Projects


Our current focus is working with young people in participatory projects, breaking down barriers to social inclusion.  Projects and programmes are organised from our base in the city centre; our outreach is city, country and worldwide.

From its inception in 1994 out of the blue's mission has been to provide opportunities for artists and other people who often face barriers to creativity, to meet, work, participate, enjoy themselves, learn and develop skills and knowledge. This is achieved partly through the various projects which take place in and around the Out of the Blue Drill Hall.

Current projects include the Drill Hall Arts Café Training Scheme, the Friends of Dalmeny Street ParkArt of Leith and . Please click the links for further information.

 

Here is some more information about past projects:

Code Butterfly

In the 2007 Leith Festival OOTB worked in partnership with Curious Seed Dance company which teamed up professional dancers, (Chris Devaney, Jen Patterson and Skye Reynolds) with young girls from North Edinburgh to produce 'Code Butterfly' The project produced an outstanding performance of the highest quality bringing dance into the lives of young women who had no previous experience of dance or performance. The group explored the history and architecture of the Drill Hall as the core inspirator for the creative process.

The process of engaging with the audience/participants included taster dance workshops delivered to a variety of girls groups in Leith and North Edinburgh; dance and aerial workshops at the Drill Hall; a weekend of workshops with the 'recruited' group to develop ideas; a phase of interpretation workshops with the professional creative team; a week of performance related workshops with the whole company; and a week of performances during the Leith Festival. 450 people attended the performances.

 
Arts in South Edinburgh Project

In 2002 OOTB was contracted by The South Edinburgh Partnership to establish the Arts in South Edinburgh Project. 55 artists from the OOTB network worked on the project, providing arts education workshops leading to a celebration day. 536 workshops took place with 8,050 participants from schools, the voluntary sector, older people's and special needs groups.   Environmental sculptures, exhibitions, costumes, and puppets were produced. The carnival attracted over 10,000 people who enjoyed a range of entertainment, arts and crafts, storytelling, and a variety of music from the Scottish Chamber Orchestra to local rock bands.

 
Parallel Lives

In 2004 The National Galleries of Scotland and Capital City Partnership initiated and funded the Parallel Lives project. OOTB worked with a group of young people on an outreach education project aimed to introduce socially excluded young people to the experience of responding to art. It also emphasised the relevance of certain historical paintings to their lives today. The project proved that works of art could captivate the minds of an audience who may never have visited an art gallery. The work produced was exhibited in The National Portrait Gallery and in unconventional art spaces such as supermarkets throughout the city.

 

Gallery 37 (G37)

In 2006 OOTB coordinated The Gallery 37 (G37) pilot project, which is an award winning youth arts training model initiated in Edinburgh by The Capital City Partnership. The G37 project recruits young people who live in disadvantaged areas or who are experiencing disadvantage due to, amongst other things, homelessness, low levels of literacy, having been victim of violence, coming from a care background, or having a disability. Four artists were recruited from the OOTB network to teach trainees over an intensive four week programme. 36 young people completed the course and produced works of art which they were able to sell at a city centre shop and OOTB's arts market at the Drill Hall during the festival.