Renowned sound artist named as the new Jon Schueler artist in residence at Sabhal Mòr Ostaig

The acclaimed contemporary artist, Helmut Lemke, has been awarded the second Jon Schueler Scholarship at Sabhal Mòr Ostaig UHI. The German artist, who is based in Britain, specialises in sound and installation art and he has developed site-specific concerts, performances and installations in a whole variety of sites and settings since he began his work in the 1970s.

Kath MacLeod, Sabhal Mòr Ostaig’s Arts Development Officer, said: “We are absolutely delighted to be welcoming Helmut Lemke, an extremely interesting and accomplished contemporary artist, as our second Jon Schueler artist in residence. With well over three hundred applications this year from around the world, the international scholarship is continuing to grow in strength. I am certain that Lemke’s work, which will explore sound and language, will be fascinating for audiences here in the Highlands and Islands and around Scotland.”

Lemke works with a variety of sounds, some common, some obvious, and others that are to be found and often combines them with other media and art-forms in his exhibitions. Venues that the artist has explored and utilised include: concert halls, outdoor markets, galleries, museums, the frozen sea off Greenland, function rooms of pubs and international festivals. He has presented his work all over the globe, collaborating with other sound artists, musicians, dancers, scientists, visual artists, architects, poets, archaeologists, performance artists and wildlife rangers.

Commenting on his upcoming Jon Schueler residency at SMO, Lemke said: “I am very excited to be spending three months in the Isle of Skye. I expect that my time will give me great inspiration for new works in response to the sounds of the environment and the Gaelic language.”

The Jon Schueler Scholarship is a unique partnership between Sabhal Mòr Ostaig UHI and the Jon Schueler Charitable Trust, with support from the Royal Scottish Academy and complements the existing artists’ residency programme at SMO which is supported by Creative Scotland through their Creative Futures programme.

The residency is offered each year to a different artist, and began in 2013 when the famous Japanese artist Takeshi Shikama’s was awarded the first scholarship. The scholarship programme will run until 2016. It has been established to celebrate and remember the life, work and artistic influence of internationally renowned artist and abstract expressionist painter, Jon Schueler (1916-1992), and in recognition of his very special relationship with the landscape and environment of the Sound of Sleat.