The Ideal Hut Show has reached Glasgow’s Botanic Gardens! A selection of architects, artists and designers from Scotland and abroad have transformed standard garden sheds for this exhibition, which is touring Scotland as part of the Festival of Architecture. I loved it! Especially as the weather has been so good lately: it’s been fun to wander through the huts. Do you have a favourite?

Andy Scott

Craig Amy Architect

Ian Ritchie

Eva Jiricna

Benedetta and Miralles Tagliabue

Konishi Gaffney

Page\Park Architects

John Russell

Jane Duncan

David Mackay

Isabel and Clara Garriga-Serrano, Holmes Miller

Jon Jardine

Malcolm Fraser

Adrian Wiszniewski

This has got me thinking about “Festival Glasgow”. In the first 6 months of this year, as well as the Festival of Architecture, we’ve been to events for Celtic Connections (music), Aye Write (books), the Storytelling Festival, Glasgow International (art), the West End Festival and Refugee Festival Scotland.

Some highlights – NB these are mostly phone photos, sometimes from quite a distance away, so they don’t really bear enlarging:

Here’s Frazey Ford (ex-Be Good Tanyas) supported by Ola Onabule at the ABC – this was our favourite gig of Celtic Connections (the emphasis mostly being on Connections rather than Celtic.) We were right at the front which had the added advantage, for an all-standing gig, of being able to lean against the crowd-barrier. The musicians at the Royal Concert Hall (centre) were a little stiff though 😉

Frazey Ford

“Musicians”

Ola Onabule

I’d never been to a Storytelling Festival before. It surprised me by having music and images as well as spoken word.

Kittlinclapperdin

A Circumnavigation

I visited a number of small exhibitions during Glasgow International. Below is a 16th century commonplace book which formed the centrepiece of Speaking Volumes at Glasgow Women’s Library, a couple of colourful rooms at the David Dale Gallery, Semi-gloss, Semi-permeable in the gloriously light space of the Albus, and back to the Botanic Gardens where some sculptures by Aaron Angell nestled amongst the plants in the hothouse.

Speaking Volumes – 18C commonplace book

David Dale Gallery

David Dale Gallery

Semi-gloss, Semi-permeable

Aaron Angell

Aaron Angell

Finally, the West End Festival is still in full swing. Last Sunday we caught this colourful Lion Dance in a street near our home.

Lion Dance

Lion Dance

Lion Dance

Glasgow is a really fun place to live, so the moral of my story is, there’s never a bad time to visit – there’s always something on!