David Harding, (born 1937)[1] is a Scottish artist best known for his residency as a town artist in the new town of Glenrothes and as Head of Environmental Art at Glasgow School of Art.
David Harding OBE | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1937 (age 86–87) Leith, Edinburgh, Scotland |
| Education | Edinburgh College of Art, Moray House College of Education |
| Occupation(s) | Artist and teacher |
| Known for | Glenrothes town artist and Head of Environmental Art at Glasgow School of Art |
| Notable work | Henge, Industry, Heritage |
| Website | www |
Early life and education
editBorn in Leith, from 1955 to 1959 Harding attended Edinburgh College of Art, where he studied the sculptural use of glass, concrete and ceramics.[2] He attended Moray House College of Education in 1960.[2]
Career
editFrom 1961 to 1963 he taught in various schools in Scotland before moving to Nigeria (1963 - 1967) to work in the art department in a bush teacher training college.[2] He returned from Nigeria at the age of 30 and decided to give up teaching, instead undertaking sculpture commissions.[3]
Having spent a year as a self-employed artist, Harding answered an advert in The Scotsman for a post with Glenrothes Development Corporation. From 1968 to 1978 he was town artist, working with the planning department to create site-specific work using the same concrete and brick as the newly developed housing.[4] [5] His works in Glenrothe include Henge, a spiral of cast concrete slabs; Industry, a mural on an underpass based on patterns on African huts; Heritage, rows of concrete embossed columns; Dark Cemetery in Pitteuchar; and ten poetry slabs at bus stops, phone boxes, and the Glenwood shopping centre. Henge and Industry are now listed.[4] As his assistant, Stanley Bonnar created a concrete hippo; Harding and Bonnar placed them in groups at multiple sites in the town.[1]
From 1978 to 1985 he lectured at Dartington College of Art in the department of Art and Social Contexts.
In 1985 Harding started teaching the new subject of Environmental Art at Glasgow School of Art; he eventually became Head of Environmental Art and Sculpture.[5] Several of Harding's former students have been nominated for or received the Turner Prize.[6] He retired in 2001.[6]
Exhibitions
edit- You Like This Garden?, (with Ross Birrell) Portikus, Frankfurt, 2011.[7]
- Winter Line (with Ross Birrell), Kunsthalle Basel, Basel, 2014.[7]
- Where language ends (with Ross Birrell), Talbot Rice Gallery, Edinburgh, 14 March – 2 May 2015.[8]
- Grey Gardens, Dundee Contemporary Arts, Dundee, 2016.[7]
- Documenta 14, (with Ross Birrell) Athens and Kassel, 2017.[7]
Honours
editHarding was awarded the OBE in the 2002 New Year Honours for services to higher education[9] and in 2018 made an honorary D.Litt by the University of Glasgow.[10]
Personal life
editHarding is married with six children.[2]
References
edit- ^ a b Demetrius, Andrew (26 November 2021). "A lesson from the past: Scotland's new towns and their artists". Art UK.
- ^ a b c d Harding, David (1 March 1976). "Town artist". The Urban Review. 9 (1): 31–35. doi:10.1007/BF02216022. ISSN 0042-0972. S2CID 189835545.
- ^ "david harding: articles". www.davidharding.net. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
- ^ a b Brown, Angie (21 January 2023). "New town's artist upset after council loses his work in Glenrothes". BBC News.
- ^ a b "David Harding in Glenrothes: Cultural Leadership in Practice". www.internationalfuturesforum.com. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
- ^ a b Higgins, Charlotte (17 October 2011). "Glasgow's Turner connection". the Guardian. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
- ^ a b c d "Harding, David | Biography". www.mutualart.com. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
- ^ "Ross Birrell & David Harding: where language ends". Talbot Rice Gallery, The University of Edinburgh. Archived from the original on 28 March 2019.
- ^ "(Civil Division) O.B.E." The London Gazette. No. Supplement 56430. 31 December 2001. p. S10.
- ^ "University of Glasgow announce 23 honorary doctorates for outstanding achievement". University News. University of Glasgow. May 2018.