Business Spotlight: Wasps Studios

Tell us about Wasps Studios. Why did you get started?

Wasps (Workshop and Artists’ Studio Provision Scotland) was established in 1977 in Dundee by a small group of visual artists at Meadow Mill. Since then, we have grown to support around a thousand artists, creative businesses and social enterprises at over 20 buildings across Scotland, from Shetland to the Borders. Wasps is the nation’s largest provider of creative spaces, offering artist studios, office spaces, residencies and exhibition venues.

Your studios house more than 1000 artists across Scotland. Who are some of your prominent clients?

We are very proud to support an expansive range of artistic practice at our studios, including glass-making, painting, ceramics, sound production, sculpture, film-making, installation art, printmaking, textiles, performance, fashion design and illustration. On top of that, our creative industries offices are held by brand agencies, publishers, arts charities, tech startups and social enterprises. Across the Wasps network we have Turner prize-winning and nominated artists, world renowned painters and sculptors, member-led communities like Glasgow Ceramics Studio and Soulisquoy Printmakers, and influential cultural organisations like Scottish Contemporary Art Network and Scottish Artists’ Union.

Wasps develops historic buildings in deprived areas, recently Granton Station. Why is this important and how is your Granton location doing now?

In our development capacity, Wasps has raised over £30m to invest in restoring buildings for the benefit of the Scottish cultural sector. As part of our remit, we redevelop historic, unused buildings to convert them into ideal and much needed facilities for artists, creators, creative industries, social enterprises and charities, in turn generating employment and improving the economies of local communities.

Wasps completed its latest development at Granton Station in autumn 2023, establishing our first building entirely dedicated to supporting the creative industries with new workspaces. Refurbished by City of Edinburgh Council as part of the exciting Granton Waterfront regeneration project, Wasps took on the lease towards the end of 2023. An Edwardian era former railway station, Granton Station was originally opened in 1903 to accommodate the commute for those employed at the nearby Gas Works.

We commenced our Graduate Accelerator programme in late October 2023, which is based out of Granton Station. This new programme connects recent Edinburgh-based arts graduates looking to expand their skills and grow their business with expert mentors in their respective industries. Mentees meet with their mentors at Granton Station over the course of the year to nurture their skills, knowledge and confidence as they begin their careers after higher education.

We’re also very pleased to offer members of Creative Edinburgh a 25% discount for the first six months on our co-working desk memberships at Granton Station. Contact granton@waspsstudios.org.uk to get the ball rolling.

What excites you about Edinburgh’s creative community?

Edinburgh is abuzz with artistic activity year-round, reaching a fever pitch during the summertime. There are so many long-standing historic institutions in Edinburgh like the RSA, existing alongside the grassroots contemporary organisations led by artists such as Rhubaba and Embassy Gallery. The capital is on the world stage when the Fringe, Edinburgh Art Festival and Edinburgh International Festival are happening.

Specifically within Granton, we are most excited to be a part of the current Granton Waterfront regeneration project that will breathe new life into the area and encourage more people from the city to visit, work from and discover North Edinburgh.

Why did you decide to become a Business Member with Creative Edinburgh?

We joined Creative Edinburgh as a Business Member because we found out what an amazing organisation you run, and the breadth of people that you support. We wanted to be part of this fantastic network that represents the capital’s cultural community, and get a better sense of what is happening across the city. As Wasps is the largest provider of workspaces for artists and creatives in Scotland - with a large Edinburgh estate - it makes perfect sense for us to become a member. There’s stacks of exciting events and features that we’re looking forward to getting stuck into as well.

Do you have any exciting upcoming projects?

We have a series of community-led events at Granton Station happening, organised by Heather Marshall of Creative Electric. We recently hosted a photography exhibition entitled ‘Granton: Then and Now’ with submissions of photographs taken by people from the local area of Granton Station throughout the years. Heather has also been running a series of workshops out of Granton Station that focus on ‘art for anxiety’ where she leads participants through relaxing ways of art making like water marbling, collage and writing.

We have now started our arts programme events out of Granton Station, with the first exhibition ‘Hidden Line’ by Kirkcudbright-based textile artist Laura Derby now open for visitors until 26 April. We will have more updates on what’s on at Granton Station throughout the year, with a variety of exhibitions in The Waiting Room gallery still to be announced. You can keep tabs on the arts programme across the Wasps network by visiting waspsstudios.org.uk/programme. 

To find out more about Wasps Studios, visit their website, and follow them on Instagram and LinkedIn.

Wasps Studios is a Business/Professional Member with Creative Edinburgh, and one of the benefits is a Business Spotlight article to showcase their work in the Edinburgh creative community.