The Great Scottish Make Off

GSMO-final-72

 

Imagine your favourite reality cooking competition. Replace food with art, throw yourself in the mix and make it a festival and you’ve got The Great Scottish Make Off. Artists were selected as the contestants, and given a brief, materials, and a day to create a piece as part of a friendly competition. The local community was invited in to watch, and we offered anyone and everyone the chance to get involved by stopping by our artist stalls, taking part in one of the many mini-Make Off workshops we ran throughout the day, and enjoying live entertainment in our festival atmosphere. The Great Scottish Make Off is all about engaging local communities, highlighting local artists, and introducing more people to the benefits of creativity.
 Here's one we made earlier... 

The Basics

The Great Scottish Make Off took place across several cities in Scotland in summer 2016. The aim was to bring together communities, artists, and local organisations to make something that everyone can enjoy.
Think of it as a real life, much less competitive, more interactive version of your favourite reality cooking competition, but with no losers. We’re just replacing food with art…and we’re not cooking it. We will not be held responsible for what happens if you put your paints on the hob or a sculpture in the oven.

 

Competition Bit

In each city, a group of artists* were selected and given a brief, materials, and one day to create a piece.

 

 

*We say 'artists' for ease, but our doors are open to everyone. If you aren’t a professional artist or maker, but want to show your work, you are more than welcome to apply. All are welcome, though spaces are limited.

 

Interactive Bit

If you like Master Chef or Bake Off, watching is half the fun, but unless you get your stand mixer out and cover half the kitchen in flour while watching it can be quite a passive experience. We want to make sure everyone is involved and gets to try a little creativity. We’ll run workshops with local artists, and even have mini Make-Off challenges for everyone to try.

 

Exhibition Bit

Under pressure, sometimes things can turn out very differently than how they did at home (for better or worse). The selected artists got a chance to exhibit the work they would normally show in a gallery in a different space, and the public could see the artist producing what they would normally make in the comfort of their own studio.