We are very pleased to share the news that Wasps has now completed the purchase of Riverside House on Gorgie Road in Edinburgh, adding this six floor building to our Edinburgh studio provision.
It has been quite a lengthy process but we are proud to have finally secured this building for our existing tenants and future generations of artists in the Capital to work from.
The purchase was essential as one of our current Edinburgh studio buildings, West Park Place, is in the process of being closed having become unviable as a Wasps artist studio building. Those artists who will be moving to Riverside House have already been involved in helping to shape the building’s look and use, and many will be moving there on a temporary basis until their new permanent studios are available.
By Summer 2024, we will also be inviting our artists based at Albion Road to join us at Riverside House, as the building’s new owner will be renovating the site. This bringing together of the two groups is an exciting prospect, and we look forward to creating one new artist community at Riverside House.
We now look to the future, and getting Riverside House prepared by safeguarding and fitting out the new studio spaces which will be ready in summer 2024. Riverside House will have an exciting workshop space, with lots of potential for the surrounding community to be introduced to the building and its artists when we start to see events scheduled.
The money spent on purchasing Riverside House will come from the sale of West Park Place in due course, as we promised to reinvest and funds generated by sales within the Edinburgh estate would go towards continuing our mission of creating long-term workspaces for artists and the creative industries.
We will update you on this exciting development next year, but until then have a wonderful festive season and a very happy and fruitful 2024!
