The Melting Pot Artists Showcase - A Partnership That Brings Space To Life

Written by Inga Dale Steyn, Community Manager

To me, the concept of ‘space’ is very interesting - it’s about how we inhabit, navigate, and claim our surroundings. One of the activities that we do at Creative Edinburgh is hold members-only gatherings where we learn from our members about what the creative industries need. Upon reading my notes from one of the sessions, the word ‘space’ came up 22 times, with one member asking for more, “Wall space for visual artists to showcase work.”

That should be a simple ask, but it can be difficult for early-career artists to find traditional venues to showcase their work for the first time. However, why are we limited to only exhibit our work in these mainstream places? Are we complicating the concept too much?

That’s where The Melting Pot had the most incredible idea; why not utilise the space that we, and our community, are currently in?

This partnership is now in its third year, and it’s been an incredible opportunity for us to work with The Melting Pot on this project. Through this partnership, Creative Edinburgh has supported over 20 visual artists - some early-career and some who are further on in their career but haven’t yet had the opportunity to share their work in a public environment.

So, on 22 July, we all gathered together at The Melting Pot to celebrate the third iteration of this partnership. Both our communities joined together for a fantastic evening, with a performance from poet Bee Asha, as we browsed through the incredible art on show. The chosen artists for 2026 were:

• Chelsea Brown
• Kateryna Tsyvunova
• Natasha Soto
• Karine Nieman
• Marina Solar
• Lisa Beattie
• Laura Karpyte
• Pascal O’Kane
• Iris Ollier
• Phil Scott
• Sophie Brown

Their work will be in situ at The Melting pot for one year, giving these artists access to the significant number of people who pass through each month - be that local coworkers, visiting hotdeskers, event attendees or other guests. The hope is that this opportunity will provide not only visibility but also real potential for new customers who may wish to buy one of the pieces on display.

Through this partnership, I have learnt that we do not have to go to traditional exhibition spaces to advocate for artists to exhibit their work; we can also do this in settings that we access in our day-to-day life. I think it’s important to note that we don’t need to reinvent the wheel, and we can just reconceptualise the way we see space and coexist in a room. It has been incredible to see the positive impact that we can have when we utilise the space that we have and ensure that we find ways of working together that don’t feel like we’re starting at ground zero. 

If you are a business looking to fill your empty walls with beautiful art from local artists, why not partner with Creative Edinburgh? Reach out to me at inga@creative-edinburgh.com to get the conversation rolling.