V&A Dundee to recreate Scotland’s earliest reggae club

V&A Dundee will recreate one of Scotland’s earliest reggae club nights at a one-off event next month, in celebration of its current exhibition Studio Nicholas Daley.

Nicholas Daley, who regularly collaborates with musicians and DJs when creating his collections, has curated an evening that will pay homage to grassroots club night The Reggae Klub.

Tay Late: Reggae Klub Revisited (Friday, 15 November) will include British reggae legends Dennis Bovell Aka Blackbeard and founding member of Aswad, Brinsley Forde MBE. Radio 1, Ninja Tune and NTS radio host Nabihah Iqbal and Bongo Club regular Messenger Sound System will complete the line-up.

The original Reggae Klub was started by Nicholas’s parents as a way of bringing people together through their shared passion for music and travelled to clubs across Scotland between 1978 and 1982. His mother Maureen, from Dundee and father Jeffrey, from Jamaica, first met in Dundee nightclub The Barracuda.

Jeffrey Daley, otherwise known as I-man Slygo will play a selection of the original Reggae Klub tracks at the special night produced by Nicholas Daley and V&A Dundee.

Nicholas said: ‘My parents started a reggae club because they felt at that time in Scotland there wasn’t a space for that type of music. An ongoing source of inspiration for my work is music and family and I’m excited to be in Dundee to build on and recognise what they started 30 years ago.’

A photograph showing Musical Youth performing at The Reggae Klub c.1976-1982 (Photo: Maureen and Jeffrey Daley)

Other highlights planned for the evening include a collective knitting workshop led by Maureen Daley using end of line yarn from Loch Carron.

Today, Daley’s designs are grounded in a rigorous investigation into his Jamaican-Scottish identity, with his work heavily influenced by his Dundee and West Indian roots as well as music and revolutionary figures from history.

During the day, Nicholas will host a panel discussion exploring the intersection of fashion, music and identity, questioning and reflecting on the notion of multiculturalism within British identity. He will be joined by long-term collaborators Kayus Banks of Young Fathers and Nabibah Iqbal with additional guests to be confirmed.

Mhairi Maxwell, V&A Dundee Project Curator, said: ‘When we first started to develop Studio Nicholas Daley, we talked about how fantastic it would be for the Reggae Klub to take over the museum for one night only, and here it comes.

‘We’re looking forward to a night of music, dancing and performances, with a fantastic line up from reggae-roots legends who originally performed at the Daley’s club-night and bringing it right up to date with the talent of today.

‘Nicholas Daley collaborates with artists and musicians as part of his practice, his fashion shows are more like gigs than catwalk affairs. I am excited for people to see and experience Studio Nicholas Daley come to life.’

Tickets for Nicholas Daley Presents: Reggae Klub Revisited on Friday 15 November, 7-10pm, are now available to book online.

The Scottish Design Galleries and latest blockbuster exhibition Hello, Robot. Design between Human and Machine will also be open and free to enter.

Tickets for the panel discussion are available to book at https://www.vam.ac.uk/dundee/event/190/panel-discussion-studio-nicholas-daley

Studio Nicholas Daley is currently on display in V&A Dundee’s Michelin Design Gallery, a free exhibition and project space in the upper hall of the museum until 7 February 2020. It has been curated by V&A Dundee Project Curator Mhairi Maxwell.

A family photograph showing Maureen and Jeffrey Daley at a Reggae Klub night in Edinburgh in 1979 (Photo: Maureen and Jeffrey Daley)

The exhibition explores the creative processes behind one of the UK’s most exciting young fashion designers, Nicholas Daley. The exhibition brings together the sights and sounds of his studio to help unpick the personal stories that have resulted in some of the most authentic and bold menswear collections in recent years.

The Tottenham-based menswear designer who recently collaborated with Fred Perry, Adidas and Woolmark founded his label in 2015 after graduating from Central Saint Martins.

For his graduate collection, Culture Clash Spring/Summer 2015, Daley looked to the landscape of Britain’s post-war subcultures and worked closely with musician and film-maker Don Letts. Subsequent campaigns have continued to be influenced by people and music, alongside a respect for traditional manufacturing techniques.

The generations of women in his family who worked in jute mills in Dundee helped inspire his Juteopolis Spring/Summer 2017 collection, which involved a collaboration with the city’s historic fabric mill Halley Stevensons.

His Blackwatch Autumn/Winter 2017 collection involved researching the complex global story of tartan and the life of George Rose, a Sergeant in the Black Watch regiment who was born a slave. A new kilt for the collection was developed in partnership with Glenisla Kilts of Lanarkshire.

The exhibition also includes patterns, mood-boards and books that can be found scattered throughout his London studio along with a playlist curated by DJ and broadcaster Errol Anderson of Touching Bass.

As Scotland’s first design museum, V&A Dundee tells a global story, investigating the international importance of design alongside presenting Scotland’s outstanding design achievements. V&A Dundee features world-class exhibitions alongside the permanent Scottish Design Galleries, and a changing programme of commissions, events and activities.

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