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Art and plastic pollution in new marine exhibition

The Scottish Maritime Museum is concluding a successful exhibitions season with an imaginative student exhibition.

It combines two of the museum’s key themes of the year – the endangered craft of scientific glassblowing and the plastic pollution of our oceans.

Clear Creations: Maritime Inspired Glass Art by City of Glasgow College glass art students is now open at the Scottish Maritime Museum on Irvine Harbourside.

Through the exhibition, City of Glasgow College students on the only HNC Art Glass course in Scotland, show a range of new works inspired by the Scottish Maritime Museum’s national maritime heritage collection and current exhibition Glass Ships in Bottles by Ayako Tani.

Glass Ships in Bottles features Ayako Tani’s private collection of 150 exquisite vintage glass ships in bottles created by scientific glassblowers as demand peaked towards the end of the last century as well as her own glass artworks.

The student exhibition also draws on the Museum’s recent exhibitions and events highlighting plastic pollution in the oceans held as part of the COP26 Climate Fringe.

Nicola Scott, exhibitions and events officer at the Scottish Maritime Museum, said: ‘We are delighted to host this exhibition by City of Glasgow College Glass Art students. Glass is a fascinating material to work with and Scotland’s maritime history offers a wealth of inspiration.

‘This wonderful exhibition of student work is a skilful and creative complement to Dr Ayako Tani’s collection and the demonstrations and talks we held this year to help highlight the endangered and beautiful craft of scientific glass blowing.’

Eilidh Mackenzie, Lecturer – Design/Art Glass at City of Glasgow College adds: ‘At City of Glasgow College, we are committed to keeping glass on the curriculum. Currently we run the only HNC Art Glass course in Scotland and, up until 2018, the only HND Art Glass course.

‘We hope this exhibition of student work will bring glass to a larger audience, inspire others to consider glass as an area of study and highlight the topic of marine pollution in our seas.’

Clear Creations: Maritime Inspired Glass Art is on display in the Linthouse Machine Pits and included in Museum Admission.

The museum is currently offering a discount of 50% on online tickets as part of the VisitScotland Days Out Campaign. Up to three children also get FREE entry with each Adult Admission.

For more information, visit www.scottishmaritimemuseum.org

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