Scottish Ballet Proposes Tramway Solution : RUTH WISHART:
SCOTTISH Ballet has submitted a new plan to develop Glasgow's Tramway after an outcry over the loss of what is seen as an important visual arts space.
Its new proposal would cost an extra £750,000, but could end the battle over the centre's future use. Visual arts campaigners last night gave it a muted welcome.
The revamped design would include a custom-built facility at the rear of the main building for Scottish Ballet's technical requirements, leaving the old tram shed – Tramway 2 – as a publicly accessible space for visual artists and other performances.
It was the loss of Glasgow's largest "found space" for arts which had enraged sections of the visual arts community. They argued removing Tramway 2 would reduce the opportunity to attract international artists, and discourage the critical mass of indigenous talent which had been built up in Glasgow.
In Scottish Ballet's revised plan, the proposed new studio/workshops for the ballet company and other community and education projects would still be retained, as would the existing performance space in Tramway 1.
The new plan was developed after Scottish Ballet bosses attended a meeting of visual artists in the city to hear their concerns, brokered by Seona Reid, director of Glasgow School of Art.
Last night, she said the new plan was a "positive move", adding: "I'm glad Scottish Ballet realises the value of this space."
Building a base for the company's technical needs from scratch, rather than using Tramway 2 will add some £750,000 to the cost, but Chris Barron, chief executive of Scottish Ballet, maintained the public would still be getting value for money.
"This whole project represents the arts in the most visible possible way as an agent of urban regeneration. The extra space we have identified is currently only used as an ad hoc car park and our new design would put a building on part of that land, whilst also making a walkway to the wonderful hidden garden designed for the site by NVA.
"We have talked through the plans with them and also to the staff at Tramway about our vision and about our commitment to be generous with all the players involved."
The revamp means the lottery will be asked for some £3.5m, around 40% of the total cost. Graham Berry, director of the Scottish Arts Council, confirmed it had been alerted to the new bid.
If the lottery grant is approved, that would still leave £5m to find. Mr Barron said: "We have identified other sources of funding for most of the remaining costs," but declined to name likely benefactors. "What I can say is that we're confident that we will only have to raise a further £1.5m, to make this vision a reality and that we have three years to do it in."
Sorcha Dallas, an artist and one of the campaigners against the closure of Tramway 2, said the news would be greeted positively, but many questions needed to be answered.
"If it is all run by Scottish Ballet, we would want to know what their policy to the visual arts would be," she said. "I think people are campaigning to keep the Tramway as it is now – we don't know whether this will be an arts space temporarily to appease us or for good."
Another leading campaigner said: "This could be a chink of daylight, but the way the council has dealt with visual arts in recent weeks does not give us much confidence in the event of the site being run by Scottish Ballet."
John Lynch, convener of the council's culture and leisure division, said the new option would be considered as part of a review under way for some time to consider how to secure the future of the Tramway.
Additional reporting by Phil Miller.
SCOTTISH Ballet has submitted a new plan to develop Glasgow's Tramway after an outcry over the loss of what is seen as an important visual arts space.
Its new proposal would cost an extra £750,000, but could end the battle over the centre's future use. Visual arts campaigners last night gave it a muted welcome.
The revamped design would include a custom-built facility at the rear of the main building for Scottish Ballet's technical requirements, leaving the old tram shed – Tramway 2 – as a publicly accessible space for visual artists and other performances.
It was the loss of Glasgow's largest "found space" for arts which had enraged sections of the visual arts community. They argued removing Tramway 2 would reduce the opportunity to attract international artists, and discourage the critical mass of indigenous talent which had been built up in Glasgow.
In Scottish Ballet's revised plan, the proposed new studio/workshops for the ballet company and other community and education projects would still be retained, as would the existing performance space in Tramway 1.
The new plan was developed after Scottish Ballet bosses attended a meeting of visual artists in the city to hear their concerns, brokered by Seona Reid, director of Glasgow School of Art.
Last night, she said the new plan was a "positive move", adding: "I'm glad Scottish Ballet realises the value of this space."
Building a base for the company's technical needs from scratch, rather than using Tramway 2 will add some £750,000 to the cost, but Chris Barron, chief executive of Scottish Ballet, maintained the public would still be getting value for money.
"This whole project represents the arts in the most visible possible way as an agent of urban regeneration. The extra space we have identified is currently only used as an ad hoc car park and our new design would put a building on part of that land, whilst also making a walkway to the wonderful hidden garden designed for the site by NVA.
"We have talked through the plans with them and also to the staff at Tramway about our vision and about our commitment to be generous with all the players involved."
The revamp means the lottery will be asked for some £3.5m, around 40% of the total cost. Graham Berry, director of the Scottish Arts Council, confirmed it had been alerted to the new bid.
If the lottery grant is approved, that would still leave £5m to find. Mr Barron said: "We have identified other sources of funding for most of the remaining costs," but declined to name likely benefactors. "What I can say is that we're confident that we will only have to raise a further £1.5m, to make this vision a reality and that we have three years to do it in."
Sorcha Dallas, an artist and one of the campaigners against the closure of Tramway 2, said the news would be greeted positively, but many questions needed to be answered.
"If it is all run by Scottish Ballet, we would want to know what their policy to the visual arts would be," she said. "I think people are campaigning to keep the Tramway as it is now – we don't know whether this will be an arts space temporarily to appease us or for good."
Another leading campaigner said: "This could be a chink of daylight, but the way the council has dealt with visual arts in recent weeks does not give us much confidence in the event of the site being run by Scottish Ballet."
John Lynch, convener of the council's culture and leisure division, said the new option would be considered as part of a review under way for some time to consider how to secure the future of the Tramway.
Additional reporting by Phil Miller.
original article : http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/4683.html