Artist Talk with Stephanie Mann

Artist Stephanie Mann combines scientific research and creative experimentation to question the inherent agency of things. Working with the University of Edinburgh’s geology and art collections, she has explored what happens to objects that are deemed surplus, withdrawn, or beyond repair.

In Withdrawn objects (2022), Mann embedded micronised dust from collection fragments into sandstone cores, creating new geological compositions that hover between preservation and transformation.

In this discursive talk, Mann will screen a short film (Agate, shale, bust, mosaic, 2022), and bring together Withdrawn objects alongside other items from the collection and her own studio. Participants will be invited to handle and reflect on objects around the table, while exploring wider questions of transformation, environmental responsibility, object permanence, and how we place value on ‘things’ with the artist.

Please note this is an interactive talk and attendees will be involved in group discussion.

About the artist

Stephanie Mann is an artist based in Edinburgh. Her work has been shown at The Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, SWG3, Glasgow Sculpture Studios and Salon Gallery Berlin. She is the recipient of the Andrew Grant Bequest Award, John Kinross Travel Scholarship and The John Watson Prize. Stephanie was artist in residence at Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop, Ten Chances in Minneapolis USA, Snehta in Athens, Greece and the Edinburgh Art Festival Tourist in residence. She obtained a degree in Sculpture and an MFA in Contemporary Art Practice at Edinburgh College of Art.

About the exhibition

Taking the University’s 350-year-old Art Collection as its focus, Rooting: Ecology, Extraction & Environmental Emergencies in the University’s Art Collection features historic and contemporary artworks that consider environment, ecology, as well as the entangled relationship between economic and colonial legacies and the climate crisis. The display showcases a range of artforms by over 30 different artists acquired by the University and currently used to support and enhance research and learning. As part of the institution’s cultural heritage, the artworks displayed in the exhibition will highlight University’s histories in relation to these topics, as well as offering reflections on the urgency for individual and collective action.

The free exhibition is open Mon-Sat, 10am-6pm, until 15 November 2025.

Image: Withdrawn objects (2022). Courtesy Talbot Rice Gallery. Photo: Sally Jubb

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