Artist’s Commission – Journey Stone at Inverness Castle

Closing date 3 March 2023

The Highland Council seeks an artist(s) to create a new work in the grounds of Inverness Castle as a focal point to mark the beginning and end of journeys, physical and spiritual.

The Artist/s will create a new work in the grounds of Inverness Castle which will act as a focal point for visitors. It will mark the beginning and end of journeys, physical and spiritual, which people have taken/will take across the Highlands on contemporary and ancient routes. The visitor’s journey may be as short as within the city, or as a lengthy and extended tour of the Highlands.

Inverness Castle already marks the beginning and end of many wayfaring routes, roads and trails across the Highlands, including the Great Glen Way, the Loch Ness Trail and the North Coast 500. We are not seeking to represent these various trails in a corporate manner, but the Journey Stone should recognise that the artwork will also act as the literal start and endpoint for these various wayfaring routes.

It should be noted that the site of the artwork will be used as a photo opportunity by many visitors. The backdrop of the river in one direction and the Castle in the other, will encourage all visitors (not just those who are ‘journeying’) to record the moment. So, the artwork will be a symbol both of their visit and of the Highlands.

The Journey Stone/Clach Turas should, therefore:

Essential

Reflect the Spirit of the Highlands.
Be a symbolic and actual focal point for the visitor’s journey, and the trails which meet there.
Enhance the visitor’s experience, local or otherwise, of their visit to the Castle site.
Involve the local community in a dialogue that helps inform the design process.

Preferable

Highlight Inverness’ natural and built environments – the city’s character.

This commission will be part of the Spirit of the Highlands Arts Programme, funded by the City Region Deal partners – Scottish Government, UK Government, The Highland Council, and Highlands and Islands Enterprise, with a bid for further support from Creative Scotland. The project is owned by The Highland Council and managed on their behalf by High Life Highland, who will act as the commissioning agent for this project.

We expect two principal areas of the budget: