Upland | Supporting Emerging Artists & Makers

Support for emerging artists and makers is a key part of Upland’s remit and it is something the whole team is extremely passionate about. Creative Director, Amy Marletta explains the support available to emerging artists in Dumfries and Galloway…

The support we provide aims to help those at the early stages of their creative careers to take the next steps, develop new work or take risks that enable them to develop both professionally and creatively. As a membership organisation we work to support artists and makers at all stages and connect them to each other, so learning and expertise can be shared. This year we have four initiatives that support and highlight work by emerging practitioners: the Emerge Mentoring Programme, ROAM (Space), the CREATE Bursary and the new Graduate Scheme.

Emerge Mentoring Programme

Emerge is our longest running support scheme for emerging artists and makers. It provides a programme of mentoring and a bursary for emerging artists or makers who have a connection to Dumfries and Galloway. Emerge recipients are mentored by professional experienced artists / makers over a 6-9 month period, awarded a bursary of £1000 to create new work and take part in Spring Fling Open Studios.

The programme runs annually with applications usually opening in September. For 2023 we have awarded two bursaries: One for emerging artists and makers aged 30 years and under (supported by The Holywood Trust) and one for emerging artists and makers of any age (supported by Creative Scotland).

This year’s recipients are Rachel Ashcroft and Abbie La Rooy

Abbie has been pursuing ceramics full time since April 2021, when she moved to Dumfries and Galloway to work for Clay Works Studios. Alongside working as a technician and tutor, Abbie has been establishing her ceramic practice. Abbie’s current body of work carries anthropomorphic references, loosely centred around the “grotesque”. Working with both commercial and locally sourced clays, she employs traditional techniques to create innovative, unexpected outcomes to construct a narrative. As her practice has developed, Abbie has found herself drawn to locally sourced raw materials and traditional processes to manufacture objects.

Abbie has been receiving mentoring from potter Andy Priestman and painter Linda Mallett.

Working with Andy from his home and studio set in the Galloway Forest, Abbie has been learning more about how Andy sources and processes much of the materials he uses himself, including local clays and granite sand. As all of Andy’s work is fired in a single-chambered wood kiln, Abbie has been able to gain insight into this process, from cleaning the kiln to preparing and packing it.

Rachel Ashcroft graduated in Sculpture from Manchester School of Art in 2009 and in 2015 retrained in bench joinery. Since moving to the region six years ago, Rachel has developed a small business as a crafts-person making contemporary crafts from sustainably sourced hardwood.

Under the moniker ‘Woman of the Woods’ Rachel designs, makes and sells items for the home from local hardwoods and found driftwood, such as spoons, boards, bowls and coffee tables. All of her products are designed with a modern aesthetic, taking care to highlight the beauty and grain of each piece.

For Emerge Rachel is being mentored by furniture maker Daniel Lacey and printmaker Sarah Stewart. So far she has spent time with Daniel in his workshop in Langholm, working on some new pieces which will form part of her Spring Fling studio presentation. Whilst Sarah has been helping her sustain her small business through support with things such as marketing, online content and branding.

ROAM (Space)

ROAM (Space) is a new project that enables a small collective of early career artists to work alongside an established lead artist to explore ways in which to exhibit work, exchange ideas, experiment creatively and connect via contemporary art practice.

The group have been undertaking research, finding out about other artist run spaces and are working towards a group pop-up exhibition in the summer.

The group are looking to identify any gaps that might exist for emerging artists in the region and what might be done to help address that need. At this stage there are lots of questions! Is a space necessary? What could it be? How might it be run? It’s up to the group to investigate and produce ideas collectively.

The artists involved in ROAM (Space) are Emily Tough, Joshua Haynes, Liv Kerr, Rhiannon Dewar and Sarah McCusker, supported by D&G based visual artist Kevin Reid

Spring Fling’s CREATE Bursary & New Graduate Scheme

This is a brand-new scheme awarding free entry into Spring Fling for an artist working in installation, experimental or site-specific work that doesn’t necessarily fit within the “traditional” or “typical” open studios setting. It’s not specifically for an emerging artist but this year we are delighted to have Marly Merle as our awardee, who is a recent graduate from Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art.

Marly is a multidisciplinary artist, who is from the region but based in Glasgow, working in wearable sculpture, printmaking, fashion, and design. Marly is interested in exploring new worlds, cities, and spaces to create physical artworks that provoke ideas around new and better places in which to exist. We are very much looking forward to seeing Marly’s installation as part of Spring Fling.

Spring Fling also offers a New Graduate scheme, aimed at artists and makers who have recently graduated. This year’s awardee is Glasgow based painter Sally Jennings, who is a recent graduate of Glasgow School of Art. Sally’s work spans oil-painting, printmaking, and installation work, with a central focus on the fluidity and uncertainty of the world around us.

For more information on all the artist’s work please visit the Upland and/or Spring Fling website.

Abbie La Rooy, Rachel Ashcroft, Marly Merle and Sally Jennings will have studios open as part of Spring Fling weekend, 27th-29th May.

BEA LAST: Artist/Educator/Mentor

Bea Last is a contemporary artist based here in Dumfries and Galloway, and a creative colleague and friend to many of us. We caught up with Bea recently and she told us about her Sculptural Drawing Installation created for the 20th Anniversary Spring Fling.

My creative practice is process led. I am currently exploring drawing in its broadest sense, using repurposed, recycled, and found objects, to create what I refer to as Sculptural Drawings.

These are site specific and can be re-imagined, re-invented, according to space, location, and environment. Initially my practice focuses on my own personal response to current global issues such as Conflict, Mass Migration,

Climate change, Boundaries, Borders, fragility, and endurance but also allow space for dialogue on what some may consider challenging issues.

THE RED BAGS: Sculptural Drawing Installation / Repurposed lightweight waterproof canvas / Bamboo / Bullet Holes. Size variable depending on location.

Created for the 20th anniversary of the Spring Fling exhibition at

Gracefield Art Centre Dumfries, in May 2022 which showcased a selection of both past and current participants, The Red Bags began as my response not only to the crisis in the Ukraine but to all conflicts across the globe. Our world is never at peace. Humans are at war, somewhere in the world at any given time.

The use of bags refers to our beginnings – Embryonic Sac, to our journeys end – Body Bag.

We refer to ‘Emotional Baggage’ and contemplate the homeless who may carry their entire life in a bin bag. When fleeing conflict, a bag is grabbed carrying what you can of your life. The bag is used to inflict and disorientate.

The overall shape of The Red Bags were you to view them from above, is that, which is naturally formed by human mass movement in flight. Mass migration will also be affected by climate change.

Created in a way that invites the visitor to walk amongst them and to contemplate a journey within, the sound or rustling bags in the breeze gives the install another dimension including the pops of sunlight bursting through the bullet holes signifying hope. The Gracefield Install was designed for a five-week exhibition but their stay at Gracefield lasted five months. In terms of process this allowed time for more bags to be added and for time to leave its mark by leaving sun-bleached patches on the red canvas and debris from the trees.

Documentation of my practice is vital and at the end of their time in Dumfries I had the opportunity to explore installing the piece in a white box gallery environment. Off the back of these images, I was invited to show the piece at The Oxo Tower Bargehouse Gallery, Southbank, London. It was of course a delight to hear shortly after this that I had been shortlisted for the Aesthetica Art Prize 2023 and was one of a cohort of 21 finalists.

The Aesthetica Art Prize runs until June 4th 2023 at York Art Gallery. The Bags have continued to grow and the install includes approx. 550-600 hand crafted, sculpted bags, with bullet holes. The materials used are a nod to the fragility and vulnerability of humanity along with endurance and strength.

2023, May onwards……

I have also been working concurrently to the red bags on an installation that will be exhibited in the Netherlands and tour through to 2024. Having been invited by curator and artist Ron Weijers of 10 dence Gallery along with another nine international artists, we were tasked with creating a piece inspired by Rembrandt’s painting, The Anatomy Lesson. Hence the title of the show, The Anatomy Lesson Revisited.

This exhibition opens on June 2nd at Sint Amanduskapel (Campo Santo), Visitatiestraat, 9040, Ghent, Belgium www.10dencegallery.com

Also, I am delighted to be heading off to La Providence Centre d’Art Vivant in Ille Sur Tete , South of France (Catalonia) this August, where I will be joining a group of international artists on a ten day artists development and collaboration residency.

Finally, a part of my creative practice is as an Educator and Mentor, facilitating creative workshops and one to one mentoring. This July I am facilitating VASS for UpLand arts. VASS is a Visual Arts Summer School, a short course for young people (16-25yrs) to help boost their portfolio or just to help explore new ways to create and to further their creative development. This has been developed from the GSA Widening Participation Portfolio Preparation workshops that I previously facilitated at Gracefield Arts until Covid lockdown and subsequently digitalisation. Upland arts Summer School allows for continuation of this support to our young artists and for the hands-on experience. (Funded by Creative Scotland and The Holywood Trust) www.weareupland.com

LINKS: www.bealast.com www.aestheticamagazine.com www.yorkartgallery.org.uk www.aatonau.com/bea-lastconnections-through-sculpturaldrawings/