Emma
The installation features a three-photo collage captured in Foster’s New York studio, portraying the artist in a custom-designed garment with wing-like structures – a visual echo of the angelic and winged figures that often populate his sculptural works. Juxtaposing personal travel photographs with painterly elements, Foster’s creations transform fleeting encounters into lasting, memory-charged forms. The imagery draws on a rich tapestry of memories: children from Ghana and travels across Africa, cultural symbols, urban life, and deeply personal narratives rooted in his experience growing up in the United States.
The Billboard Project began in 2015, initiated by Glasgow-based artist Jim Lambie, who installed the first work on the side of what was then a disused warehouse beside the SWG3 campus. Positioned in the eyeline of passing trains, the billboard offered an “open frame” for poetic expression in a public setting. Since then, the project has grown into an ongoing series co-curated by Lambie and SWG3, showcasing large-scale works that blur the line between language, image, and gesture. Featured artists have included Sue Tompkins, whose piece SMASH captured her signature rhythmic approach to text; Scott King and Matthew Higgs, whose collaboration Success Can Be Overcome playfully subverted motivational slogans; multi-award winning Scottish author and musician David Keenan, with Magic Is Real; and the globally renowned Yoko Ono, whose contribution DREAM remains one of the project’s most iconic moments.
The unveiling of Foster’s billboard coincides with the seventh edition of Yardworks Festival, taking place this weekend on Saturday 3 and Sunday 4 May 2025. SWG3’s renowned celebration of graffiti and urban arts has grown to become one of Europe’s biggest and best festivals of street art and creativity. Across the weekend, the venue will be transformed into a vibrant hub of large-scale murals, live painting, and artwork covering walls and stacked shipping containers, alongside a dedicated programme of free workshops and talks celebrating Glasgow 850 – an exploration of the city’s rich history of graffiti, street art, and hip-hop culture.
New for 2025, the festival will also unveil an indoor exhibition featuring some of the finest street artists and illustrators working today – including members of the Yardworks Artist Mentoring Programme. The exhibition will celebrate current talent, creativity, and innovation, with many pieces available to buy – offering visitors the chance to take home a piece of Glasgow’s thriving art scene.
