The
Courtyard Studios, run by Wasps (Workshop and Artists'
Studio Provision Scotland), lie behind the renovated frontage facing
the harbour. Looking behind, you will find a purpose-built studio
complex built in the 1980s. Funding from Creative Scotland
enabled WASPS to refurbish the buildings in 2010, increasing the number
of studios from 13 to 17, and now housing 15 artists. Over Scotland,
at the time of writing, there are 20 Wasps locations housing 798 artists.
All the Irvine studios have shop-front access and are open to the public all year round. Please feel free to drop in and speak to the artists about their work.
For the history of the older buildings along the street front, see the Harbour Street page on this site.
Wasps say:
We believe that art can inspire, entertain, educate and transform people’s
lives. Artists and arts charities have the unique talent
and ability to create great art that can do this. Yet many survive on
low incomes and struggle to make ends meet. So Wasps was set up to provide
good quality, affordable studio space to enable artists and arts charities
to carry out their work.
For further information: The
Courtyard Studios site (currently incomplete) lists most of the
artists currently working there, but links are not clear, so we have
begun a list of links below.
Any artist present when you go past will probably be happy to show you
their work.
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