Two Scottish designers, glass artist Nicola Cairns and ceramist Gavin Burnett, are currently exhibiting at Talente in Munich.

The special exhibition, which finishes on 16 March, highlights the new generation in applied arts and is an international competition.  It takes place during the International Trade Fair in Munich and selects works by young people with a particular talent from 25 countries.

Speaking about her selection Nicola said “I am of course extremely excited that I was selected to represent scotland and am looking forward to the experience immensely.  I hope that having the opportunity to show my work to an international audience will enable me to explore new opportunities and contacts internationally.”

Nicola is a graduate of Edinburgh College of Art and her work is held collections in America and London.   She will also be exhibiting in London in June 2005.

Discussing her work she said ”Glass has an inherent and seductive beauty which I feel cannot be rivaled. My inspiration comes purely from my fascination with the material and the  processes involved. I aim to create pieces which emphasise and explore the nature of the material, its optical qualities, the way it bends, reflects, transmits and absorbs light creating the most compelling and fascination effects which make it such a beautiful and unique material.”

Gavin is equally as excited about being selected for such a prestigious international exhibition.  He said “I've never been to Munich before and I'm hugely looking forward to visiting the city, including all the galleries and Museums.  I hope this opportunity will promote my work and gain a national reputation, leading to further exhibitions in key galleries and even the possibility of being selected for further international competitions.”

Gavin is also a graduate of Edinburgh College of Art, and he has exhibited in Edinburgh, Dundee, Glasgow and Crieff.

An exhibition of new work Nicola Cairns is on at Amber Arts, 78 Montrose Terrace, Abbeyhill, Edinburgh tel: 0131 661 1116 until 26 March 2005.