Year of Creative Scotland 2012
Scotland-wide celebrations for the Year of Creative Scotland 2012 have been mapped out by the Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs.
On a visit to Glasgow Print Studio, Fiona Hyslop unveiled a map representing our creative nation by artist Murray Robertson as she confirmed more details of the 2012 programme.
The Year of Creative Scotland 2012 will begin with a bang this Hogmanay, with a spectacular fireworks display in Scotland’s capital, and will continue until 31 December 2012. Through an exciting programme celebrating our world-class events, festivals, culture and heritage, the year puts Scotland’s creativity in the global spotlight with a focus on cultural tourism and developing our creative sector and events industry.
Creative Scotland will invest £6.5 million of National Lottery funds in the Year of Creative Scotland 2012 programme, and the first of their funded projects have been announced today by Ms Hyslop.
They include the shortlist for the Creative Place Awards, which aim to celebrate the creativity of smaller communities across Scotland and support them to develop a year-round programme. There are three award categories with a shortlist of three nominees in each. For places with under 2,500 residents, the nominees are Creetown, Kilmartin Glen, and Wigtown; for places with under 10,000 residents, the nominees are Huntly, Prestonpans and West Kilbride; and for places with under 100,000 residents, the nominees are Irvine, Perth and St Andrews. The category winners will be announced at a ceremony in January.
Other highlights of the Year of Creative Scotland 2012 programme announced today include innovative collaborations between the tourism and culture sectors such as:
- Traquair House in the Scottish Borders will host a Celebration of Contemporary Scottish Printmaking between July and September 2012. Working in partnership with Edinburgh Printmakers, the Celebration will introduce contemporary printmaking to a wider audience and support tourism development in the Scottish Borders. An ambitious series of commissions reflecting the historic surroundings of Traquair House, alongside a new visitor programme will improve local residents’ and incoming visitors’ access to high-quality new work in print.
- The City of Literature Trust will enlighten the streets of Edinburgh in early 2012 with spectacular building-sized dynamic projections, using material from the Scottish Enlightenment period, through their enLIGHTen project.
- Plans to create a RockNess Express, a bespoke train service to the annual Rock Ness festival from Kings Cross station featuring on-board music and the best of Scottish food and drink.
- Extensive international promotion of Scottish creativity and culture: Scotland’s largest traditional music festival, Celtic Connections, will head to Chicago in September 2012, as the Ryder Cup takes place at the nearby Medinah Country Club. The trip will be an opportunity to showcase the best of Scottish music and attract international visitors to Celtic Connections 2013 as part of a wider Scottish presence in Chicago.
More announcements of projects and programmes for the Year of Creative Scotland 2012 are expected throughout the year.
The Culture Secretary said:
“Scotland is a dynamic and creative nation, rich in heritage with a wealth of world-class cultural events. The Year of Creative Scotland 2012 will be a spectacular celebration of our nation’s culture and creativity on both the international stage and across our communities. It will continue to build on the success of Homecoming 2009 as we journey towards a second year of Homecoming in 2014 – when Scotland hosts the Commonwealth Games and the Ryder Cup.
“The programme for 2012 features fantastic events and outstanding new work, covering everything from music, drama and dance, to art, textiles and literature. Activity will take place in communities the length and breadth of Scotland, with lots of new opportunities to get involved, to be creative and experience and participate in our world-class culture.
“This, coupled with our already vibrant cultural calendar filled with world renowned festivals and top new and refurbished visitor attractions – like the Royal Palace at Stirling Castle, the National Museum of Scotland and Scottish Portrait Gallery in Edinburgh, Riverside Museum in Glasgow and the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum - will offer something for everyone to enjoy, year round.
“The high-quality cultural events and projects here in Scotland in 2012 will complement the sporting activity taking place in London for the Olympic and Paralympic Games. For example, when the Olympic Games draw to a close on August 12, and before the Paralympics start on August 29, Scotland will be in the midst of our internationally famous Edinburgh Festivals.
“Scotland’s arts and culture are already a major draw for visitors. More than a million people attended Edinburgh’s Festivals alone in 2010, generating more than £261 million of additional revenue for our economy. We will use this opportunity to promote Scotland to millions more people across the globe and introduce Scotland to new audiences at home and abroad as one of the world’s most creative nations.”
Andrew Dixon, Chief Executive, Creative Scotland said:
“The Year of Creative Scotland 2012 is a unique opportunity to celebrate the huge strength of Scotland as a creative nation. Scotland’s talent reaches into every home and in the next year will play out on an international stage.”
Mike Cantlay, Chairman of VisitScotland, said:
“The Year of Creative Scotland is a chance to spotlight, celebrate and promote Scotland’s cultural and creative strengths on a world stage by encouraging the cultural and tourism sectors to work in closer partnership to enhance cultural tourism in Scotland. It marks the beginning of an exciting programme that will embrace London 2012 and celebrate Glasgow 2014 - as well as generate real momentum towards Homecoming 2014.”
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Creative Scotland has been chosen as the key partner to work alongside Visit Scotland, EventScotland and VOCAL in delivering the The Year of Creative Scotland 2012.
Year of Creative Scotland 2012
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