INTRODUCTION

Carla is a visual artist and creative producer based in North East Scotland. Her visual art practice is inspired by tangible heritage, taking the form of sculptures and installations made in response to specific objects and spaces. She is research-driven and approaches each project with open enquiry, exploring the historic within a contemporary context; the final pieces vary in materials and form as these reflect the story within. As a creative producer she has over 20 years’ experience in initiating and managing arts projects within the third and public sectors, connecting arts and communities. Originally working as a freelance theatre designer for over a decade, Carla was also co-director of a residential artist retreat on the North East Scottish Coast for 15 years, welcoming the public to an annual programme of learning activities and residencies. She is currently a We Are Here creative practitioner mentor.

INTERVIEW

How did you get into your creative practice? What initially inspired you?

I have a mixed background in the Arts. I’ve been a set and costume designer, run an arts retreat with my husband, and worked extensively in arts development/creative production, but wanted to return to education for some time. Once my kids were adults, I took the plunge and did an MA in Fine Art at Gray’s School of Art in Aberdeen, while continuing to work as a local authority Cultural Development Officer. The MA enabled me to focus on developing a new visual arts practice, drawing together my existing creative making skills, a long-term fascination with historical objects and spaces, and a new understanding of academic practice. I emerged with a clear direction and more rounded, confident understanding of myself as a creative practitioner.

What themes do you tend to interrogate in your creative practices?

I have a research-based art practice driven by stories of heritage, place and artefact, creating work that responds directly to objects and buildings. I’m interested in deep mapping and object biography – exploring the many layers of meaning and connection every object has - as ways to understand and recontextualize history within contemporary society. My work is thoughtful and conversational, highlighting connections between things that may be otherwise hidden. These links and stories dictate the medium and materials I use, although I am naturally inclined to make sculptures and installations. New pieces of work often necessitate learning new skills or collaboration with others.

What is your favourite project you’ve ever worked on and why?

I’ve spent the last year as a Graduate in Residence at Gray’s, working on a commission for A+E, the art and ecology programme at St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral in Edinburgh. The connection came through a student field trip in 2023; from a secular point of view, I was intrigued by the Cathedral’s architecture and history and followed up with a meeting onsite to find out more.

The result is a tent-like site-specific installation called The Cathedral Body, developed through mapping the visible and invisible qualities of St Mary’s via historical documents, drawing, sound recordings, photography, and conversation. Built from materials including jute, steel, bamboo and polypropylene cord, the piece is a sculptural map of all the networks and conversations flowing in and out of the building, from the 5G telecom transmitters in the steeple to the fungi in the earth below.

It’s an intimate conversation space that collages real and imagined maps, based on a 3-mile radius from the building (the estimated reach of the transmitters). As St Mary’s is solid, secure, and rooted, The Cathedral Body is porous, vulnerable, and transportable. As the daylight shifts the installation also changes, as shadows stretch and the walls randomly bloom into colour from the wonderful stained-glass windows nearby. My hope is that people take a seat inside and consider what it means to be connected to the wider world.

What advice would you have for creatives of colour looking to get into your creative practices?

When I was a young theatre designer I felt compelled to say yes when offered any job relating to what was deemed to be the ‘Black experience’. Sometimes this worked well but sometimes I felt my own experience of being a person of colour had little connection to the specific themes of the performance, and the resulting work felt inauthentic. Now I have a much better understanding of myself as a creative with mixed heritage, my skills and what I want to say. I realise that empathy is key to all my best work, whether as a visual artist or creative producer. Empathy leads to discussion which in turn encourages understanding, in both a practical and an emotionally intelligent sense. I think that developing an empathetic approach can only benefit any creative practice. This doesn’t mean you roll over and agree with everything, it just gives you a good starting point to learn and develop from.

What are you currently working on?

II’m exhibiting The Cathedral Body at the Gray’s School of Art Graduate in Residence show, Aberdeen, 1-12 September. As the piece was created to be site specific, it’ll be accompanied with images and video of it onsite in Edinburgh, to give the viewer some context.

(There are 14 artists taking part in the Graduate in Residence show and it runs alongside the MA exhibition, so well worth a visit). After that I’m planning to revisit an earlier conversation with Aberdeen University Museum team with a view to creating new work in response to objects in their extensive collections. At this point I don’t know what the outcome of that will be, but I’m excited to get back into research mode!