Local Authority Borough: Pembrokeshire Coast National Park

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1 Case Study Theme: Our Council Rhagoriaeth Cymru Local Authority Borough: Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Good Practice: Oriel y Parc Creating the St. Davids Landscape Gallery in partnership with the Amgueddfa Cymru-the National Museum Wales Contact: How it all started The famous British artist, Graham Sutherland, spent much of his later life painting in Pembrokeshire, and when he died in 1980, he left a collection of works and other items to the Amgueddfa Cymru - National Museum to be displayed there. The initial Sutherland Gallery at Picton Castle unfortunately proved financially unviable and closed in 2002 and Amgueddfa Cymru invited bids to provide an alternative home for the collection. St. Davids City Council and the local Friends of the Graham Sutherland Collection asked the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority to assist them in putting together what resulted in the successful bid. Market research indicated that the Sutherland collection on its own would not be a strong attraction. However, Amgueddfa Cymru National Museum also has a vast collection of art, archaeology, nature and human history, most of rarely on public display. The National Park Authority has long had a desire to interpret the Pembrokeshire landscape through art and culture and the possibility of a joint facility excited everyone involved. The project would provide a year round wet weather tourist attraction, bringing an estimated additional 50,000 visitors to the city, mostly out of the peak season. It would also provide permanent jobs and, as it would include a café to help fund the running costs it could link foods to the landscape in a practical and meaningful way.

2 The agreed partnership objectives To inspire people to discover, value and conserve the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park; its landscape, culture and heritage. To make the collections and resources of the Museum more widely available. To provide an appropriate setting in Pembrokeshire for the displays of material from the Graham Sutherland and other collections. To link the wider Pembrokeshire landscape, culture and heritage with a unique learning experience and make this accessible to diverse audiences. To build productive partnerships which ensure the success of the Centre and its long term viability. To provide a high quality facility for both visitors and residents. To act as an example of best practice in sustainable tourism. To enhance the local economy by extending the tourism season with the provision of a major, all year round, all weather facility. The key challenges 1. To find the funding for this 4m project. Apart from the two partners, the main funding was received from European Union Objective 1 with contributions from Pathways to Prosperity, Invest Wales, DEIN and DBERR 2. To complete the construction within the timetable. By the time the funding had been approved there was less than 18 months to prepare the tender, find a suitable contractor and complete the build as the European grant had an absolute closure date of June To design and construct the building to the BREEAM Excellence standard. Very few new buildings achieve the Excellence quality and this was an extension of an existing building, and the specification required the highest possible environmental controls for the main gallery area. The design team have introduced ground source heat pumps, solar thermal and photovoltaic energy, very high insulation, a grass roof and built partially underground.

3 4. To develop a programme of exhibitions based on landscape themes, using paintings and other exhibits from the National Museum, and linking this with an education programme to meet the requirements of school children, students and adults with varying levels of skills and interests. This is perhaps the most complex challenge, requiring the involvement and commitment of the staff from two separate organisations with differing management, priorities and cultures. For the National Park Authority, this was its largest ever project, the Authority was carrying most of the financial risk and it was a completely new approach. For Amgueddfa Cymru although this was a unique style of partnership, it was a relatively small gallery project amongst a number of their major projects happening at the same time and dedicating resources was always going to be complex. Although commitment and enthusiasm for the project were evident at the highest level in both partner organisations, the distance between us, the timetabling of meetings amongst other priorities and even the different cultures and operational languages of the two organisations led to some delays and at times even confusion. However, the appointment of key staff provided a focus for each organisation and by maintaining a dialogue through meetings, phone calls and the ubiquitous s progress has been maintained. The Amgueddfa Cymru fund the main curatorial post and the secondment of the commissioning curator early in the project provided a link into the national collections. Much work has now been completed to develop the initial exhibitions and to raise the awareness of Oriel y Parc amongst the Museum staff to prepare for future themes and exhibitions. Later in the project, the key post of Education Office was advertised and a former member of the Museum s staff was appointed. The National Park Authority appointed the Centre Manager to oversee all day to day operational decisions working to the Authority s Director of Recreation and Communications and reporting to a special Oriel y Park committee of Authority Members. 5. To prepare a viable business plan for the café. As there is no opportunity (or desire) to charge for admission, the café has been introduced to provide income to support the operation. After much consideration the National Park Authority decided to manage and operate the café in-house as this gave it total control. The café will support the overall sustainability theme and interpretation of the landscape through local seasonal produce and links to local suppliers and encouraging partial preparation off-site.

4 6. To maximise the benefit to the local economy Oriel y Parc will provide an additional nine full time equivalent jobs, many permanent, in an area where year round employment is often limited. It will also provide a significant new visitor attraction, open all year, which will attract an estimated 50,000 new visitors each year, mostly outside the main holiday season. Visitors to the city are now more likely to stay beyond the typical half day and provide extra spend in local shops and restaurants. A year round education programme will target not only schools, but also adults with art related presentations, workshops by visiting artists and artists in residence with the resulting demand for more bed & breakfast accommodation and meals in the area. Making a Difference Most visitors to Pembrokeshire give the beautiful countryside, the coastal scenery and the peace and quiet as their main enjoyment, but perhaps give little thought to what makes the landscape and how it is constantly being changed, partly through man s activity but also by natural forces. The exhibitions in Oriel y Parc provide an additional window to view landscape by interpreting how artists might see it, in some cases concentrating on small detail as in many of Sutherlands works or seeing how landscapes develop through a timeline of paintings. Visitors will be encouraged to visit the locations of some exhibited paintings and maybe try their hand at sketching and interpreting the view. Will they be able to see the history or predict future influences? Over time the exhibitions will include archaeological artefacts, literary collections, local history, music and voice providing greater understanding of man s influence. By providing workshops, guided tours, demonstrations and better information the visitors will hopefully leave the building with an appreciation of landscape and man s influence in the past and the contribution it might make in the future with the impact of climate change. Future developments - building on success In order to sustain the visitor throughput the partners have signed up to an initial ten year agreement which will enable regular changes of exhibition theme and frequent renewing of the items and interpretation on display, justifying repeat visits. The Gallery has been built to the highest security and environmental specifications and can therefore host celebrity exhibits from any museum in the UK and potentially from throughout Europe and it is anticipated that some special items will be included in exhibitions from year two onwards. Both the gallery and the café will be used to develop the local

5 economy. Links will be developed with the local arts and crafts providers, with the possibility of special promotions and displaying local artist works to support the main exhibition themes. The café will encourage local suppliers, reducing food miles and using seasonal foods, and also support local preparation, both prepared vegetables and fully cooked items giving added value for the suppliers. Lessons Learnt Need commitment at the highest level from all partners, it would have been easy to say the risks are too great, but both organisations recognised that the pain would be worth it A project of this size must have dedicated staff who have few distractions with other work The more detail there is in a project plan before building work starts the easier it is to manage the contractor late changes to specification can be costly and may have unintended consequences Get everyone signed up to the high level objectives Share the plans with local interest groups and stakeholders at an early stage to develop support and provide reassurance to the doubters