Richard Demarco

Vocation

Notable

Scottish artist, painter and promoter of the visual and performing arts. He founded the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh, owns an arts gallery and is closely associated with the annual Edinburgh Festival. His ethos is to remain faithful to the founding principle of the Edinburgh Festival, which is to heal the wounds of war through the languages of the arts. Demarco is one of the most widely recognised and best loved arts figures in Scotland and far beyond. No stranger to media controversy, Demarco has challenged successive Fringe organisers' boundaries by staging festival productions outside Edinburgh. These have included a full costume, full length production of Shakespeare's Macbeth staged on Inchcolm Island in the Firth of Forth. Always a controversial figure, not least in constantly emphasising the importance of recalling festival history and high art values however avant-garde, his approach has not always sat easily with the Scottish arts establishment. He has received numerous international awards, including the European Citizen's Medal on Monday 19 August 2013, in a ceremony held at the European Parliament Office, Brussels, the only UK citizen and only arts person receiving this honour. Link to Wikipedia biography