A group of professional artists based in Inverness have embarked on a one-month crowdfunding campaign to create a new artist-run gallery in the city centre.
The online campaign was launched this week and, if successful, Circus Artspace will offer a rolling programme of free regular exhibitions, events and discussions on different aspects of artists’ work.
It also aims to have social meet-ups and artists’ film and performance nights.
Organisers want to support recent graduates through a series of internships offering mentoring.
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The voluntary collective behind the project formed last August and were selected to be part of Crowdfunding Creativity, a mentoring programme developed by Creative Scotland and Paved with Gold.
Clive Gillman, director at Creative Scotland said: “It’s clear that there is a strong and innovative creative community in and around Inverness and we’re really pleased that this new initiative is reaching out in this way – building strong sustainable relationships through crowdfunding that will enable great things to happen for artists in the region.”
A spokesman for the Circus Artspace team said: “Currently there is no dedicated space for contemporary work in the city.
“We want to build a supportive community for visual artists and recent graduates as well as make contemporary art accessible to a broader Highland audience. Inverness is our home and we want to contribute to making it a vibrant, forward thinking and inclusive city.”
The goal is to raise £7,500 through public donations of £5 to £300.
This will enable the group to secure a city centre space to fit out as a gallery as well as support artists costs to enable them to create new work and pay graduate interns a fee.
The group are in touch with a couple of city centre landlords and if the crowdfunding campaign reaches it’s goal, Circus Artspace will launch in June.