Selkie by Claire Partinton, 2023 © the Artist. Aberdeen City Council (Archives, Gallery & Museums collection)
As Aberdeen gets ready to welcome the Tall Ships fleet to the city in July, a major new special exhibition opens to visitors at the Art Gallery this weekend. 'Monsters of the Deep: Science Fact or Fiction?' invites you on a journey from medieval imaginings to modern-day discoveries through a fascinating and sometimes terrifying combination of legend, folklore and science.
From a frightening Feegee mermaid, to eerie deep-sea specimens from across the globe, there are lots of strange and wonderful things to see in Monsters of the Deep. If this all leaves you feeling a little shaken, this sculpture by Claire Partington beautifully illustrates the myth of the Selkie of Celtic folklore. The Selkie can shapeshift between seal and human forms by shedding or wearing their seal skin. In Partington’s work, the selkie is in human form, with the seal skin partially underneath. The artist gives this traditional tale a contemporary twist, showing the selkie in a bikini with Crocs and suntan lotion, browsing seal reels on her phone.
Partington explains that she “wanted to make a figure that inhabits our contemporary world and the ancient folklore world, to reflect that belief that the Faerie world is present in our world. My use of contemporary objects and clothing reflects the many contemporaneous tellings of folk tales. For instance, a faerie in a story from the 18th century may be wearing gold buckled shoes, because that was a fashion of the day, so my Selkie has her Crocs as her contemporary beach shoes.” A common selkie story is that the female selkie marries a male human, who then hides her seal skin to keep her captive, unable to return to the sea. Partington changes this narrative. She is interested in portraiture, symbolism and how sitters want to be seen, and the artist depicts a female selkie in full control, doing what she wants to do, exuding confidence.
So if you’d like to come face to face with a selkie or a mermaid this summer, the Art Gallery’s the PLAICE to be - we can’t wait to SEA you!
Monsters of the Deep: Science Fact or Fiction?
Open daily (special extended opening to 8pm on Friday 19, Saturday 20, Sunday 21 July during the Tall Ships weekend)
Ticket prices:
£10 adults
£7 concessions
£14 exhibition pass (unlimited entry)
Children aged 12 and under free
Visit www.aagm.co.uk for details of all our maritime-themed events this summer
