Pictures from the Past
Issused by Halogen Communications on behalf of Inverness College UHI
Art and Design students from Inverness College UHI, in partnership with Highland Council Libraries, will launch a special photography exhibition on Monday 14 June, entitled Now and Then, at Inverness Library.
The photography exhibition, which will feature in a number of Highland Council Libraries over the next month, captures the social and geographic change of the Highlands from the 1900s to the present day. Students from the college’s NQ Art and Design Portfolio class, as part of their Photography Research module, pioneered the exhibition and thanks to support from Am Baile, the Highland Council's history and culture website, students were able to make the exhibition a reality.
Am Baile is a service which gives access to photographs, rare books, archival documents and much more on the history and culture of the Scottish Highlands and Islands. Through working with Am Baile, friends, family and members of the community, students were able to gain access to a range of images from the past. Old photographs of Inverness, Dingwall, Nairn and the old aluminium smelter in Kinlochleven, are just some example of the student’s research areas. Students then took images of the locations as they appeared today and mounted these onto exhibition boards alongside the old photographs.
Ken Gowans, Art and Design Lecturer at Inverness College UHI, said: “On behalf of our students, I would like to thank Highland Council Libraries for agreeing to exhibit this fascinating work. All 16 boards, containing a total of 96 images, have been moved to libraries relevant to their photographic area. For example, exhibition boards with images relevant to Inverness will feature at the launch giving people the opportunity to see the changing landscape of the area and enjoy our students’ wonderful work. Inverness College is an integral part of the community and the student’s work demonstrates this perfectly.”
Valerie Beattie, Curriculum Manager for Creative Industries at Inverness College UHI, added: “I would also like to extend a special thanks to Am Baile, for providing advice and access to their archives free of charge, and SCRAN, a Government led organisation who also donated their services. Without their support, we would not have been able to produce such a wonderful exhibition.”
Charlotte Wilson from (18) from Dingwall, was one of the students involved in the project. Charlotte said: “I loved taking part in the photography project and seeing how time has changed the area, or kept it much the same, was unbelievable. I hope the public will enjoy our Now and Then exhibition as much as we all enjoyed putting it together. No matter how young or old you are, we are confident that the exhibition will be of interest to everyone.”
Councillor Bill Fernie, Chairman of the Highland Council’s Education, Culture and Sport Committee, said: “This is an excellent example of a partnership working between Inverness College, Highland Libraries and Am Baile. I commend the students on their excellent project work and I am sure their photos of today will become archival social records of the future.”
Exhibitions will be run in Highland Council Libraries over the next month. Libraries featuring the students’ work include Alness, Inshes, Kinlochleven, Dingwall, Nairn and Inverness. For further information on the exhibitions, please contact Maggie Johnstone.
For further information on Inverness College UHI, please contact 01463 273000 or visit www.inverness.uhi.ac.uk.