Emma Mykytyn SWG3 celebrates Glasgow International with new KAWS billboard and artist-led events
SWG3 is marking this year’s Glasgow International with a major new billboard installation by internationally acclaimed artist KAWS, alongside a packed programme of special events, exhibitions and performances across the venue.
The latest addition to The Billboard Project features work by KAWS, also known as Brian Donnelly, one of the most recognisable contemporary artists of his generation. Originally from New Jersey, KAWS first became known for his interventions on advertising billboards and public spaces before gaining worldwide recognition for his paintings, sculptures and distinctive visual language.
His work now spans contemporary art, design, fashion and popular culture, with exhibitions and collaborations seen across the globe.
KAWS joins SWG3’s Billboard Project
The new KAWS installation marks the latest chapter in The Billboard Project, which was founded by artist Jim Lambie in 2015 and later developed in collaboration with SWG3.
Over the past decade, the project has become one of Glasgow’s most visible public art platforms, presenting large-scale work by artists including Yoko Ono, Sue Tompkins, Scott King, Matthew Higgs, David Keenan, Lloyd Foster and, most recently, Trackie McLeod.
Jim Lambie and Martin Boyce curate one-night-only event
As part of the Glasgow International celebrations, artists Jim Lambie and Martin Boyce will present At The Foot At The Belt Of The Raincoat, a special one-night-only event at SWG3’s Poetry Club on Saturday 6 June.
Taking its title from a poem by Alice Notley, the evening explores the experience of being read to, focusing on the intimacy, rhythm and atmosphere created through the spoken word.
The event brings together artist and publisher Jason Dodge, artist and writer Amelia Barratt, artist and musician Sue Tompkins, and musician Raymond MacDonald for a series of readings with improvised music.
The programme is rooted in long-standing friendships and creative connections. Lambie and Boyce first met Dodge while exhibiting together in Stockholm in 2000, while Tompkins’ influential performances and work with Life Without Buildings have long been admired by both artists.
Barratt will present a new, previously unperformed work, while MacDonald reunites with Boyce following collaborations stretching back more than two decades.
Dyke, Just Do It at SWG3
Also taking place at SWG3 as part of Glasgow International is Dyke, Just Do It, a bold new performance work which challenges capitalist representations and reclaims the language and visual codes of advertising through humour, eroticism and embodied performance.
Drawing on found footage, archival texts and references to queer protest actions, including historic “kiss-ins”, the work explores how queer culture can resist censorship, challenge heteronormative narratives and continue to reinvent itself.
The performance takes place on Friday 5 June and features integrated British Sign Language interpretation by Mirabelle Haddon.
Cianalas by Sword Maclean at Edelweiss Gallery
Coinciding with the opening week of Glasgow International, Glasgow-based collaborative studio Sword Maclean will present Cianalas at Edelweiss Gallery, SWG3.
Running from 6 to 13 June, the exhibition features sculptural works, leather forms, jewellery, textiles, scent and material studies inspired by Hebridean crofting culture, Scottish mineral formations and rural architecture.
Using discarded materials, agricultural references and traditional craft techniques, Cianalas reflects on memory, place and the enduring resourcefulness of Scotland’s island communities.
SWG3 celebrates Glasgow’s creative energy
Meryl Gilbert, Arts and Business Director at SWG3, said:
“Glasgow International is one of the city’s landmark cultural events and every two years brings an incredible energy to Glasgow’s artistic community.
“We’re proud to be hosting such a diverse programme at SWG3 this year, from a major new KAWS billboard to Jim Lambie and Martin Boyce’s specially curated live event, alongside exhibition and performance work across the venue.
“The breadth of ideas, artists and disciplines on show makes this one of our most exciting Glasgow International programmes to date.”
SWG3 Glasgow International programme
- KAWS Billboard Installation – part of The Billboard Project at SWG3
- Dyke, Just Do It – Friday 5 June
- At The Foot At The Belt Of The Raincoat – Saturday 6 June, The Poetry Club
- Cianalas by Sword Maclean – 6–13 June, Edelweiss Gallery, SWG3
