43 artists and makers join Inside Out, the world's largest participatory art project, using their collective voice to celebrate the people, culture and landscapes of the Cairngorms National Park.

More than 40 creatives from across the Cairngorms National Park have joined an international photography project celebrating their cultural contributions. 

Inside Out is a global participatory art project founded by French artist JR. Their black and white portraits - the faces of photographers, makers, writers, performers and other creative practitioners who are members of the Cairngorms Creative Collective and live and work in and around the National Park - have been brought together in an iconic group shot. Their contribution places the Cairngorms on the world map of a project that has brought together more than 500,000 people across 152 countries and territories. The Collective’s work forms part of the Cairngorms 2030 programme, supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund. 

The iconic shots were taken at one of the most iconic places in the National Park, the plateau of Cairngorm Mountain.  

• Inside Out project up Cairngorm mountain Angus Trinder

  

  
• The Inside Out project on Cairngorm mountain’s summit Hannah Bailey

  

  
• Inside Out project up Cairngorm mountain Hannah Bailey

  

  

Hannah Bailey, photographer and project producer, said: “We hiked up to the Cairngorm plateau to lay out forty-two portraits of local creatives who live and work in the National Park. We wanted to show that they're here, east and west of this summit, as skilled individuals and as a strong community.  

“Creatives in rural areas are so often undervalued or overlooked, which is why being part of a global project like Inside Out matters. It puts the spotlight on the Cairngorms Creative Collective, the network that brings all these faces together as one force, supporting creativity in the park for generations to come.” 

Contributing to Inside Out was something the creatives wanted to do as part of the Cairngorms Creative Collective's first two-year activity plan. As well as joining a global art project, the group wanted to raise awareness of the Cairngorms Creative Collective as a geographic group of artists and use their collective voice to celebrate what they feel passionate about, summarised in the group’s action statement which has dùthchas at its heart - a Gaelic word which encompasses ideas of kinship, heritage and connections between nature, people and place. 

Jess Greaves, Director, Cairngorms Creative Collective, said: "Taking part in Inside Out felt like the right way to introduce the Cairngorms Creative Collective to the National Park and to the world. We wanted to raise awareness of the collective as a geographic group of artists and to use our collective voice to celebrate what we feel passionate about: dùthchas, community and this extraordinary landscape we call home."  

You can see all the iconic shots and portraits by clicking here.

Supporting creatives in the National Park is part of the Cairngorms 2030 programme, made possible by The National Lottery Heritage Fund Scotland thanks to National Lottery players.