UK AIDS Memorial Quilt comes to Glasgow, with help of College Lecturer

Congratulations go to Steven Grainger, lecturer on the Contemporary Art Practice degree course in Creative Industries, who is making an important contribution to Glasgow’s cultural scene through his work as an artist, researcher and curator.

Over the summer, Steven curated a significant exhibition of photographs by Glasgow artist John Wood at Celine, bringing intimate portraits of men connected to Glasgow’s gay scene in the 1980s and 1990s to public view for the first time.

The exhibition offered a powerful insight into how gay men in Glasgow created spaces for friendship, confidence and self-expression during a time of significant legal and social stigma and was reviewed in Burlington Contemporary and the Guardian.

Steven has now been instrumental in bringing the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt to Glasgow, where it will be displayed at Tramway. Representing more than 600 people lost to HIV and AIDS in the UK, the Quilt is part of an international community art project created to remember those lost to the epidemic.

Steven has curated the public programme accompanying the exhibition, featuring talks, films, workshops and events exploring HIV/AIDS, LGBTQ+ history, art and activism.

The public program opens this Saturday, 12 September at 2pm with the traditional ‘Reading of the Names’ ceremony, a blessing from the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence and a performance from SheBoom drummers. On Sunday, internationally acclaimed LGBTQ+ rights activists Cleve Jones will be in conversation with Ian van Tillo and Siobhan Lanigan from 2pm, and John Binnie presents reflections and staged scenes from his 1987 play about HIV/AIDS ‘Killing Me Softly’ 4-5pm.

Events are free and all are welcome.

Find out more about the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt and public programme at Tramway

It’s fantastic to see Steven’s expertise and passion contributing to such an important programme for Glasgow and beyond.