INVERNESS’ first major creative hub has welcomed more than 30,000 visitors to its exhibitions and artist spaces during the first 12 months of the centre’s completion.
Since it was officially opened by HRH The Princess Royal last summer, Inverness Creative Academy has hosted 21 art exhibitions and its 32 studios for resident artists are already fully occupied.
The academy is operated by Wasps (Workshop and Artists Studio Provision Scotland).
Most recently, 53 office and flexible working spaces were completed, and only 10 vacant units now remain for lease by creatives, social enterprises or charities.
Inverness Creative Academy also runs a successful community engagement programme, called Inverness Openarts, which provides free, open access to art-making to boost wellbeing and tackle social isolation in the community.
Over 400 people have attended sessions on clay making, collage, weaving, stop-motion animation and more.
The Creative Academy is part of the Wasps Trust’s network of 20 facilities across Scotland, making it the UK’s largest provider of affordable studio space for artists and people in the creative industries.
Audrey Carlin, chief executive officer at Wasps said: “Delivering Inverness Creative Academy to the community has been an honour, and for all those invested in the development of this stunning new cultural resource, including SIS, a source of great pride.
“I would like to thank all the supporters for their time and generosity, without which we would not have been able to deliver this stunning facility for Inverness and the surrounding area.
“The success of Inverness Creative Academy in its first full year of operations as a complete facility, since its official opening in May last year, has exceeded our expectations.
“It is a positive indicator that not only is the cultural hub needed in the Highlands, but that the community has taken this multipurpose centre to its collective heart.”
