Sunday 5 November, 4-9pm
Join Two of Cups at Forgan Arts Centre to celebrate Samhain, the Celtic New Year festival that has inspired modern-day Halloween, and Bonfire Night.
As you might find yourself lamenting the end of summer, turn that frown upside down by celebrating the bountiful summer harvests, honouring our ancestors, and warming up around a big ol’ fire.
The evening will be punctuated by performances of song, dance, and storytelling. There will be opportunities to learn about the traditional rituals of Samhain including making your own Celtic smudge stick with foraged herbs, painting a lantern to take home, and providing offerings to your ancestors.
The Forgan grounds will be festively-decorated as we invite you to step through a magical portal, peep in the windows of a Haunted Cottage and meander through the spooky woodland path.
Image credit: Mhari Brown
Event information
The evening will take place both inside and outside, so make sure to wrap up warm. Participants should prepare for the weather with appropriate clothing. There will be food available to purchase as well as alcoholic and non-alcoholic hot and cold drinks served at the bar.
This event is family friendly but children should be supervised by an adult with particular care taken around the fire.
Tickets are Pay What You Can. We aim to create an accessible event for all people. If there’s anything you think we need to know about your access requirements, you can tell us when booking your ticket. We will ensure there is seating available throughout the venue and grounds.
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This year’s Samhain has been organised by curatorial duo Two of cups and is supported by Fife Council and Northwood Charitable Trust.
Two of Cups is a curatorial collaboration between Saoirse Amira Anis and Laura McSorley. Laura and Saoirse met at DJCAD and subsequently bonded while voluntarily running artist-led gallery GENERATORprojects with a committee of delightful peers.
They have worked together in many different capacities as co-conspirators; constantly flexing and testing the boundaries of love, support, and creative labour. Seamlessly shifting from work to play and back again, there’s a fluidity to their relationship – they are more than colleagues and more than friends. You can see traces of their connected labour, interests and practices in past events they describe as ‘very heavenly socials’. Two of Cups collectively conspire to find ways to bring people together and support local artists outwith conventional arts spaces.
Saoirse Amira Anis is an artist, curator and facilitator based in Dundee. Saoirse graduated from DJCAD in 2018 and has since worked as curator and facilitator with GENERATORprojects and Perth Museum & Art Gallery, and has exhibited their own artwork with Jupiter Artland, Edinburgh Art Festival, Cample Line, and Dundee Contemporary Arts.
Laura McSorley is an independent curator, organiser and producer based in Dundee. Laura graduated from DJCAD in 2019 and has worked with GENERATORprojects, Edinburgh Art Festival, Dundee Heritage Trust and is part of the British Art Network Emerging Curators Group.
