Congratulations to Martin Boyce on winning this year’s Turner Prize.

We’ve been extremely privileged here on Central Station to have had Martin join us on the site. We’ve pulled out a couple of features here so you can join us in celebrating this brilliant win by a brilliant artist.

In February 2010 the Dundee Contemporary Arts Centre exhibited Martin’s No Reflections. The artwork was re-housed at the DCA after being created for the Venice Biennale 2009. It just so happened that Central Station was holding a Pop-up event in Dundee during the show, and when Martin told us that he would come and talk us through the artwork we were chuffed to say the least – as were the members who joined us that day. Here is an account of Martin Boyce’s artist talk at our Dundee Pop-up.

Later that year, Martin participated in a discussion for the closing of the International Book Festival for the release of Sarah Lowndes’ book Social Sculpture: The Rise of the Glasgow Art Scene. We took the opportunity to speak to Martin Boyce before the event about his experiences of studying and working in the city. Here is the result of that conversation.

If you missed the announcement, you can see it here.

To see some photos from our day in Dundee with Martin Boyce, look here.

Martin’s winning artwork is still on display until Jan 8, 2012. Look here to find out more.

Highlights of the day for me were hooking up with old friends and acquaintances, and of course meeting new people, putting names to faces and faces to names. I really enjoyed the studio visit hosted by Matthew Dalziel, it was great to hear about their current projects and I think it always helps to illuminate an artist’s practice when you hear it straight from the horse’s mouth. Makes it all the more real, and clearer as to the reasoning behind the work etc. Next up, a visit to Generator Projects and a slide talk with the current committee, who have recently been upgrading the building. Its good to see how they have been building and expanding on the reputation already achieved, punching above their weight as ever!

Managed to miss the preview tour of the McManus but caught the end of the Realtime Worlds Studio Tour, – interesting to see the set up but ultimately ‘not my bag’. Then on to the Visual Research Centre at DCA for a tour of the Centre for Artists’ Books and the Rewind Micro Cinema, the cutest cinema I ever did see, with seats that looked damn comfy after all the legwork of the previous few hours. On to “No Reflections” in the gallery, with Martin Boyce in conversation with Tricia Fleming. I didn’t make it to Venice so it was a good opportunity to see the work albeit in a very different context.

Finally to the Hannah McClure Centre for exhibition talks by Yann Seznec and Jon Gill of Superfly, talking about their work/projects and then “This Is..” with guest speakers from Yuck & Yum, Gen Ryan & Jo Swingler; Lyall Bruce & Johanna Basford; Arika; Colliderscope and Georgina Follett from the V& A Project. All in all giving an interesting and varied overview of things happening or about to happen in Dundee.

Its encouraging to see Dundee burgeoning with projects, opportunities and possibilities for the future, and that the arts and the creative industries are at the forefront of this change.

After all that a glass of vino and a chance to chat, was a well earned finale to a busy and thought provoking day.

Thanks to all the CenSta team for inviting me along, I really enjoyed seeing Dundee from this perspective.

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To find out what Dundee Popup was all about or to read more reviews & blogs  from the day, click here.

I didn’t get to Venice, however I was told that the installation in the DCA wasn’t a disservice to the work … I still felt a little envious though. Crumbling grandeur in Venice to white solid painted gallery walls in Dundee, I love Dundee but my jealously is warranted.

With much planning it would still be difficult to plan an exhibition with two spaces in mind. Boyce himself said that he always understood it to be an exhibition of two parts as it didn’t make sense to make work that could fit both places.

His vision for the works started on the flight back from Venice, after seeing the 15th century Venetian Palazzo in which it was to be shown first. He saw the abandoned garden. The show also references four concrete trees created for the 1925 Exposition des Arts Decoratifs in Paris, one of Boyce’s earliest starting points.

These inverted trees form the language within the show and repeat Boyce’s early notions of ‘(the) collapse of architecture and nature’. The tree is repeated throughout creating forms and typography that become coincidental statements and letters. The graphic forest formed phrases that where notionally coming from the trees.

Boyce talked about the difficulty of working in the gallery space after the experience of the Venetian Palazzo. The walls in a gallery create a feeling that is not experienced anywhere else; you are always aware that you are in a gallery. Venice had an engineered breeze by means of windows and shutters; Dundee sees a notional breeze through the placement of ventilation grills.

Short changed? Well no, as the improvised qualities generated in the ‘enclosed’ gallery produced an exhibition that was about its objects, their placement, the space and the coincidental, which is pleasing. It echoes the involvement with Venice without feeling sickly; the garden here isn’t abandoned …..

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To find out what Dundee Popup was all about or to read more reviews & blogs  from the day, click here.

It’s already looking like a great day and a great turnout of people, but don’t fret if you can’t be here. Along with some of Censta’s members we’ll be blogging and tweeting the day. Watch out for blogs in the Dundee Popup group, follow @censta for tweets, tagged #dundeepopup and there will be photos uploaded by Ross_McLean all through the day and footage coming from Andy later in the week.

Posters by Superfly have been spotted all round the city, and the LTD edition booklets by SooperDD and Johanna Basford are already a coveted item.

The blogs as they come in…… and the tweets for the day.

And here’s the first blog … read all about Public Image at the Cooper Gallery @DCJAD.

Lots of people meeting, eating and blogging in between tours at the Censta hub at the Dundee Rep.

Emlyn Firth gives the lowdown on the DJCAD graduates showcase, including a live link up on Skype.

Our very own Suzy Glass gives her view of the Dalziel & Scullion studio tour.

Ever been inside the coveted doors of Realtime Worlds? Jon Carlos went along, what did he see?

Censta and members got a very special sneak preview of the soon to be re-opened and very much renovated McManus Gallery. Gillian Easson gives you an idea of what’s in store.

Heidi Proven disappeared into the Visual Research Centre at Dundee Contemporary Arts, and thinks you should too.

JonGill took in the DCA Print studio, screen printing, etching, block, lino and litho. Jessica Ashman gave us her account of the DCA Print Studio tour too.

Martin Boyce took members round his No Reflections instillation at the DCA, and explained the challenges of exhibiting the work in two different spaces. Here and at Venice Biennalle. Curator Donna HolfordLovell takes us through the talk.

Superfly has an obsession, find out what it is.

Artists and makers from Handmade Heaven, showed off their wares and Censta members a plenty bought things. See what Hellojenuine liked.

Then it was time for This is… at the Hannah Maclure Centre which went like this:
Yuck & Yum told us about the ways they distrubute art without using gallery spaces
Johanna Basford & Sooper DD entertained us with stories of collaboration
Arika went through their KYTN 2009 plans and how you can get involved
Genevieve Ryan & Jo Swingler talked us through recent illustration & creative writing collaboration
We heard and saw music & animation from Colliderscope‘s Fiona Soe Paing
Georgina Follett let us know about the V&A Dundee developments.

These were covered by Htothep, suzy.glass & DJCADExhibitions.

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To find out what Dundee Popup was all about or to read more reviews & blogs  from the day, click here.