Run Down Aberdeen takes a no-nonsense, balanced look at many of the fundamental questions, issues and problems facing the city today, and throws up a few potential solutions to boot. Featuring contributions from the likes of MSP Lewis Macdonald and novelist John Aberdein, it’s a journey through the downfall of the city centre and Union Street, the oil industry’s influence, the council’s well-documented troubles, and development in Aberdeen, past, present and future (including the ongoing Union Terrace Gardens debacle).

Education, employment, architecture, aesthetics and culture are all touched upon in a beautifully-made film which may well make you angry and downright incredulous at some of the baffling decisions and missed opportunities of the past, but which ultimately offers a wee glimmer of hope that there may be, just may be, a groundswell of opinion, collective thinking and action which bodes well for the future…

Run Down Aberdeen from Fraser Denholm on Vimeo.

In conjunction with Interesting Music Promotions, Friends of Union Terrace Gardens present a fundraiser for their cause (which you’ll all be aware of by now, right?)

MC Alan ‘Kitchen Cynics‘ Davidson presides over proceedings which will include music from Min Diesel, Steven Milne & his Solo Posse, Flaxman, Hashimoto Jones, Myke Black, Djembe drummers Drummin Aboot and Simon Gall & Steve Crawford.  There’s some good stuff in there and we’re promised a couple of surprises too.  Pay more than the suggested fiver in and get an iconic UTG badge which you can flout around town as well…

Oh, and keep an eye on our Twitter feed over there on the right for the latest press coverage on the whole UTG debacle, call it a hunch but we reckon there’ll be a LOT more to come…

I’d imagine a lot of you have heard about this already.  If not, the idea is a basic one; head down to Union Terrace Gardens, have a picnic, listen to some music and show just how important the place is to the city…

Links:

Facebook event page

Routemaster promotes Picnic in the Park protest (P&J)

Mass protest picnic to be held over Union Terrace Gardens plans (STV)

You’ve all heard the result of The Union Terrace Gardens vote by now but here’s how the P&J reported it this morning anyway.  Some interesting stuff in the comments.

This does not make our city look good at all does it?

Arseholes.

I’ve nothing else to add at the moment to be honest…

*Sigh*

The Aberdeen Artists Society Annual Exhibition is now in its 76th year and since 1934 there has been a fast, varied and diverse series of seismic shifts in the process of making art, showing art, thinking about art and the perception of the actual function of art.  The role of the artist has changed significantly, as has the notion of what art is, however in this time the Aberdeen Artist Society Annual Exhibition has remained largely the same.

This exhibition is not one which is hung, it is simply filled.  There is no theme, no brief for submissions, no curatorial message, no critical standpoint in the selection. The works are chosen by being marched, in a style more akin to the X-Factor than serious artistic critique, before a selection panel (not unlike that of Messrs. Cowell, Walsh and Co.) and judged according to an unrealistic and outdated series of subjective criteria based on the self-imposed authority of the panel.

Photo: Pammy May

The result is a mostly incoherent collection of works of varying critical value and aesthetic quality. Careful, considered works are shown alongside tired harbour scenes, naive portraiture and obscenely-glazed ceramic animals to the detriment of any coherent voice an individual piece may have.  Gallery Two resembles a seaside bric-a-brac shop, with paintings often hung  three-high in order to cram as much stuff in as possible. A large desk occupies the centre of the room selling catalogues, the only way of attributing an artist to their work.  Even on the broadest level, as an exposition of the nature of work produced by the “Aberdeen Artist”, this exhibition is a spectacular failure.

Each year, the exhibition manages to overlook the diverse and exciting range of contemporary practice utilised by Aberdeen’s growing population of 21st Century Artists, both at grassroots and more established levels, in favour of producing an exhibition which aspires to be almost identical, if not less inspired, to the previous show.  Contemporary artists working in Aberdeen are no less critically aware and culturally attuned to their counterparts across the world, working in a wide range of current media such as installation, performance, interactive work, social engagement, video, sound and much more, none of which are represented in the exhibition.

Even the title and its apparent mandate to suggest “We Are Aberdeen Artists” is contentious to say the least due to its extremely limited scope in its attempt to highlight the range of practice in Aberdeen. With the exhibition commanding a similar prestige to the RSA Annual in Edinburgh, there is little wonder that there’s a negative perception of artistic and cultural endeavour in the Granite City, which does nothing to ease the struggle for recognition that Aberdeen is a vibrant place for new and exciting Artists to live and work.

Ouch.

Here’s a quick summary though, just in case:

They lost.  Big time.

This however, this, if  true,  is nothing short of a f***king scandal…Check it out:

http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home-news/the-tycoon-the-secret-meeting-and-the-battle-for-the-soul-of-aberdeen-city-1.1021429

It’s become a bit of a joke to be honest,  unfortunately it’s deadly serious when not a day goes by without some ACSEF-weighted spin appearing.  Here’s today’s offering for example.  Translation: ‘We asked the people for their opinion, they gave it, but they’re the wrong kind of people. These aren’t real people.  They’re organised protesters’. It’s laughable stuff…

Anyway, the aforementioned consultation on The City Square Project ends on Friday, so fill in the survey here if you haven’t already done so. (I know most of you have, but it’s for the benefit of anyone who hasn’t taken action yet)

Alternatively, freephone 0800 111 4881, text your thoughts to 60777 followed by the word ‘square’ or email consultation@thecitysquareproject.com Remember to keep it civil (or civic, if you will).

That ‘vocal minority’ petition in support of the Peacock building is here (and currently at over 8000 signatures), please bring it to the attention of anyone who may be interested in keeping the city centre’s unique topography intact.

This could well be your last chance to have a say on the matter.

I mean, even the squirrels are speaking out now (and you dinna mess wi’ squirrels).  Oh, and in case you missed it, last Saturday saw a wee event in support of the gardens (check out this video of it by the supremely talented Adam Proctor) and there’s something similar happening on Friday at 2pm too. Same place, under Rabbie Burns’ statue.  Poetic.

Twenty tracks across various genres have been submitted by some of the best local talent (including Fiona Soe Paing, & Alan ‘Kitchen Cynics‘ Davidson) and you can pay what you want for the album. So, for as little as a quid you can do your bit for UTG and get some pretty cool stuff in return.

It’ll be available here

More on this later, however it might be worth your while heading down to the gardens at 1pm on Saturday the 27th (that’s tomorrow!) Something might be happening. *taps nose*

They haven’t a clue what would go in there: Italian Piazzas, Trafalgar Squares, Guggenheim Museums, underground tunnels, concert venues, babylon-esque gardens and various other nonsensical, reactionary ‘ideas’ have been mooted thus far, all with very little substance to them.

You just know that the huge funding shortfall would mean we’d end up with a half-arsed, embarrassing mish-mash which would cause irreplaceable damage to the city’s image and physical make-up. A piece in today’s Scotsman sums up the situation perfectly: The City Square Project is unworkable and threatens not only Peacock’s immediate future, but the future of arts and culture in the city as a whole.  Roll on Thursday…

Update 17/02/10: The Annie Lennox picture story has been picked up by The Scotsman today

http://soundcloud.com/fionasoepaing/dropbox

Or email them to:

carmichaeljayne@hotmail.com

…before Saturday 20th February and they’ll be considered for inclusion. They’re also looking for artwork too, get in touch at the address above or through this Facebook page.

Positive stuff…