Island pupil art going on display in Edinburgh

By Garrett Stell

March 5 2023, 6:00 am

Dounby Primary pupils worked hard on an art project that will now go on display at the Scottish National Gallery in Edinburgh. Image: Orkney Islands Council

Anyone can make a positive difference, even with a name like Trashy.

“Trashy”, a school art project created by pupils at Dounby Primary School in Orkney, is going on display at the Scottish National Gallery this Spring.

The young artists at Dounby were inspired by the idea of protection. Using mostly trash as materials, they built a figure – named Trashy, of course – who will be surrounded by 140 “protection boxes”. Each pupil at the school created their own unique box.

Dounby Primary pupils assembled “Trashy” to create a message about how we should all take care of our environment. Supplied by Orkney Islands Council

They hope that their art will inspire others to be better stewards of nature. Although the project doesn’t go on display until May, Trashy is safe and sound at the National Gallery in Edinburgh.

We’re on a Scottish tour

But a second part of the student project is a small character they’ve named Bob, who will be making a whistle-stop tour of the country on his way to meet up with Trashy.

Bob is currently making a tour of the Highlands en route to Edinburgh. This week he made a pit stop at Millburn Academy, and on Friday he journeyed out to Skye.

Every pupil at Dounby Primary crafted a “protection box” as part of the art exhibit headed to the Scottish National Gallery. Supplied by Orkney Islands Council.

Dounby Primary School head teacher, Islean Gibson, said that the school’s pupil leadership team made sure every child, from nursery to P7, took part in the project.

“In fact, each child has filled their very own box of items to protect. Protect is the word the group chose to build their installation around as they want to protect Orkney and its wildlife, the world and everyone in it.

Some assembly required

Since the students can’t make it to Edinburgh themselves, they sent along a helpful video guide to show the gallery staff how to reassemble Trashy.

“The children have embraced the project and came up with the idea of a travelling companion in Bob who could go on his own peedie adventure.

“Bob will be getting up to all sorts as he navigates his way to the capital, taking pictures of his exploits along the way, before ending up back in the protective hands of Trashy.”

Dounby Primary students sent instructions for National Gallery staff to reassemble their installation. Supplied by Orkney Islands Council

The Dounby National Gallery project is part of ‘Your Art World’. The Creative Learning Network and the National Galleries of Scotland project asked children and young people to make and share their art.

You can learn more about the project online, and keep an eye on social media to follow Bob’s adventures.