dundee

I recently visited the glorious city of Dundee. (where the locals refer to roundabouts as ‘circles’) The purpose of this trip was to visit the recently erected Victoria & Albert Museum which is Scotland’s first ever design museum.

I was particularly taken aback by the building itself as it is a spectacular example of modern architecture. All exterior walls are curved and house 2,500 rough stone panels each weighing up to 3000 kg and create the appearance of a Scottish cliff face. Kengo Kuma (the award winning Japanese architect who designed the V&A Dundee with his company) is known around the world as one of Japans top architects and this is his very first building in the UK.

The interior of the building is just as breathtaking as the exterior, the vast open space in the entrance hall/cafeteria creates a wide open space that encourages socialising and the walls mimicked that of the exterior with wooden panels housed in them instead of stone. Although this space was impressive I couldn’t help but feel that it was being wasted as there really wasn’t much gallery space for the exhibition.

After leaving the V&A I decided to take a stroll around Dundee itself and see what examples of design I could find. As I was headed towards the city centre I came across an installation that really caught my eye. No where was there any description of artist/designer or backstory about the installation so I was left to interpret this piece myself.

The vibrant colours spoke to me and made me feel a sense of euphoria and reminded me of my dreams. The designer has deliberately placed these ‘windows’ in this location along with the foliage and these cubic plant pots and my understanding is that they have done this because this area of Dundee is full of rich history however in past years the legacy has been decaying. People need to care about their city, their home. We can’t forget about the stories that have shaped our generation. The V&A is a great thing for this city as it is kick starting the movement that is bringing the life back to an almost forgotten area of Dundee.