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Interesting news · Friday 20 February

Edinburgh's poet laureate painted live at RSA gallery

Edinburgh · from heraldscotland.com

Photograph · heraldscotland.com

Edinburgh’s Makar, the poet Michael Pedersen, sat for a live portrait by award-winning artist Aine Divine at the Royal Scottish Society of Painters in Watercolour’s 145th Open Annual Exhibition.

Pedersen, the city’s poet laureate since 2024 and Writer in Residence at Edinburgh University, described the experience as “beautifully intense”.

Divine, known for her visceral, barefoot painting approach, has previously painted figures including Neil Hannon and Ian McKellen. The exhibition ran in the RSA’s Upper Galleries until 11 March 2026.

Read it at the sourceheraldscotland.com

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