Granton cultural hub to engage the public in research & conservation
June 6 2022
The National Galleries of Scotland (NMS) is staging a public consultation into the creation of a new collections facility in Granton, Edinburgh.
The Art Works is conceived as a public repository for the study, care and storage of cultural treasures in what is claimed to be the largest building in the country designed to Passsivhaus standards.
Led by John McAslan + Partners the plans centre on a 4.5 hectare brownfield site bounded by Waterfront Avenue and West Granton Road, transforming the space as a focal point for cultural heritage.
Connecting Pilton to the waterfront the scheme will augment the existing NMS visitor centre along a new north-south pedestrian route hosting a wildflower meadow, allotments and events lawn. Fronting Waterfront Avenue with an internal 'street' the proposals seek to spark 'creative collisions' by bringing artists, academics and conservators together while reaching out to the public.
In a statement the NMS wrote: "Along its primary floorplate at ground level, the street is animated with engaging elements open to the public and visiting partners – art rooms, lecture spaces, interpretation and research spaces, digital exploration facilities; and these could be interwoven with social spaces."
The pitched roof warehouse draws on the industrial quality of the site, increasing visibility of the collection while making use of north light and views to the Firth of Forth.
A planning application is expected this October.
A north to south pedestrian route will connect to the waterfront
The pitched mass of the collections hub mirrors surviving production sheds of the Madelvic car plant
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2 Comments
The low hung roof pitches are really quite awkward, and make the proposal seem too close to the ground. There needs to be some relief and drama which could be given by giving height to the entrance or another key part of the building. The massing is boring and, as #1 said, doesn't take account of the masterplanned high-density core.
The interior spaces feel a bit bland too and need a bit more fun brought to them.
The prospect of a new art centre should be exciting and this just isn't.
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1) Great to finally see NMS develop this land.
2) Excellent that its not being fenced off and finally allows a connection through between West Granton Road and Waterfront Avenue. Hopefully the securocrats don't remove this key feature.
3) But it badly needs more presence on Waterfront Avenue. This road was envisaged as a high-density core of the waterfront. 2-storey pitched roof doesn't achieve that. In fact, a lack of elevation image on Waterfront Avenue implies and inward-looking approach and that this isn't a key elevation. Sort of sums up NMS's approach to the area so far.
4) Reference to existing pitched roofs and the Madelvic plant would be fine if the Madelvic represented a viable building shell now for the envisaged high-density development. It doesn't, and this massing merely reinforces something that doesn't work.
5) Unclear from the literature if there's actually anything IN this building to visit. There are plenty of cycling and walking groups that visit the area en-route to Cramond, but zero to keep them there, apart from Morrisons cafe. A bit clichéd, Some type of cafe space would be actually be useful here.