Following a major refurbishment programme, ten years in the planning, the Centre re-opened to the public in July 2007. The two original listed buildings - neighbouring but unconnected - and pier have been extended following architects Reiach and Hall’s plan and now incorporate a previously semi-derelict building that has gained the Centre a prominent new street presence. In addition a contemporary building has been created to link all these discrete parts into a unified complex.
Besides enabling level access to all the different buildings and floors of the Centre the development has provided; a suite of new galleries, improved visitor facilities including a reference library, a meeting room and shop. Precise control of the museum environment has been gained through air handling plant whilst workspaces and a collection store, along with an artist’s flat, complete the non-public, back of house facilities.
These activities have been achieved on budget and in a very constrained and challenging site. The narrow confines of the Stromness’ conservation zone and the needs and concerns of the Centre’s neighbours were considered through regular liaison meetings and a particularly ingenious site access strategy, which by temporarily infilling part of the harbour basin doubled as site compound thereby avoiding the need to use the town's street and main artery.
The Centre’s participation in the National Collecting Scheme for Scotland at the same moment as the buildings were being rejuvenated and enlarged allowed the Centre to refresh and extend the historical base of the Collection. New acquisitions, supported by the Art Fund and others, have added contemporary breadth by demonstrating how the aesthetic legacy of British twentieth century modernism has influenced present day artists. That this unique opportunity to extend the Collection should happen in tandem with a rebirth of the buildings has added a potent charge to the symbiotic connection between the Centre’s Collection, its buildings and its contemporary programme.
In just the first four months of reopening, the re-launched Centre attracted more than 22,000 visitors; almost as many as in a whole year before it closed (Orkney’s population is 20,000).
Key funders of the £4.5 million project included: The Scottish Arts Council Lottery Fund, The Heritage Lottery Fund, The European Regional Development Fund, Orkney Islands Council and Historic Scotland, as well as trusts and individual supporters.
Latest news:
The Pier Arts Centre and its design team, Reiach and Hall Architects, is one of only three projects in Scotland to win a 2008 UK Civic Trust Award. A total of thirty Awards were announced on 12th March. The annual event, which attracted over 400 entrants, aims to encourage projects that are culturally, socially or economically beneficial, and make an outstanding contribution to the quality and appearance of the environment. The winners receive a plaque for permanent display in their buildings.
Some of your comments:
The Pier Arts Centre in its new incarnation is a little gem of a gallery. It feels very connected to its location, very much at the centre of things - the life of the port on one side and the activities of the town on the other, while creating its own very special and friendly atmosphere, neither elitist nor intimidating. Above all, it is an excellent space for art.
Adam Barker-Mill, London
I would like most enthusiastically and sincerely to nominate the Pier Arts Centre for this award. The new building is a delight, blending perfectly with its surrounding but at the same time managing to have a significant presence - beautifully simple, totally at one with the atmosphere of the place. The permanent collection is of course one of the most important in the UK and there could be few more appropriate settings for it. The temporary exhibitions both provide a focus for more local art and bring in important works, having therefore both inspirational and educational functions for the local population. Being so significant, the Pier Arts Centre attracts visitors from around the world, delighting and surprising those who had no expectation of seeing such important artworks in the Northern Isles. Once discovered, it is a place that people will visit again and again for intellectual and visual refreshment.
Gill Jones, Edinburgh
Do acknowledge this northerly beacon of the arts at this time when it is celebrating its renewal. It was a courageous step to undertake this work. All has been done with artistic sensitivity, enhancing the gallery, the people and surroundings in Stromness, and clearly an inspiration to so many who visit or share in its work.
Joan H Craig, Perth
The refurbishment and extension of the Pier Arts Centre has been a resounding success, fitting in beautifully with its much older surroundings. Its permanent collection ,of outstanding national and international quality, can now be shown to even greater effect, and there is much more room for exhibitions of work by local artists and increased scope for involving school children.
Mr and Mrs RLB Cormack, Rousay, Orkney
We came onto the Pier Arts Centre in Stromness by surprise. Nestled in amongst the other houses and sheds of the town it fits in perfectly with its surroundings. What a surprise to step inside to find a light, modern and welcoming museum space with unexpected vistas over Stromness harbour, fishing boats and the town. Every turn brought more surprises, leading us to run around like children, exploring every nook and cranny. I could not imagine a more humane, contemporary and fitting museum in this picturesque town. The museum staff were equally smitten by the building. I just wish I could move in permanently.
Ditta Neumann, Stonehaven
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