Fiona Hyslop visits V&A Dundee
13 October 2017
The Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Tourism and External Affairs has visited the fast-developing construction site of V&A Museum of Design Dundee today (Friday 13 October).
Fiona Hyslop MSP toured the site of Scotland’s first design museum with V&A Dundee Director Philip Long and representatives of Dundee City Council.
The Cabinet Secretary attended the official “ground-breaking” ceremony marking the start of construction in March 2015, and today became the first Scottish Government Minister to see inside the museum building.
The visit took place on the back of a debate held in Parliament last month, in which the Cabinet Secretary highlighted the significant contribution Dundee makes to Scotland’s cultural life and reached cross-party backing for the city’s bid to become 2023 European Capital of Culture.
V&A Dundee will be the first V&A museum anywhere in the world outside London. It will showcase Scotland’s outstanding design achievements as well as international touring exhibitions from the V&A. The Scottish Government was the first public funder to commit to the project and has been supporting the delivery of the museum since 2009.
Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Tourism and External Affairs Fiona Hyslop, said: “I am really pleased to be here in Dundee today to visit the V&A Museum of Design.
“The Scottish Government has been a long-time supporter of this project, which is set to attract further inward business investment and promote tourism growth in Dundee, across the region and throughout Scotland.
“Both the museum’s opening in 2018 and Dundee’s bid to become European Capital of Culture 2023 will give a welcome boost to the city’s tourism and culture economy, further promoting our cultural and design heritage and benefitting the whole of Scotland.”
Dundee City Council leader Councillor John Alexander said: “I am delighted that the Cabinet Secretary has had an opportunity to see for herself the impressive progress that has been made on this stunning building.
“We are a city with big ambitions and V&A Dundee is already attracting huge interest and is creating excitement across Scotland and beyond.
“Our bold bid to become European Capital of Culture 2023 highlights the drive and determination locally to use the arts as a way of creating economic and social benefits.
“The development of V&A Dundee is a symbol of how the city is reaching out to tell its story to a wider audience.”
Philip Long, Director of V&A Dundee, said: “Scotland has been a nation of incredible design creativity for centuries, but many of these stories are unknown or underappreciated within our own country.
“V&A Dundee will showcase this incredible history, helping to inspire new creativity in our schools and communities.
“Through working with our colleagues in the V&A, we will also bring world-class exhibitions to Scotland, putting Dundee on the map as an international tourist destination – and attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.”
The £80.11m project to create the museum is at the heart of Dundee’s ambitious £1bn waterfront regeneration supporting the creation of more jobs and wider economic benefits.
V&A Dundee has been established in close partnership with the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, accessing its collections, curatorial expertise and exhibitions.
It is run independently with its own Director and, as well as bringing V&A exhibitions to Scotland, it will develop its own exhibitions.
The construction of V&A Dundee is on schedule for opening in 2018, with major progress made recently on removing the temporary cofferdam which enabled the museum to be built out into the River Tay.
