We are pleased to present a new series of interviews featuring our Academicians. Each month, we’ll be sitting down with an artist to discuss their practice, influences and upcoming projects. Today, we’re speaking to Gareth Fisher PRSA about Edinburgh College of Art, studio withdrawal symptoms and 200 years of the RSA.
You grew up in Cumbria, moving to Edinburgh in 1969 to study at Edinburgh College of Art. What was it that drew you to Scotland?
In Cumbria I was trying to get into Carlisle College of Art, my local art school. But things weren’t going well. By chance, my father met the painter Bob Callender who taught at ECA and was in Cumbria visiting friends. Bob advised I apply to Edinburgh and ultimately I was accepted. Without Bob's help it would not have happened.
When did you first exhibit your work?
With a small group of fellow students we persuaded the owners of the recently closed Fruitmarket in Market street, in the 70s, to allow us to stage a young contemporaries show in the empty building. It was the first art exhibition in the Fruitmarket building.
Gareth Fisher PRSA, Fossilised Fibonacci Column
Can you describe a typical day in the studio?
Well I don’t think I have a typical day. I have a drawing studio in my garden at home and sculpture studio in an old mill building in Dundee. Certainly I get withdrawal symptoms if there aren’t things progressing in both spaces. But every day is different.
The act of construction is significant in your sculpture practice, could you tell us about how this is reflected in your watercolour studies?
I came to ECA with a love of Hepworth, Moore and the Geometry of Fear sculptors of the 60s. So organic form has always been important. But at college I discovered the minimal construction work of Judd and Lewitt. In many ways I use watercolours to bring these disparate aspects of the organic and the constructed together.
Gareth Fisher PRSA, Tectonic Plates
You were elected as an Associate of the Royal Scottish Academy in 2003, becoming a full Academician in 2006. Is there an exhibition you’ve seen at the Academy during your time as a member that has stuck out to you as significant?
Every Members' show is special to me, but Ages Of Wonder stands out as being very special.
You’ve played an important role in a number of committees over the years, served as Treasurer and now President. Is there anything new or unexpected your current role has taught you about the Academy?
The complexity! The support the Academy gives to its Members is a given, but the extraordinary support that we give to a wide range of non members through residencies, prizes and awards is remarkable, and the amount of work by staff to make this happen is immense.
And finally, as we look forward to our 200th anniversary in 2026, what are you most excited about?
There are a number of special projects in the pipeline to celebrate the anniversary. They are under development and we need to find ways of financing them. But one thing for sure is that the Annual Exhibition in 2026 will be special, and a big celebration is being enthusiastically considered.
