With just 13 shopping days left until Christmas, the Scottish Arts Council has produced a comprehensive list of gallery highlights with details of Christmas exhibitions and events taking place at Own Art galleries across Scotland, providing plenty of ideas for unique Christmas gifts.

Gallery highlights include; a Christmas jewellery and silver exhibition featuring the work of 11 jewellers and 3 young Scottish silversmiths at Designs Gallery in Castle Douglas; a Christmas shop featuring cards and photographs by Isabell Buenz at Atticsalt in Edinburgh; and a sculpture, ceramics and jewellery exhibition at The Gatehouse Gallery in Glasgow.

Own Art provides an interest free loan from £100 to £2000 to purchase a wide range of artwork from paintings and sculpture to jewellery, furniture and textiles, at participating galleries across Scotland. The loan, which can also be put towards a more expensive item, is then repaid in ten equal monthly instalments.

48 public, private, university and local authority galleries are currently involved in the scheme which was launched in Scotland in December 2004 to encourage sales and develop the visual arts and crafts economy in Scotland, and support artists at all stages of their careers.

The scheme has proved popular with art lovers with a recent evaluation revealing that sales totalling almost £300,000 were made using Own Art in its first year of operation in Scotland.

The Own Art Gallery Highlights Christmas 2006 list can be downloaded at: http://www.scottisharts.org.uk/1/information/publications/1003986.aspx

Wendy Law, Manager of the Own Art scheme at the Scottish Arts Council said:

“The wonderful thing about buying a piece of contemporary art is that it is a unique work that has taken time, dedication and creative thought and aspiration on the part of the artist. The Own Art scheme exists so that buying a piece of art is made more affordable, the highlights are a taster which we hope will tempt you to visit the galleries and see the great range of work on offer.”