The week in Glasgow Gallivanting: 4th-10th March 2024

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Sheana Stephen: business cards and suffragette necklace

March is Women’s History Month and Friday 8th was International Women’s Day (IWD), for both of which I have been suitably occupied this week. I am giving my talk on Suffragette Jessie Stephen again next week so I have been revising my slides and script. Coincidentally, I started the week at a talk organised by the Glasgow Society of Women Artists given by none other than Sheana Stephen, Jessie’s great-niece, whom I first met in 2018 when we were celebrating the centenary of the first women to get the vote in the UK. Sheana is super-talented and also made the banner we marched behind in Edinburgh that year. The Suffragette necklace in the above image is one she gave me a few years ago and says Deeds not words on the silver panel.

I spent IWD glued to my screen at the virtual conference detailed on the left – feminism, libraries and women’s history all tick my boxes! It was lovely, too, that I knew several of the speakers taking part. As one observed, we are all connected like rings on the same tree.

Of course, I have also been canal walking and it will not surprise you to know that I paid another visit to Bella the Beithir. Something I had not noticed, but saw pointed out online, is that her snout is embellished with the elements of Glasgow’s Crest. And yes, there is the tree that never grew, the bird that never flew, the fish that never swam, and the bell that never rang. I thought at first there was something missing from the wee circle beneath her left nostril until I realised that the gap was encircled by the ring which is normally in the fish’s mouth.

The other images are of the White House, Maryhill’s oldest building, which since 1800 has served as a lock-keeper’s home, a pub, a post-office and a dookit (dovecot) for keeping pigeons. It’s now part of Free Wheel North, hence the bike art.

Bella and Stoockingfield Bridge
Bella’s snout with Glasgow Crest
Bella’s snout with Glasgow Crest, close-up
The White House
This machine fights climate change

Sticking with the canal, John had a couple of long cycles this week, one of which took him to the Falkirk Wheel – unexpectedly: the group was aiming for a café elsewhere which turned out to be fully booked, so went to the one at the Wheel instead. The Wheel is undergoing maintenance at the moment so I’ve included a picture of it in full working order from a couple of years ago.

June 2022
Maintenance at the Wheel
Maintenance at the Wheel

His other trip was solo and took him out Lochwinnoch way. Pretty scenery, but not as spectacular as last week.

Barcraigs Reservoir
Road from Lochwinnoch past Barcraigs Reservoir

Finally, on Sunday we walked to Yardworks on Eastvale Place to see Bottlecelli, a new mural created in conjunction with Lidl, the supermarket chain, to highlight the success of their deposit return scheme pilot project, which has now recycled more than a quarter of a million bottles and cans. The 25 foot tall reimagining of Botticelli’s Birth of Venus is made from more than 30,000 bottle caps. It’s certainly spectacular, but I was expecting it all to be made from bottle tops, not just the background.

Bottlecelli
Bottlecelli

The rest of Eastvale Place and the railway arches which form part of the site have an ever changing display, so there was plenty of other art to view.

Street art on Eastvale Place
Street art on Eastvale Place
Yorkhill Community Gateway
@Boxvincent (?)
By HMG
@funky-bside
By James Klinge
Thistles and coos, can’t see artist’s name
Scotland, can’t see artist’s name

Walking home up Kelvin Way we observed that the tradition of capping statues with traffic cones only really works when the statue has a big head, and that the Suffrage Oak has a new sash.

Statue with traffic cone head-dress
New sash

So that was my week – I hope yours was good too.

Scotland, UK , , ,

56 Comments »

  2. I’m glad they found a use with the bottle caps even if it was just the background. We could learn here. Love the art especially the Unicorn. You do so much which is lovely and I love your necklace, btw

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  3. Hi Anabel – Bella is striking … but definitely needing a visit: whether that will happen is another thing … but what an art-sculpture work for you. The wall art is mind boggling – I’m no artist, nor engineer … and John’s trips out excellent – making sure he reminds us – his machine helps climate change! Cheers to you both – Hilary

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  9. How cool for you to have connected with Sheana! Lots of great art, as always. Have a great time with your presentation. I’ve got a couple coming up, too. Lots of work, I know, even if it is a repeat.

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  12. i like the variety of street art, the bottle top background is quirky. I wish they’d roll the bottle scheme out nationwide, it works so well in other countries.

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  13. Here in South Australia we have been collecting and returning bottles and cans for a long time. I have neighbours who give me bags of cans and bottles because they know I am a collection point for the Royal Flying Doctor Service.. We collect them from each area once a quarter and the last quarter we made $591, all of which goes towards the yearly donation to the RFDS. Several clubs do the same – the rate at present is 10c per can/bottle – so it’s a lot of cans in the quarter.

    I still have problems accepting this ” Street Art” concept. It was viewed differently when I was growing up in Glasgow. Yes, I know - times have changed – but I am no longer there to change with them.so they stay with me as part of my childhood. Sad, but there you are.

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      • I do not dislike the art but I cannot help but think of it a graffiti – which is still not accepted in South Australia. However, having said that there is some magnificent commissioned artwork that has been done in some of the country area grain silos here in South Australia, which, I suspect is similar to your Railway Arches. Still, I am trying perhaps in the way Annabell used to suggest ” Yes, dear, you are trying – very trying”…

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  16. What a satisfying week, Anabel! The crest on Bella’s snout is very clever and I like the Botticelli idea too. Why on earth would the UK government object to the scheme?

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  18. A high standard of street art there, Anabel. My favourite would have to be the hands reaching out with the world at the centre on Eastvale Place. A busy week for me, have a good evening.

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  21. Bella’s snout with the Glasgow Crest legend are interesting. And the Yardworks looks very colourful. Nice that local artists have somewhere to showcase their work.

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  23. I grew up in the state of New York. Back then, soda bottles were returnable in New York — you got two cents for each small bottle you returned, and five cents for each large one. They were glass bottles. Plastic bottles weren’t around yet. At some point, maybe in the 1970s, the return policy ended. And plastic bottles took over. Recycling wasn’t a thing at that time. So, zillions of bottles/cans were sent to landfills. What a mess we humans have made.

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