Inverness Creative Academy is the Highlands’ first major creative hub. It offers working accommodation for artists and makers, creative industries, social enterprises and charities.
Inverness Creative Academy also offers flexible workplace options, including fixed desk, hot desk and meeting room provision. It boasts an award winning café and a stunning gallery space in the former Assembly Hall, as well as a sizeable event space in the Gym Hall. Located close to the city centre, it is the perfect location for this welcome mix of art, business, creativity and events.
32 artist spaces
54 creative offices
meeting rooms
exhibition spaces
disabled access
event hire
artists’ and makers’ wing
The 1913 Arts & Science Extension is the ‘artists and makers’ wing, providing 32 artist’s studios, a community-run photography darkroom, a designated workshop space for classes and an events/exhibition space in the refurbished Gym Hall. It is a busy creative centre, home to over 30 Highlands based artists and creatives. For more information about exhibitions and events coming up in the Gym Hall and other Wasps venues visit the arts programme page by clicking the link below.
creative industry offices wing
The main building, opened in February 2022, features:
• Fifty-four workspaces for creative industries and cultural social enterprises including long term office space
• Flexible co-working spaces for 26 creatives
• Public exhibition, events and workshop spaces on two levels overlooking the hall
• Fully accessible meeting rooms and facilities for hire
• Public café within the restored, double height, former Assembly Hall
If you are interested in taking space at Inverness Creative Academy, you can find full details on available spaces across the network here. For more information including rents and viewings, please click the tab below to contact our lettings department.
the assembly hall and gym hall spaces
Inverness Creative Academy boasts two sizeable rooms that are available to hire for a multitude of different events. We have hosted large-scale exhibitions, ceilidhs, award ceremonies, performances, workshops and more across both spaces. The Gordon & Ena Baxter Gallery can be found in the Assembly Hall up the cast-iron staircase on the balcony that looks over the café. The Gym Hall is a large room with high ceilings and lots of natural light – this room is noted for staging the summer and winter markets. To find out more about the gallery spaces, click the tabs below. To find out more information about the Assembly Hall and the Gym Hall spaces, please click the yellow tab below.
inverness creative academy is supported by:
being a wasps tenant
With over 40 years worth of expertise, we are the UK’s largest provider of studio space for artists and creative industries.
Tenants of the Wasps community receive the following benefits:
- An inclusive rent for artists (separate to the electricity surcharge)
- Studio security – all our buildings are either owned or on long term rentals across the estate
- 24/7 access all year round (excluding hot-desking memberships)
- Being part of our community of almost 1,000 artists and creatives based in 20 buildings across Scotland
- Ability to join the Own Art scheme through Wasps – Own Art allows for an artist’s clients to spread the cost of an artwork priced from £100 to £25,000 over 10 months with no interest. Using Own Art can help you close that extra sale – turning a £500 artwork into a more affordable proposition of £50 per month, for example
- Support and expertise from Wasps’ staff
- Promotion on the Wasps website (receiving tens of thousands of visitors per month) with an self-managed artist profile and shop through the community page
- Access to the Wasps Tenant Portal – an exclusive online platform for tenants to find out about updates and opportunities from across the network
- Exhibiting and selling opportunities through our arts programme including exhibitions across the network, discounted rates for market stalls, Open Studios events and inclusion in art fairs
accessibility & getting here
accessibility
Inverness Creative Academy is fully accessible, across both phases of the building.
address
Midmills Building
Stephen's Street
Inverness
IV2 3JP
getting here
As an organisation we are committed to assisting our tenants and building users to access green and sustainable modes of transport when travelling to and from our buildings, and to reduce the environmental impact of, in particular, single-user car journeys. We encourage cycle travel and Inverness Creative Academy is well connected with public transport, less than a ten minute walk from Inverness Train Station and Inverness Bus Station. It is important to note that during construction of the final phase of Inverness Creative Academy, there is no car parking space available for visitors to the building. The nearest car park is at Eastgate Shopping Centre.
