Pupils and students invited to design artwork for new Dunfermline Learning Campus

Students at Fife College (@fifecollege) and pupils of St Columba’s RC High School and Woodmill High School are being challenged to help develop a piece of public art which will sit at the heart of the new Dunfermline Learning Campus.

Both Fife Council and Fife College are keen to have eye-catching artwork at the new campus to enhance it and reflect the college and schools communities as well as the local Fife area.

As a result students will be asked to engage in workshops, supported by the University of Edinburgh Research into Shared Learning Spaces, to come up with ideas and designs that will then to be presented to the joint Dunfermline Campus Board.

These designs will then be refined and will inform the next phase of the planning required for the development of the final piece.

There are no set criteria for the design of the artwork – its size can be huge or small, it can be abstract or realistic, and it may be cast, carved, built, assembled, or painted.

The design brief does however say that it should be functional, engaging, recognisable to the general public and local community and try and reflect the history, industry and growth of the local Fife area.

Principal of Fife College, Dr Hugh Hall said:

“This is a hugely exciting opportunity for students to design something that will be at the centre of the Dunfermline Learning Campus for years to come.

“We want the new campus to remain at the heart of the local community, which is why we’re encouraging students from the area to get involved in this project.

“Public art is going to be an important component of our plans, providing environmental, artistic and economic benefits to both the campus and the surrounding area.

“I can’t wait to see these workshops get started, and the creative ideas that our students come up with.

“Whatever design we take forward, we want it to be engaging and something that reflects the Fife area and its rich history.”

Cllr Craig Walker of Fife Council, Convenor of the Education and Children’s Services Sub-Committee commented: 

“Public art is a part of our public history, part of our evolving culture and our collective memory. It reflects and reveals our society and adds meaning to our towns.  

“This public art project is a great opportunity for our school pupils and college students to creatively express their hopes and dreams for Dunfermline Learning Campus.  

“I look forward to seeing the ideas that come forward.”