'Between the Late and the Early'

The Royal Scottish Academy's 187th annual exhibition is advertised on the posters outside by David Mach's 'Spike' - a lifesize sculpture of a prowling big cat made of steel and coat-hangers. It's a great piece, but isn't really representative of the macabre theme of many of the rest of the exhibits in the way that this pair of masks is. It was interesting to speculate on their inspiration - they are almost reminiscent of Mexican wrestling masks - but it's hard to tell with such bizarre pieces.

The truth is stranger still, for these are a pair of witches branks, on loan from Dundee museums, which were used in medieval Scotland as part of the punishment for women accused of witchcraft.