth and skills development in the arts. This exhibition has been designed to showcase the original works of the collective’s members and facilitate fun creative volunteer opportunities for CAMHS service users.  Works by Gabi Gikyte, Emma Johnson, Shannon ell Dean Johnson, Katy Lawrence, Mullein Green, Ozge Spike, Amy Liston, Chelsea Bunyan, Cassandra Harrison, Anna Ferrara, Lajeen Wasim, Josh Clark, Rebecca Sumina and Rebecca Gallacher. (18 June – 2 July open late Fri 24 June, Out of the Blue, free and non-ticketed)

• Creative Electric artist Heather Marshall embarking on a mini-residency from 20 -23 June exploring transformations around Leith over the past two years. The results of her research will be a series of posters installed outdoors and in shop windows around Leith Walk.  (24 – 26 June, free and non-ticketed). 

• Studio Lenca aka Jose Campos (photo below) presents The Invisibles, a series of new portraits confronting the complex cultural history of his native El Salvador. The paintings explore the layered erasure of his culture through enforced Spanish and US cultural dominance, now seen through the lens of his UK citizenship, where his identity is officially listed as ‘Other’.  (Preview 24 June 6pm – 8pm then 25 June – 28 August 10am – 2pm, free and non-ticketed) 

Saturday 25 June ‘Imagining’

• Rotterdam-based artist Honey Jones-Hughes leading Metropolis Master, both a workshop on urban planning and an interactive game (photos above) imagining the future needs of a changing city. As the games master throws in funding cuts, privatisation and other changes in social and economic policy, participants must collaborate to collectively build a sculpture (Leith Arches, 4pm – 6pm, free but ticketed)

• An evening of music and conversations curated by EH-FM, Leith’s online radio and digital platform for local creative souls to express themselves. Featuring Edinburgh-based collective Main Ingredient. (Settlement Projects, 7pm – 9pm, free) 

Sunday 26 June ‘Sharing’ 

• An informal community conversation around around food, memories and changes in Leith, (Custom Lane, 11am – 12.30pm, free but ticketed)

• A free lunch of home-cooking courtesy of Leith social enterprise cafe Punjabi Junction (Custom Lane, 12.30pm-1.30pm, free)

• Poet and writer Tawona Sithole leads a storytelling session for children about imagining stories. Children whose first language isn’t English or who speak more than one language are invited to attend. (Custom Lane, 1.30pm – 3.30 pm, free and non-ticketed)

• An exploration of food across the generations led by Scottish charity Generations Working Together (Custom Lane, 1.30pm – 3 pm, free and non-ticketed
• For ticketed events please visit www.leithlate.co.uk