Sculpture workshop awarded multimillion prize

A £3 million Arts Funding Prize has been awarded to the Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop (ESW) by the Scottish Community Foundation.

The multimillion donation was funded by an anonymous donor and, after two years of planning and competition, ESW was announced the winner over the short-listed Scottish Book Trust and Edinburgh College of Art. The unanimous decision will fully fund the building of a ‘Creative Laboratory.’

Bob Benson, chair of the judging panel, said: “The panel felt ESW’s proposal offered the most inspiring combination of exciting architecture and cultural impact. Its Newhaven location will expand the artistic geography of the city, and create a unique cultural venue in this part of Edinburgh.

“Along with offering our wholehearted congratulations to the Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop, the panel would also like to commend the Scottish Community Foundation for the smooth running of this award. It ensured the best projects were put forward for this prize and enabled the donor to make a high profile contribution to Edinburgh’s cultural landscape while preserving their anonymity.”

The Creative Laboratory is set to open its doors in 2013. Providing an assortment of indoor and outdoor working spaces around a central courtyard, it will allow ambitious artist projects through a wide range of facilities not found in the Sculpture Centre.

There will be a combination of viewing areas, information points and a café which will encourage artists, the local community and the wider public. The creative laboratory will ensure a flexible workspace, a vibrant environment and a far wider range of disciplines; the project is set to create a hub of artistic ingenuity through which the rest of the city should feel the pulse of inspiration.

The main aim of the competition was to fund a building of exceptional architectural and cultural merit within the City of Edinburgh, to allow residents and visitors of the city to experience or participate in the arts.

Jenny Dawe, Leader of the City of Edinburgh Council, said: “I was delighted to be asked to launch the £3m Arts Funding Prize for Edinburgh back in 2008. Over the last two years we’ve seen the field narrow from thirteen hopeful art organisations to three finalists to Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop being named the winner today.

“I believe that the creation of the Creative Laboratories, combined with ESW’s sculpture centre, will put Edinburgh on the international stage as a destination for contemporary sculpture and its production.”