A new exhibition at the Marischal Museum offers an alternative view of Scotland’s National Bard as part of the University of Aberdeen’s Word Festival 2006.
Burns - Out of His Box offers a tongue-in-cheek glimpse at what Burns may have been thinking and doing during the autumn of 1786, when it was his intention to take up the offer of a new life in Jamaica.
Artist Reinhard Behrens and poet John Glenday have lovingly constructed the exhibition of mock Burns artifacts including:
· Part of a raft, destined for Jamaica built by the poet while spending time at Brow Wells on the Solway Firth in 1796.
· A chest, filled with letters, poems, songs, objects of affection
· Personal items including a scrap of a ‘sark’ ripped by the notorious womanizer during a flight from a mistress’ chamber
Other humorous articles include an oil portrait showing the bard half submerged in the Solway Firth while taking a break from constructing his raft.
Between them, the contents of the box and the painting provide a new and exciting perspective on one of the world’s most famous (and infamous) poets and one of Scotland’s best-loved exports.
These ‘finds’ were first exhibited as part of the StAnza Poetry Festival in 2004. Fittingly, they are on show in the University’s Marischal Museum, founded in the year in which Burns gave up his ambition to sail to the New World.
Artist Reinhard Berens said, “For a long time I have been fascinated by the transformation of objects after they have been re-labelled or are shown out of their usual context. This exhibition allowed me to enjoy the humorous possibilities that are the result of such a tongue-in-cheek exercise.”
Elly Rothnie, Word Festival Producer, said: “We love this fun exhibition and are so pleased to include it as part of the Word Festival, it’s one for all the family. I’m sure Burns would have appreciated its whimsical nature. Don’t miss this extraordinary show!”