City of Light: Cutlog Vennel

Cutlog Vennel in Perth city centre is now home to a permanent new work from one of Scotland’s leading artists, Nathan Coley, building on the ten-year City of Light action plan which was launched in 2016.

The plan outlines a series of unique lighting projects which, when combined, will promote Perth’s unique cultural heritage, architecture, public realm, and greenspace, reinforcing Perth’s status as a vibrant, cultural city.

The plan was instrumental in securing a £5 million Lighting Plan Budget in conjunction with a further £9 million Placemaking Budget; this new work is delivered with assistance from cultural partners Culture Perth & Kinross and Horsecross Arts, and builds towards the council’s ambition to create a permanent light art trail within the city.

The installation, which illuminates the dark space in Cutlog Vennel, is one of Coley’s signature text sculptures, named ‘The World Without, The World Within’.

The words reference a quote from city and environmental visionary Sir Patrick Geddes, who was brought up in Perth. Geddes aimed “to see life whole” and to understand how people, place and work function together to make the best life possible.

Nathan Coley is a Scottish artist who creates work that questions how we relate to public spaces and architecture. His work is driven by research centring around the social aspects of our towns and cities and the communities and individuals who occupy them. In 2007 he was shortlisted for the Turner Prize. His work is represented in many international public and private collections.