Scotland’s national treasure Richard Demarco to participate in public interview as part of May Festival’s Mayhem on May 25.
Scotland’s national treasure, Richard Demarco, an arts patron and artist in his own right, will be visiting the University of Aberdeen on May 25 for an exclusive public interview as part of this year’s May Festival Mayhem programme. As early as the 1960s, Demarco took an interest in experimental artists from Eastern Europe. He was among the first few pioneering individuals who brought these soon-to-be influential artists, such as Marina Abramovic and Tadeusz Kantor, to perform and exhibit in the U.K. Join Amy Bryzgel, Lecturer in Film and Visual Culture, in conversation with Demarco, as he takes us on a journey through his travels and encounters with artists in Eastern Europe.
The interview will take place on Wednesday, May 25, at 6pm in King’s College Conference Centre.
This event will be followed at 7.30pm that same day by a drinks reception and official opening of the exhibition “Eastern European Performance in Scotland: the Legacy of Richard Demarco” in the MacRobert building Art Space. This is an exciting exhibition, told in colourful photographs and objects exploring performance art by Eastern European artists in Scotland. Drawing on the rich tradition of performance in Scotland by artists invited here by Demarco, this exhibition will also look at recent performances in Aberdeen by artists from Serbia and Croatia in this collaboration between East and West.
“I am delighted that Richard Demarco will be joining us for this year’s May Festival. Richard has been part of every Edinburgh Festival since its inception, and it is fitting that he will be here to share his many stories of working with artists from across Europe for the past half century in our own flagship festival. What’s more, it will be a very special evening as he will be able to officially open the exhibition of work from his archive shown here on the Aberdeen campus,” said Bryzgel.
The interview and opening on May 25 is a free but ticketed event. Free tickets can be reserved through Eventbrite: www.demarco-abdn.eventbrite.co.uk
The exhibition “Eastern European Performance in Scotland: the Legacy of Richard Demarco” is open from April 27 – September 27 2016, 9am – 5pm, Monday to Friday in the foyer of the MacRobert building.
On Wednesday, 25 May it will remain open until 9:30pm.