Confronting photographs, exquisite hand-drawn prints, and architectural models evoking Edinburgh’s haunting past are amongst some of the bold pieces on show in an exhibition open to the public. Edinburgh College of Art’s Graduate show, which attracts thousands of visitors to the College’s Main Building each year, will again open its doors, inviting guests to absorb the incredible array of art, design, music and architecture on display.
Graduating Illustration student Tiana Sung was inspired by her collection of Japanese folk toys, offering light-hearted storytelling through her playful characters.
More than 500 final year students representing the very best in disciplines including fine art, music, illustration, interior design, jewellery and textiles, will present their pieces during the week-long show.
This year, fabric recycling, Slavic forest mythology, and hikers investigating an alien hoax are amongst the diverse topics explored through a rich assortment of media, including animation, metalwork and film.
Folk toys
In Illustration, graduating student Tiana Sung will showcase her hand-drawn, humorous linework and figures, inspired by her collection of Japanese folk toys, offering light-hearted storytelling through her playful characters.
Gallery-goers will be able to see a demonstration by Product Design graduating student Ellie Small, who is “putting the support in sport”, working with breast health specialists to create technology that will help women find better-fitting sports bras, inspired by her mother’s experience of breast cancer.
Haunting architecture
Other engaging works include that of Architecture graduate, Xindi Su, whose creations transports audiences to a haunting time where Edinburgh’s infamous Nor Loch – a man-made loch drained in the 19th Century – is once again a wetland, in a unique study exploring heritage, myth and artisan craftsmanship.
The iconic Main Building will also play host to Sculpture graduate Dora Zoi whose striking creations use plaster, glass and mosaic to depict our relationship to science, and discover how data-driven systems can narrow our sense of the world.
Cafe culture
In Graphic Design, Annabel Kelley will showcase her pieces for a café and roastery named Material Grounds Coffee, exploring ethical branding and a slowed-down approach to café culture in response to our fast society.
Rachel Alexandre’s Landscape Architecture exhibit will include intricate hand-drawn charcoal and pen renditions of urban scenes, detailing cityscapes from a bird’s eye perspective and revealing normally unseen patterns in the streets below.
Ketchup Textiles
Textiles graduating student, Poppy Morgan, pays homage to her grandmother’s beloved apple crumble recipe in a playful and moving series, including a delicate collar created using digital techniques.
Poppy, who won the 2026 Incorporation of Bonnetmakers and Dyers of Edinburgh final year student prize, also honours her family’s love of condiments in “The Ketchup Textiles” as part of her exhibition.
Graduating Textiles student, Poppy Morgan, pays homage to her grandmother’s beloved home recipes in a playful and moving series created using digital techniques, including collars that read "ice cream or custard?"
Shapeshifting card players
Elsewhere, an arresting set of ‘macabre’ giclée and inkjet prints by Photography student Ed Puddington invites viewers to reflect on human threats to birds of prey, as well as our connection to birdlife and our role in the wider ecosystem.
Fine Art graduating student, Yury Aleksanyan, conjures the Slavic forest spirit – a shapeshifting deity known as Leshy – using found objects to create a unique depiction of card-playing forest figures, evoking the spirit of the ancient woodlands.
Fine Art student, Yury Aleksanyan depicts the Slavic forest spirit – known as Leshy – using found objects to create card-playing forest figures, evoking the spirit of the ancient woodlands.
Film and music
As part of the Show, screenings of student films will be hosted at the city’s Filmhouse cinema, with Film and Television students screening their work in the run up to the Graduate Show, and Animation showing on Tuesday 2 June.
A concert prepared by ECA’s Reid School of Music students will be held on Wednesday 3 June at the Reid Concert Hall in an evening celebrating classical and contemporary music, including classical guitar and musical theatre.
Showcase gig
ECA’s Wee Red Bar will host a celebratory showcase gig on Thursday 4 June, featuring original music programmed and performed by graduating Reid School of Music students.
The ECA Graduate Show 2026 will be open Friday 29 May - Friday 5 June, 10.00am - 5.00pm, with late opening until 8.00pm on Thursday 4 June. It is open to all and free to attend.
Our Graduate Show is one of the defining moments in our students’ time at Edinburgh College of Art and an opportunity to share their creativity with industry and the wider public. Visitors can expect to encounter work that is visually striking, thought-provoking and ambitious in its ideas. The exhibition invites reflection and conversation, while showcasing the breadth of talent and creative practice across the College. I would like to congratulate all our graduating students on this wonderful achievement.
Professor Juan Cruz
Principal of Edinburgh College of Art at the University of Edinburgh
