GRANTON GASHOLDER

Perspective view of the Ark installation

LOCATION : EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND

DATE : 2024

PROJECT TYPE : PUBLIC ART COMPETITION

In collaboration with Bespoke Atelier, Iglu submitted a joint entry for the Granton Gasholder Public Art competition in the summer of 2024. The proposal was inspired by the pioneering Scottish Marine Station which was located nearby at Granton Harbour for ten years from 1884 until 1894, when it was relocated to Oban, where it still operates to this day.

Perspective view of the Ark installation

View of the flooded quarry. © Marine Biological Association of the UK.

Plan of the floating laboratory barge The Ark. © Marine Biological Association of the UK.

View of the flooded quarry and the Ark boat. © Marine Biological Association of the UK.

The Medusa steam yacht. © Marine Biological Association of the UK.

In the mid 19th century, the Granton Sea Quarry – an 80 feet deep and eight acres wide quarry excavated for the construction of Granton Harbour – was flooded by the sea and was subsequently proposed to be used as the base for The Scottish Marine Station, the first of its kind in the UK. The station consisted of a floating laboratory aboard a small barge called the ‘Ark’ (moored in the quarry), a steam yacht called the ‘Medusa’ which was used to collect deep water samples from the Firth of Forth and a series of onshore buildings used to display specimen collections.

The Granton Gasholder is a B-listed Gasholder frame/structure situated on the Granton Waterfront along the coastline in northwest Edinburgh. It is a unique example of Victorian industrial architecture and an important and iconic landmark in North Edinburgh. As part of the Granton Waterfront project the gasholder was fully refurbished with a new public park installed within the structure. The competition brief required the design of a new public artwork to be permanently housed in the park which reflected the heritage, environment and diverse communities of the area.

The artwork location is a rectangular space, slightly curved as part of the park design, of approximately 4.5m (width) x 16.2m (length). The space is surfaced with resin-bound natural stone to match the shared use path that runs adjacent to the southwestern edge. To the north, east and west are specimen trees, shrubs and grass.

View from inside the Gasholder during refurbishment

KNAUTIA ARVENSIS FIELD SCABIOUS

Barnacles at Granton Beach

Rounded bricks at Granton Beach

During the initial desktop research phase we discovered the history of the Scottish Marine Station and set about collecting samples of local flora and fauna to be used as inspiration for the artwork.

As part of our research process we walked the coastal fringes of Granton, identifying, photographing and gathering local plants, features and findings to be included as part of pattern-making workshops with the local community.

During the engagement period we asked locals what was important to them that they wanted to see reflected in the artwork. The most common response was that themes of coastal landscapes and local history should be included with a focus on sensory design and interaction. A series of participatory workshops with members of the community were facilitated to encourage creative responses to these themes and ideas. The workshops included collage making based on the beautiful illustrations produced by Ernst Haeckel (see below), who formally opened the Scottish Marine Station in 1884.

Women’s group collage workshop at Royston / Wardieburn Community Centre

Fern samples and worksheet from collage workshop

Collage workshop at Granton Hub

Prototype pre-cast concrete

Granton Harbour design palette

The Muscinae print by Ernst Haeckel. Image credit Wikimedia

Sample patterns created by Bespoke Atelier

Proposed layout of the Ark installation with pre-cast patterns

The design proposal takes the form of a dismantled boat frame, its ribs protruding from the ground at different angles and heights. The sculpture sits within the public art space as a series of independent objects which in plan view shows the footprint of the ‘Ark’ (the fossilised remnants of the ship) surrounded by waves representing the coast.

Each ‘rib’ will contain pre-cast designs based on the natural environment surrounding Granton and beyond to the Firth of Forth – the original focus for the Marine Station back in the 1880s brought back into a 21st century context. The Haeckel drawings visualise the forgotten seabed relics which we intended to bring back to life through the proposed artwork.