V&A Dundee announces search for exhibition designers

The V&A Museum of Dundee is looking for exhibition designers to work on its permanent Scottish Design Galleries ahead of the opening of the £80 million museum in 2018.

There will four main spaces in the new gallery, two of which together form the new Scottish Design Galleries, telling the story of Scotland’s contribution to international design from the 18^th century until today.

The collection will be made up of around 250 objects from the V&A’s own collections, as well as loans from across Scotland and around the world.

The galleries will focus on disciplines including furniture, fashion, architecture and the built environment, service design and digital.

Telling the story of Scottish design

In particular there will be an emphasis on how Scottish design has expanded internationally and the galleries will need to tell the stories of design process, materials and technological innovation, as well as geographic areas of Scotland known for different types of design.

A key piece in the galleries will be Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s Oak Room, which is comprised of 600 pieces of oak paneling. This was salvaged from Miss Cranston’s Ingram Street Tea Room in Glasgow in the 1970s and will be the centrepiece of the galleries.

The V&A says the chosen designer should have the vision to turn a new purpose built space into “a breathtaking display” highlighting modern architectural features, while creating a relevant interpretation of both the objects and the themes of the galleries.

“Imaginative, sustainable and transformative”

“An imaginative, sustainable and transformative approach” is needed to design for the gallery’s 25-year life span, says the V&A.

The building is being designed by architect Kengo Kuma and is part of a £1bn transformation of Dundee’s waterfront.

We caught up with V&A Dundee director Philip Long earlier in the year to learn about how the new museum is taking shape.

Dundee City Council is overseeing the process of commissioning a designer for the Scottish Design Galleries. Interested parties must be registered on Public Contracts Scotland (PCS)  to view the Prior Information Notice, which has just published.