Whale Arts Agency

Wester Hailes Arts for Leisure and Education

0131 458 3267

WHALE ARTS wins prestigious Creative Regeneration award

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Community-led arts charity WHALE Arts won top prize at SURF Awards 2019 for Best Practice in Creative Regeneration on 5 December at Glasgow’s Grand Central Hotel.

WHALE Arts was announced winner of the Best Practice in Creative Regeneration at SURF Awards 2019 for its long-term and innovative approach. Founded by local community members in 1992 WHALE Arts centre offers a range of ongoing art activities, events and creative opportunities available to the South West Edinburgh community which impressed SURF judges.

The SURF Awards are delivered each year by SURF, a regeneration forum with over 300 cross-sector member organisations across Scotland, in partnership with the Scottish Government. The purpose is to highlight, celebrate and share the achievements of initiatives that address physical, social and economic challenges in communities across Scotland.

Representatives of the five category winning initiatives for 2019 were personally congratulated on their inspiring work by the Scottish Government’s Cabinet Secretary for Local Government and Communities, Aileen Campbell MSP.

Aileen Campbell MSP, Scottish Government Cabinet Secretary for Local Government and Communities said:

These awards are a great platform for recognising and showcasing successful community regeneration. With each passing year the exceptional standard of applications and shortlisted projects is even higher. This year’s shortlist demonstrates what is possible when communities are empowered to work hard, meet challenges and develop projects to shape their own futures.

SURF judges noted the scale of individual and collective partnerships launched and developed over time and the five winning projects all demonstrate the value of a long-term approach to regeneration. Long-running activities and events at WHALE Arts include Street Arts for youth, smARTies art club for children and smARTcraft for adults with additional support needs.

Leah Black, Chief Executive of WHALE Arts, said:

We are honoured to receive this award. We will continue to work alongside our wonderful community in Wester Hailes to become creative agents for change. It is an exciting time working with local partners, City of Edinburgh Council and The Scottish Government on what might be the first Local Place Plan in Scotland, focusing on Wester Hailes and driving creative regeneration.

Chief Architect for the Scottish Government, Ian Gilzean, is currently in residency at WHALE Arts to explore how an arts centre can inform and drive creative regeneration.  A new Wester Hailes Place Plan is currently under development.

Ian Gilzean, Chief Architect for the Scottish Government said:

Congratulations to WHALE Arts on their well-deserved award, WHALE Arts has been a fantastic base for facilitating the Wester Hailes Local Place Plan while on secondment working for City of Edinburgh Council. It’s been great to work with the wider local community, including partners of WHALE Arts such as Wester Hailes Community Trust and Prospect Housing, to develop creative regeneration possibilities.

WHALE Arts is a social enterprise and charity launched in 1992 as Wester Hailes’ community centre for Arts, Leisure and Education. In 2000 the WHALE Arts centre opened and includes an arts workshop, performance space, community kitchen, creché and board room that local community groups and organisations use. Local artist practitioners support and lead art programmes with partner organisations including Edinburgh Art Festival and local residents in Wester Hailes.

 

For more information about current projects at WHALE Arts contact: info@whalearts.co.uk or visit https://www.whalearts.co.uk

Help Shape the Future of Wester Hailes

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Are you a local resident of Wester Hailes?

You can help shape the future of Wester Hailes in a drop-in event to help inform and develop a Local Place Plan at the Westside Plaza Shopping Centre. Join us on Friday 29 November 11am – 5pm and Saturday 30 November 10am – 4pm.

The Local Place Plan has been led by local residents over the past few months. The event will be an opportunity to hear about the plans and feed in ideas for the upgrading of the Westside Plaza. In January 2020 works will start on resurfacing, creating green spaces, a play area and much more.

The ideas were developed for this by the Wester Hailes Community Trust and local partner organisations including WHALE.

For more information contact westerhailesplaceplan@gmail.com or call 0131 458 3267.

Scottish Parliament hosts younger people’s photography exhibition

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Scottish Parliament Member’s Lobby, 7-11 October 2019

My Edinburgh: A unique perspective of Edinburgh in Photography by the young people of Wester Hailes is an exhibition delivered in partnership with WHALE Arts and Museums & Galleries Edinburgh which showcases photography created by a group of young people from Wester Hailes. The exhibition was designed to encourage the young people involved to present their own personal views of the city and celebrate their vision and creativity.

Kids from Wester Hailes have had their work shown at Scottish Parliament.The 20 young people aged 6-16 from WHALE Arts smARTies and Street Arts projects took part in photography sessions, visiting The Museum of Edinburgh, Royal Mile, Lauriston Castle and locations across Wester Hailes. They worked with photographers Grant Ritchie, Jonathan Cruickshank, Gordon Veitch and Ailsa Grandison to create work and develop new skills showcased in the exhibition which has toured the Museum of Edinburgh, WHALE Arts Centre and now the Scottish Parliament with the support of MSP Gordon MacDonald.

 

Councillor Donald Wilson, City of Edinburgh Culture and Communities Convener, said: “We are delighted to work with the incredible charity that is WHALE Arts.  It has been a delight to see the young people embrace the project and take a real pride in creating their vision of Edinburgh for everyone to see. It has provided them with an opportunity to develop their photography skills and to explore their city, and the results are truly impressive. Well done to everyone involved.”

 Kate Griffin, Creative Programme Manager with WHALE Arts said: “WHALE Arts is very proud to share these images created by the talented and imaginative young people we work with at the Scottish Parliament. We have enjoyed developing and delivering this exciting project with our partners Museums and Galleries Edinburgh. Working with artists, curators and photographers has offered young people in Wester Hailes the opportunity to develop their skills and creativity and to share their perspective on the city.”

Michael Bowdidge, Street Arts Project Co-ordinator with WHALE Arts said: “Working with this group of young people has been a wonderful and literally eye -opening experience. Time and again I have been struck by the subtlety, wit and excitement of the photographs they take. For me, it’s a real privilege to have had the opportunity to see the world through their eyes.”

 

 Media information

  • For enquiries or interviews please contact Kate Griffin on kate@whalearts.co.uk or call 0131 458 3267.
  • Further images are available for use by contacting Laura Delahunt on laura@whalearts.co.uk

Local artists – show us your art!

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The 1st Annual Wester Hailes Open Art Exhibition

Are you an artist or maker living in Wester Hailes?

WHALE Arts are hosting the first annual Wester Hailes Open Art Exhibition in October. Artists and makers resident or working in Wester Hailes are welcome to drop their artworks off for the chance to be shown in the exhibition.

The exhibition opening event on Friday 25th October 2019 will include refreshments and give artists a chance to meet and view artworks.

How to enter: 

Drop your art off at WHALE Arts reception between Monday 21st and Tuesday 22nd October, 9am – 5pm.

Artists or makers must be working or living in Wester Hailes to submit works – it is free to enter.

2D or 3D pieces are accepted and framing is not necessary.

If you have any questions about the exhibition or entry requirements for submitting pieces please contact us by emailing creativeplacemaking@whalearts.co.uk or call: 0131 458 3267

WHALE Arts is …

... the cultural anchor organisation for Wester Hailes. We are a community-led arts charity and social enterprise, set up by local people in 1992. Our mission is to be the creative heart of a vibrant, thriving community.

WHALE Arts

30 Westburn Grove,
Edinburgh,
EH14 2SA
0131 458 3267
info@whalearts.co.uk

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