It seems all has gone a little quiet on a subject which flared suddenly into angry life late last year – the future of art at Inverleith House at the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh (RBGE).
You may remember the art world, and beyond, greeted news of its closure as pure contemporary art space with anger and dismay. Richard Wright, the Turner Prize winning artist, called it an "act of vandalism". The board of the Gardens, it emerged, had read a report commissioned with money from Creative Scotland, into the future of the House, suggesting a way forward for a vibrant future, but essentially ignored it. The board of the gardens thought that running a contemporary art gallery at Inverleith House was not sustainable. Others, many others, begged to differ, but they were not in a position to actually change the decision.
And nothing, essentially, has changed since then – the House will no longer be dedicated to the display of contemporary art, and a much-loved gallery whose exhibitions were praised and influential (and in some cases, led to prestigious awards) has seemingly been lost. It is closed at the moment.
The Regius Keeper of the Gardens, Simon Milne, has been adamant the House will still be used for art – as well as other things. Following the stramash, and even the evident concern of not only Creative Scotland but Culture Secretary Fiona Hyslop, a working group was due to be set up to somehow find a way forward for contemporary art at the site. This was in November – we still do not know the make up of the group, or who will lead it. The working group doesn't seem to have done any working.
I hear it is meant to be delivering some kind of report by the end of June. This report will provide a strategy and a framework for the RBGE arts programme. It is being assumed, I hear, that its assumption of what "art" means will cross into performing arts, historical, craft and design, as well as contemporary visual arts. As Mr Milne has told me previously, Botanical Art will also be a subject keenly discussed, as will loan exhibitions from collections elsewhere. The art there will, it imagines, will be "high level and inclusive". With Creative Scotland involved, one would also imagine that whatever the RBGE come up with, it will need to be in harmony with its various arts strategies. For the Botanics, the issue of financial sustainability is key: will Creative Scotland money be forthcoming?
Elsewhere in Edinburgh, the visual arts scene is developing, with the ambitious plans of Collective on Calton Hill and the Fruitmarket Galleries ambition to expand significantly. Public finances are extremely tight and will become tighter. But there are ideas on the horizon which could bode well for cultural funding. Edinburgh's hopes for a tourist tax, a subject I wrote about yesterday, could (if the Scottish Government relents from its opposition to such a scheme) raise millions for cultural efforts in Edinburgh.
Art shows will continue, in some form, it seems clear, at Inverleith House. The furore over its closure as a full-time contemporary art gallery has seen to that. One does wonder what kind of art shows will be shown at the venerable old house in the future. And whether they will share the space with corporate functions, weddings, business away-days or something else. It would be good to know, now we are in 2017.
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