15 May 2013

Planet Earth re-imagined in soft sculpture at DJCAD Degree Show

Picture shows the Panda head family at home

Animal-obsessed artist Mary Beth Quigley will unveil a menagerie of life-sized giraffes, hippos, lemurs, penguins, flamingos and other creatures when this year's Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design (DJCAD) Degree Show opens on Friday.

In addition, Mary Beth will anthropomorphise one of the world's favourite animals when she steps into character as 'Mrs Panda Head' to give a live performance at the launch.

The 24-year-old, originally from Lesmahagow in South Lanarkshire, creates textile sculptures using recycled materials. With these salvaged textiles, she invents characters that celebrate her love of animals, family life and a yearning for a time of innocence.

As well as the sculptures, Mary Beth's Degree Show piece features the Panda Heads' living room, with this installation being a recreation of her grandmother's house. Family photographs of the type familiar to millions adorn the walls, except the happy couple are dressed as Mr and Mrs Panda Head in their wedding, holiday and party snaps.

Mary Beth explained, "I've always been fascinated by David Attenborough programmes and nature in general and this is why stuffed animals feature in my work, although it's probably some sub-conscious refusal to grow up!

"My work consists of constructing imaginative life-sized animal sculptures and wearable pieces then creating narrative through installation, photography, performance and film. My aim is to engage the viewer, to conjure their own personal memories and most importantly, for them to enjoy it.

"I created eight animals for the exhibit, although the 3.5m hippo had to be situated on the grass outside my display space. What with the 4m giraffe and all the rest, there just wasn't room! The sculptures are made from wood, chicken wire and fabrics, and all the materials are second hand as I feel we artists are too often guilty of terrible waste and this was important to me to try and address this.

"Tayside Recyclers pretty much provided all the material I needed for my Degree Show so I have to thank them a lot. The sculptures are my imaginings. While they are life-sized, they aren't meant to be anatomically correct because I wanted to make them make them more playful.

"The installation of the living room is based on my nana's house and the nostalgia it invokes. Hopefully, people will be looking at the pictures, seeing the stories they tell and remembering ones just like it, minus the panda costumes.

"My boyfriend and flat mate have been cajoled into playing the role of Mr Panda Head at various times. We even dressed up for the panda enclosure at Edinburgh Zoo, and that certainly got people looking at us."

Mary Beth is just one of the 290 graduating students exhibiting at the DJCAD Degree Show 2013, which opens with the traditional Preview Evening for the students, their families and invited guests on Friday, 17th May.

The exhibition will be open to the public from Saturday, 18th May until Sunday, May 25th. Admission is free and the exhibition is open from 10am until 8pm (Monday - Friday) and 10am to 4pm (Saturday - Sunday).

Other work on display includes:

• Ross Weryk's artistic and musical exploration of the discomfort, invasion, helplessness and lack of control experiences by patitents in medical and surgical situations.
• Pawel Grzyb's documentary charting his grandfather's experiences of the Ausschwitz Concentration Camp and his subsequent life as a Holocaust surviver.
• Lauren Whyte's geometrical reinvention of tartan for a younger audience.
• Dalton Garner's campaign to fight smart phone addiction and reclaim the dinner table as a place of sanctity from technology's relentless march, inspired by Chinese torture methods.

Hundreds of alumni from around the globe are expected to attend a special reunion event on Friday to celebrate DJCAD's 125th anniversary. Dundee's largest annual exhibition of art and design will feature an additional exhibition of alumni artwork will be held for the duration of DJCAD Degree Show 2013.

Students from all 11 undergraduate programmes will exhibit the fruits of their labours across the two buildings and fourteen floors that comprise DJCAD, with every spare space exhibiting art and design. DJCAD's new entrance at the Matthew Building will enable visitors to more easily navigate their way around the exhibition.

The show attracts thousands of visitors each year and is seen as a springboard for some of Scotland's most exciting emerging artists. DJCAD has a reputation as one of the leading art schools in the UK and many of its students go on to be world-renowned artists.

The DJCAD Degree Show is one of the highlights of the city's cultural calendar, attracting some 10,000 visitors each year and generating in excess of £1million for the local economy in the process.

Notes to editors:

DJCAD Degree Show 2013
18th - 25th May (Preview May 17th)

Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design
University of Dundee
13 Perth Road
Dundee DD1 4HT
T 01382 385330
E exhibitions@dundee.ac.uk
www.dundee.ac.uk/djcad/degreeshow/

Exhibition open:
Saturday, May 18th (10am-4pm)
Sunday, May 19th (10am-4pm)
Monday, May 20th (10am-8pm)
Tuesday, May 21st (10am-8pm)
Wednesday, May 22nd (10am-8pm)
Thursday, May 23rd (10am-8pm)
Friday, May 24th (10am-8pm)
Saturday, May 25th (10am-4pm)
Sunday, May 26th (10am-4pm)

Graduate work on display:

• Animation
• Art, Philosophy & Contemporary Practices
• Fine Art
• Graphic Design
• Illustration
• Interior Environmental Design
• Interactive Media Design
• Jewellery & Metal Design
• Product Design
• Textile Design
• Time Based Art & Digital Film

About DJCAD 125:
In 2013 DJCAD is celebrating 125 years of transforming lives through art and design education. That's both the lives of our students but also the lives of those that they go on to work with. The 2013 Degree Show is a moment of real celebration in the year when 290 new artists and designers join the professional world.

Across all our teaching, research and engagement activity, DJCAD is becoming recognised internationally as the art and design institution where students and staff work across disciplinary boundaries, developing new forms of creative practice and using creative practice to transform thinking in other areas.

For media enquiries contact:
Grant Hill
Press Officer
University of Dundee
Nethergate, Dundee, DD1 4HN
TEL: 01382 384768
E-MAIL: g.hill@dundee.ac.uk
MOBILE: 07854 953277