Edinburgh Art Festival, in collaboration with City Art Centre, is pleased to announce the presentation of a major group exhibition, Where do I end and you begin. Held across four floors of the City Art Centre, the exhibition brings together curators from five Commonwealth countries: New Zealand, South Africa, India, Canada and the UK, to explore themes of common-wealth through the work of 20 international artists. As part of the Glasgow 2014 Cultural Programme, and in the context of Homecoming Scotland 2014, the exhibition will introduce many artists to UK audiences for the first time.

Taking its title from a work by the artist Shilpa Gupta (IND), Where do I end and you begin invites perspectives from five points across the Commonwealth to explore the ideas, ideals and myths which underpin notions of community, common-wealth and the commons. Through new and recent work in a range of media, the exhibition considers what it means to join ‘common’ with ‘wealth’, reflecting on the notion of “The Commonwealth” as a problematic historical and contemporary construct. It offers international perspectives on the range of associations which common-wealth evokes, from the challenge of ‘being in common’ in a truly global world, to ideas of the common good, common land, public ownership and alternative exchange systems.

Five curators have been invited to propose new and recent work by 20 international artists based on their interest in the themes of the project, as well as their in-depth knowledge and engagement with visual arts practice in their respective regions. The participating curators are Aaron Kreisler (Dunedin, NZ); Thembinkosi Goniwe (Johannesburg, SA); Vidya Shivadas (New Delhi, IND); Kathleen Ritter (Vancouver, CA); and Richard Hylton (London, UK).

Eleven of the artists are showing in the UK for the first time, with at least half of participating artists presenting new work specifically developed for the exhibition. Highlights will include Shilpa Gupta’s neon work Where do I end and you begin; an evolution of the criticallyacclaimed Sovereign Forest, the highly poetic film installation by renowned Indian artist Amar Kanwar; a newly commissioned site-specific installation by Mary Evans (born Nigeria/lives and works UK); and a video installation by New Zealand artist Steve Carr. Johannesburg-based artist Mary Sibande, internationally acclaimed for her large scale figurative sculptures featuring the artist’s alter ego ‘Sophie’, will create a new work for the exhibition, while Canadian artists Brian Jungen & Duane Linklater show their recent film Modest Livelihood for the first time in the UK.

Edinburgh Art Festival is proud to be working with international partners across the Commonwealth on the development of this major enterprise, including the British Council, Creative New Zealand; Dunedin Public Art Gallery; South Africa - United Kingdom Seasons 2014 & 2015; Gallery MOMO, Johannesburg; Vadehra Art Gallery, New Delhi and other partners in Canada, India, New Zealand and UK.

Full list of participating artists: Rebecca Belmore (b. 1960, Canada); Kushana Bush (b. 1983, New Zealand); Steve Carr (b. 1976, New Zealand); Mary Evans (b. 1963, Nigeria); Pascal Grandmaison (b. 1975, Canada); Shilpa Gupta (b. 1976, India); Kay Hassan (b. 1956, South Africa); Gavin Hipkins (b. 1968, New Zealand); Antonia Hirsch (b. 1968, Germany); Brian Jungen & Duane Linklater (b. 1970 & 1976, Canada); Amar Kanwar (b. 1964, India); Naeem Mohaiemen (b. 1969, Bangladesh); Uriel Orlow (b. 1973, Switzerland); Emma Rushton & Derek Tyman (b. 1966 & 1965, UK); Mary Sibande (b. 1982, South Africa); Arpita Singh (b. 1937, India); Masooma Syed (b. 1971, Pakistan); Shannon Te Ao (b. 1978, Australia); Yvonne Todd (b. 1973, New Zealand); and Kemang Wa Lehulere (b. 1978, South Africa).