HD Video Still, Helen McCrorie, 'If play is neither inside nor outside, where is it?' 2019. Image courtesy of the artist.

Helen McCrorie Exhibition Opens 12 July

Collective presents If play is neither inside nor outside, where is it?, a new exhibition and video work by Helen McCrorie opening in The Hillside on Friday 12 July, 7–9pm.

Working in documentary strategies, Helen’s new film centres on a child-led outdoor playgroup that meets in Cultybraggan, a former POW camp in Perthshire. The playgroup is inspired by ideas of ‘Loose Parts Play’, which advocates for children to define the use or function of materials that they engage with, allowing for free and imaginative play. Filmed over several years, Helen’s film captures the unpredictability of children playing outdoors across seasons. A young person’s voice narrates the film, asserting their right to play along with stories that relate to the site.

If play is neither inside nor outside, where is it? features the two, contrasting environments of Cultybraggan; the outside in the camp where the children play, which is owned by the community, and the inside of the bunker which is now privately owned and being converted into a data storage facility. The film celebrates innate creativity and explores our understanding of data gathering and learning as interconnected, yet diverging, processes.

If play is neither inside nor outside, where is it? is open from 13 July – 6 October. Tuesday – Sunday (Monday – Friday in August), 10am–5pm.