KAREN & THE CONSTABLES

I recently met up with a group of bloggers in Dundee for some brunch and a tour around Dundee Contemporary Arts or the DCA as it’s commonly called!

Back in my twenties I lived in Dundee and my only real experience of the DCA was drinking in the bar or enjoying the sun in their beer garden so I was keen to see what else they had to offer.

First up we headed to the cinema where a live band was rehearsing for a showing of the oldest surviving feature-length animation film “The Adventures Of Prince Achmed” and I must say I was completely enthralled! The music played by Sink was absolutely perfect for the style of animation and I wish I could have stayed longer and watched it all!

Next up we fulfilled a dream of mine and visited the projection room! It was pretty much as I’d hoped, dark and warm and full of expensive equipment! The DCA shows a wide range of films so have the kit to play digital files or old-school film reels and I got to ask all about how they receive the film and splice it, and where and how it’s stored and it was fascinating!

We finished the tour in the print studio which was another area I was keen to visit. I’ve done some screen-printing in the past which I hope to pick up again and I was impressed by the setup they have at the DCA. Aside from screen-printing they do courses and workshops in so many things including laser-cutting, bookbinding, letterpress, calligraphy, 3D printing, etching, photography, Photoshop, woodblock printing and even fish printing!

I was totally beaming after this tour and felt my creative juices stirring! I totally recommend a visit to the DCA whether you want to get creative, watch a movie, dine in style or just enjoy a drink!