About

Talbot Rice Gallery is the public art gallery of the University of Edinburgh

Lucy Skaer, 'Sticks and Stones (Part 1)', 2013-15. Mahogany with inserts of porcelain, limestone, tin, coins, American walnut, Tasmanian black wood. Installation view, Green Man, 2018. Image courtesy Talbot Rice Gallery, The University of Edinburgh.
Lucy Skaer, 'Sticks and Stones (Part 1)', 2013-15. Mahogany with inserts of porcelain, limestone, tin, coins, American walnut, Tasmanian black wood. Installation view, Green Man, 2018. Image courtesy Talbot Rice Gallery, The University of Edinburgh.

With a 19th century former natural history museum and a contemporary white cube to fuel its engine, Talbot Rice Gallery is dedicated to exploring how the University of Edinburgh can contribute to contemporary art production today and into the future. Solo exhibitions provide international artists with access to University research and collections, whilst conceptual group exhibitions foreground key political and social issues. Raising the volume on female self-empowerment, exploring frontiers in the age of Brexit, or interrogating debt at a time of the cost-of-living crisis, Talbot Rice Gallery positions itself at the forefront of research and creative practice.

Talbot Rice Gallery plays an active role in Edinburgh College of Art, working with students throughout the year, engaging them in the programme and curatorial vision. The gallery's Trading Zone exhibition hunts for distinct practices across all the schools and artforms of Edinburgh College of Art.

TRG is free and open to all, with an active community engagement programme. Each exhibition is supported by interactive tours, creative workshops, and special projects involving schools, community groups, and local prisons. We collaborate closely with university students and staff, offering a wide range of events that support learning and connection. For the wider public, we host exhibition openings, academic-led tours, family-friendly activities, British Sign Language tours, and quiet hours for those with sensory needs. 

David Claerbout, 'The Quiet Shore', 2011. Installation view, 2018. Image courtesy Talbot Rice Gallery, The University of Edinburgh.
David Claerbout, 'The Quiet Shore', 2011. Installation view, 2018. Image courtesy Talbot Rice Gallery, The University of Edinburgh.
Playfair Library opening reception
'Borderlines' opening reception in the Playfair Library, 2019
John Akomfrah, 'Vertigo Sea', 2015. Audience in front of a video still, installation view, 2017. Image courtesy The Talbot Rice Gallery, The University of Edinburgh.
Installation view, 'John Akomfrah / Vertigo Sea', 2017. Image courtesy Talbot Rice Gallery, The University of Edinburgh
'Artists' Campaign to Repeal the Eighth Amendment', Bannerettes: 'R-E-P-E-A-L' 2017. Installation view, At The Gates, 2018. Image courtesy Talbot Rice Gallery, The University of Edinburgh.
At the Gates, 2018. Installation view. Image courtesy Talbot Rice Gallery, The University of Edinburgh.