Smorgasbord

Smorgasbord is a fitting title for Edinburgh College of Art’s latest exhibition of third and fourth-year work. For the untravelled gourmand, it is a Scandinavian term referring to a range of open sandwiches and savoury delicacies served as a buffet. The show, like any good buffet, offers considerable variety but unlike a decent sandwich many of the works lack substance and, while temporarily enlivening the viewer’s taste buds, fail to satisfy a deeper visual appetite. 

Today’s art students have the unenviable task of creating original art works when there is so little that has not already been done. Many of the pieces on display illustrate that the freedom given to art students is more of a constraint than a benefit. The absence of instruction leads to less disciplined students producing works that lack any clear direction and are unremarkable. Aisha Al-Sadie’s A Glimpse of God is more like a piece produced for a GCSE project than for a degree show. Not only is the technical quality of the painting average but the theme lacks any new perspective with God being represented as a cross at the end of a red robe. Georgina Parkins’ untitled whitewashed, splintering piece of plywood requires too much imagination to think of it as a work of art. 

Fortunately there are some pieces which stand out, loudly declaring an individual voice. The works of both Joannis Amanatidis and David Woods prove that simplicity of colour and form often has more impact than excess, and their works compel you to touch them. Amanatidis’ aptly-titled Touch This has a surface like the bark of a tree whilst Woods’ unnamed work has the appearance of cracked leather. Hannah Knights’ piece, No Souvenirs Here presents a rather beautiful juxtaposition of colour and theme. The bright electric blue and silver of the print contrast nicely with the panorama of Sarajevo and its troubled past.

Smorgasbord is worth a look but not a prolonged one; it succeeds in tantalising the viewer but is more of an appetiser than a main course.