Scotland’s Festival of Architecture was kicked off with the Hinterland art installation at St. Peter’s Seminary in Cardross, a place I have explored and admired since I was a child. 

An it was through my involvement with the Instagram community  I was able to blag a ticket for the event thanks to architect and fellow Instagrammer Grant Bulloch (@grantbullocharch). He selflessly arranged for a bunch of us to attend the outstanding event organised by public arts specialists NVA. 

We had to be bussed in to Helensburgh which was really strange as I had stopped in at mum and dad’s in Cardross after a day snowboarding so had to drive into Helensburgh to get a bus to Cardross, then bus back to Helensburgh before driving back to Cardross…. Apparently this was for health and safety reasons. It did however make the event feel by detached from the village it dwells in. This was also apparent in the media as the village never gets a mention, ‘near Helensburgh’ was always given as a location. 

The event itself was great. Obviously as we were there through Instagram,  were there to take photos. This was restricted within the building, but that didn’t stop us. On arrival we were given light emitting walking poles to illuminate the way around the darkness. The walk up through the woods was very atmospheric, with ethereal sounds permeating the branches. The overhanging hedges forcing you to bow as you approach the the obscured building. Candles and well positioned lights brought the graffiti to live as they flickered and danced on the walls. 

Around the outside and in, coloured lights swept and splashed across the brutalist cement structure and the string of visitors moved in procession along the route.

I would have liked to spent a bit more time exploring and taking photos, but there was a feeling of being ushered along. 

I’ll let my pictures do the talking, but you can visit the NVA website here.