Edinburgh, arts in Cl‘lSIS
Artists’ studios in the capital’s Old Town are being knocked down. By driving away its cultural communities, the city is courting catastrophe, argues one of the
team from the Out of the Blue studios.
he demolition of Out of the Blue's New Street
studios to make way for the proposed Calton
Gate development threatens to rip the still beating heart out of the Edinburgh arts scene. The move will make some 50 city-based artists working in all media from painting. drawing and music to sculpture and installation creatively homeless in a single stroke.
The Out of the Blue Drill Hall in Dalrneny Street in Leith. purchased in 2003. currently provides space for around 40 creativcs. The next phase of the refurbishment will provide a further 30 spaces. But with the waiting list at the new building topping 100. and reaching similar levels at other studios in Edinburgh. the city's artistic community is facing a very uncertain future. Make no mistake: this shortfall in studio space could be a catastrophe for anyone interested in living in a vibrant and culturally diverse environment. Artists in central Edinburgh are not like cod off Newfoundland 200 years ago. Cull that many in one go and you have an immediate depletion in the quality of a city's cultural life.
Of course. the redevelopment of the old bus depot behind Waverley Station has been on the cards for years but with no deal yet for replacement creative production space. many artists will be faced with no alternative but to relocate to other. more supportive cities.
All too often. city fathers in Edinburgh seem content to rest on their Festival laurels while grassroots cultural activity is left to fend for itself. But without this bedrock of year-round artistic endeavour. flagship events such as these can only suffer in the long term.
When Out of the Blue (()()TB) first took over the lease on the New Street building back in 19%. the site was simply so much waste ground. With little or no funding. ()()TB and a group of artists transformed a white elephant into a buzzing hive of activity. Besides providing production space for local artists. the building regularly staged exhibitions in its gallery.
()()TB also set up performance space and night club the Bongo Club at New Street. While the venue may have been a bit scruffy. for many that was part of its charm. Besides. the Bongo gave — and still does. albeit
from a different location — a platform to hundreds of
young musicians. DJs and performers. many of whom would have struggled to find a voice elsewhere. Some of these up-and-comers are now big names.
Without ventures such as the Out of the Blue New Street studios. young artistic talents will be forced to look elsewhere to develop their craft. ()r worse still. give up their creative ambitions entirely. Edinburgh‘s enlightenment heroes would be turning in their graves.
It's not only the New Street studios that are being
12 THE LIST 1? Nov 1 DOC 2005)
‘WITHOUT THESE
ST UDIOS, ARTISTIC TALENTS MIGHT HAVE TO GIVE UP ENTIRELY'
forced out by new developments. Nearby underground Edinburgh music venues the Venue and Studio 24 also look set to close.
Quite apart from the threatened vandalism of Old Town treasure Jacob's Ladder as well as a Royal Mile tenement building. the new development could miss the point entirely. It's not enough to pay lip service to the
role of culture in central Edinburgh with a smattering of
mass-produced ‘celtic‘ craft shops.
If we are serious about attracting tourism. the Old Town needs a working ‘cultural quarter' — an idea first tabled by Out of the Blue as long ago as 2000 — not another hotel. While commercial realities always play a role in the development of any modem city. we must ask ourselves what kind of Edinburgh we want to live in.
While circumstances may be different. Glasgow does seem more understanding towards the artistic community. Art spaces such as Franz Ferdinand's alma mater the Chateau owe their existence in no small part to the forward-looking city council policies of our west coast cousins. Many continental cities such as Barcelona and Berlin also pride themselves on their communities of working artists. I believe it‘s no coincidence that both cities are among the top travel destinations in Europe.
In short. the currency which council buzz words ‘best value’ must deal in is quality of life. not Pounds Sterling. If you know of a difficult-to—let building that might be suitable for affordable studios. please get in touch with Out of the Blue urgently. If something is not done now to solve the shortage of affordable studio space in Scotland’s ‘inspiring' capital. we will all be poorer.
Hugo Fluendy is a spokesperson for Out of the Blue, an Edinburgh-based arts organisation. Out of the Blue can be contacted on 0131 555 7101; www.0utoftheblue.org.uk.
New Street artist. Andy Slater
PLUCKING FRUITS FROM THE CULTURAL BUSH
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