Space/Retail/Magic

Eva Merz (June 2005)

Three large-scale photographic collages (200 X 400 cm), each containing around 1000 single images, depict three sites in three towns in the Northeast of Scotland. SPACE/RETAIL/MAGIC reflects concerns about supermarket development and decline in rural areas, specifically concentrating on the sustainability of large-scale supermarket buildings and the visual impact they have on our towns and cities.

# 1. MARKET MUIR, Huntly. Aberdeenshire Council had already advertised this public site for sale and Tesco had put in an offer to buy it, when the locals protested unanimously against it. The plans were subsequently dropped.

# 2. TESCO, Inverurie. This old Tesco has been abandoned for a couple of years since a new, much bigger store was built across the road. It shows how the old, smaller Tesco version looks.

# 3. SUPERSTORE, Elgin. This new 24-hour superstore has replaced a smaller outlet just across the road in Elgin town centre. Also the building has changed. The parking lot is extremely big; no space has been wasted for trees and flowerbeds.

Eva Merz is a Danish artist who came to Scotland in 2003 as an artist in residence in Huntly, Aberdeenshire. Since May 2003 she has lived and worked in Aberdeen. Her earlier project EMPTY SHOP/MODERN MONUMENT, focusing on retail development and decline of smaller independent shops in rural towns, is directly linked to SPACE/RETAIL/MAGIC.