BIDS are being sought for a £15 million project to turn a disused hospital laundry in Dumfries into a “transformative” new arts hub.
The building, located in an 85-acre estate on the outskirts of Dumfries known as The Crichton, will be revamped as a venue for archive facilities and a new visual arts and exhibition space, with a focus on mental health and wellbeing.
The competition to redesign the former laundry has been launched today by RIAS Consultancy, the competitions and procurement arm of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland.
The successful architecture team will be awarded £15 million and tasked with creating what is being touted as “one of the most significant cultural buildings in Scotland” and a project which will “transform cultural provision in Dumfries and Galloway”.
READ MORE: Fears of wrong road for acclaimed Dumfries hospital
The bidding process is being organised on behalf of The Crichton Trust, custodians of the Crichton estate who have leased the site long-term from Dumfries and Galloway Council.
The estate’s landscaped gardens and historic buildings have made it popular for wedding parties, conferences, concerts, exhibitions and charity events, but until the 1980s it was home to the Crichton Royal Hospital - a world-leading psychiatric facility.
The new building, provisionally titled The Crichton Centre for Memory and Wellbeing, will contain exhibition and archive facilities to house the Crichton Archive, and the Crichton Heritage Centre.
It will also bring together a new visual arts and exhibition space, an intergenerational academic study space and resource centre, and a land art archives and research centre.
Gwilym Gibbons, chief executive of The Crichton Trust said: “We are very excited about creating The Crichton Centre for Memory and Wellbeing, in what will become a new landmark building in the heart of The Crichton.
“This project is about preserving our past and building the heritage of the future and I am intrigued to see the design proposals when they come through.
“This is one of several development projects included within our ambitious 100-year plan for The Crichton and is an important milestone in our journey to connect people, place and the past to shape the future.”
Tamsie Thomson, chief executive of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland, said: “We are excited and honoured to be working with The Crichton Trust on this hugely significant project for architecture and culture in Scotland.
“The end result will be transformative for The Crichton and wider cultural provision in south west Scotland, and in the meantime represents an outstanding opportunity for practices of all shapes and sizes to create a building with a valuable purpose and an enduring legacy.
“This competition represents a step-change for RIAS Consultancy. The Crichton Trust’s progressive approach has allowed us to frame a competition that swerves many of the common blocks to larger tenders for small businesses, and will hopefully attract talent from every shade of the architectural spectrum.”
READ MORE: The admirable Mrs Crichton
The Crichton first opened its doors as an asylum in 1839, following the death of Dr James Crichton, who left his widow £100,000 to use for charitable purposes.
With her initial ambition to create a university for poor scholars thwarted, she set about creating an asylum that would be the best in Europe.
Over the following 150 years, it gained an international reputation as a centre of excellence in mental health research and care.
The design competition, part-funded by the UK Government, will close to first-stage submissions on August 19.
Following a blind shortlisting process, five teams will then be awarded £20,000 to develop their proposals, with the winner expected to be unveiled in November.
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