Staying at the Scalloway Booth, ShetlandPart 1: About Shetland and how to get therePart 2: About the Booth and staying on the islandPart 3: Working at the Booth and meeting local contacts

WELCOMEThe Booth is one of three live/work studios managed by Wasps Studios and it has provided opportunities for artists to work live and work in Shetland for over ten years.

The Booth is located in Scalloway, the ancient capital of Shetland, and is situated in a picturesque position right next to the waterfront. The Booth provides artists with a unique opportunity to work in a remote location where they can create new work away from their normal, busy, working lives and immerse themselves in local culture.

ABOUT SHETLANDThe Shetland Islands are the most northerly part of the United Kingdom. They are located 150 miles north of the Scottish mainland, 600 miles from London, 200 miles from Norway and are home to 24,000 people. Over one hundred islands make up the Shetland Islands of which only fifteen are inhabited and they span the distance of 100 miles between Fair Isle and Out Stack.

The Shetland Islands have an ancient history, a stunning landscape, close links with Scandinavia and a unique culture with a long tradition of music and craft making. Local events include Lerwick’s Fire Festival, Up Helly-Aa, The Shetland Folk Festival and the Shetland Fiddle Festival. The Lounge Bar in Lerwick hosts live music and you are very welcome to bring along your own instrument and join in.

Scalloway is located on the west of the Shetland mainland. It is an attractive village with a population of 1,200 people. It also boasts a busy commercial harbour with modern facilities. It has a good number of facilities which can be used by visitors including shops, restaurants, a swimming pool and a museum.

When approaching Scalloway by road you will be treated to ‘one of the best views in Shetland’, known locally as ‘The Scord’. You can find more information about the village of Scalloway on the following website http://scalloway.net/

It is worth noting that a number of attractions on Shetland have seasonal opening so they may be closed outwith these months. Therefore it is worth checking if they are opening before you go to visit. To find out what events are happening locally during your stay you should consult The Shetland Times, copies can be ordered in advance or you can buy one locally when you arrive.

GETTING THERE You can reach Shetland by ferry or by air.

By Ferry

The ferry to Shetland is operated by North Link Ferries http://www.northlinkferries.co.uk/ and leaves once a day from Aberdeen’s ferry terminal traveling over night and arriving in Lerwick, Shetland at approx 7am the next day.

By Air

Flybe http://www.flybe.com/cheap-flights/shetland/ operate flights between Glasgow International Airport and Sumburgh in Shetland. Flights leave once a day each way. It is best to book flights as early as possible as they can get very expensive nearer the time.

THE BOOTHThe Booth was constructed in 2001 by Scalloway Waterfront Trust on the site of an old fisherman’s store, the oldest building in the village.

The facility is managed by Wasps Artists’ Studios who take proposals from artists once a year in October. Demand from artists to stay at The Booth is very high and it is usually booked up two years in advance.

facilitiesThe building consists of a clean living area on the upper level with a stone-walled basement studio space for ‘dirty’ work. There is a paved area outside the studio, looking out to the sea, which can be used for working outdoors when the weather permits.

The Booth is fully equipped for your stay and you should not need to take anything with you apart from your clothes, any materials you might want to take and a laptop. Wifi and a phone line are provided, the cost of Wi-Fi will be included in your stay and the cost of all calls will be deducted from your deposit before it is returned to you.

The Booth can accommodate up to two people staying at any time and you will be provided with a mezzanine bed area which is located about the living space as well as a sofa bed on the ground floor. The following facilities are also provided: Living space Studio

Washing Machine 2 tables Digital Radio 2 chairs Television Easel for working outside Clothes Dryer Heater Bedding and Towels All crockery and cutlery Microwave oven with grill Hob Fridge FreezerHoover Iron Extra heater Desk for clean workColour printer

The Booth is cleaned by our lovely cleaners Kay and Anne who will have cleaned it prior to your arrival. When you leave you should strip your bed and put the sheets in the machine. Kay or Anne will attend on the last day of your stay to clean and prepare The Booth for the next person’s arrival.

Please also clear out all perishables from the fridge and put any recycling into the correct bags and then outside for collection.

If you notice any items that are broken or need to be replaced please report these to the Wasps office by calling 0141 553 5890 or emailing info@waspsstudios.org.uk

When you Arrive Around six weeks before you arrive you will be issued with a lease and invoice to pay the balance for your stay. Once this has been received we will post you the key for The Booth.

If you arrive by air you will find a taxi outside the airport or there is a regular bus service to Lerwick which takes around 40 mins http://www.zettrans.org.uk/bus/SouthMainland.asp

If you arrive by Ferry you will find a taxi outside the ferry terminal at Lerwick.

There is a bus service from Lerwick to Scalloway: http://www.leaskstravel.co.uk/bus-timetables/scalloway.shtml

Getting AroundAlthough the bus service between Scalloway and Lerwick are fairly regular bus services to other parts of the mainland are not so frequent so getting around is much easier if you can drive. Car rental is available at the airport www.starrentacar.co.uk or you can take your own car on the ferry with you.

WORKING AT THE BOOTH & MEETING LOCAL CONTACTS Many people who visit The Booth do so to get away from their normal working routine and many people enjoy the isolation that this affords. However it also provided great opportunities to immerse yourself in local culture and make new contacts on both a personal and professional level. Many artists that have visited The Booth have returned to Shetland year after year making life long friends and developing professional working relationships.

Open Studios One way of making contacts locally is to hold an open studios event at The Booth, the local community are very interested in what visiting artists are up to and artists have held very successful open studio events in the past. The best way to advertise this is to put notices in the window of the local shop and the Shetland Times.

Shetland Arts Clair Aldington is the Visual Arts Development Officer at the Shetland Arts Development Agency and is based in Lerwick. Claire is a great person to get in touch with before or just after you arrive in Shet-land and she will be able to let you know exactly what is happening during your stay. She often meets up with artists staying at The Booth, you can contact Clair by emailing her clair.aldington@shetland-arts.org

If you work in craft or applied arts you could also get in touch with the Craft Development Officer Ha-zel Hughson hazel.hughson@shetlandarts.org

Shetland Arts Development Agency also run Bonhoga, a contemporary art gallery located in Weisdale which is around 13miles from Lerwick.

Shetland Museum and ArchivesShetland Museum and Archives houses collections that relate to all aspects of the islands’ history. The collections include natural history, archaeology, social history and textiles among numerous other top-ics.

The Islands’ Archives are also housed within the same building and are accessible by visitors between 10am and 4pm Monday to Friday and 10am to 1pm Saturday.

MareelMareel is a music, cinema and creative industries centre which has been developed by Shetland Arts and is due to open in 2012. Mareel houses incredible facilities including two cinemas, a recording studio, education and training facilities and a live performance auditorium. It also has excellent dance studio facilities which will be available for short term hire, perfect for developing performance and

movement pieces.

To get more information on Mareel or to enquire about hiring facilities please contact Shetland Arts info@shetlandarts.org

Veer North

Veer North is a professional association of approximately 30 visual artists based in Shetland. Veer North aim to provide peer support for artists through collaboration, dialogue and exchange. They often programme talks, lectures and events and although you do need to formally apply for member-ship you may be able to attend events as an associate http://en-gb.facebook.com/pages/Veer-North/178586405506352?sk=info&filter=12

Shetland Arts and Crafts Association Shetland Arts and Crafts Association’s website brings together the work of local makers producing a wide variety of applied arts including knitwear, leatherwork and ceramics http://www.shetlandart-sandcrafts.co.uk/index.html . They also produce a craft trail map detailing the locations of makers producing high quality arts and crafts throughout the Shetland Islands.

Other Cultural Events There are a number of country and agricultural shows held throughout the Shetland Islands during the month of August. Sunday teas are also held at the 55 community halls over the Islands during the summer these events are advertised in advance in The Shetland Times.

External Facilities The Booth has hosted artists working across all disciplines within visual and applied arts. Although at fist glance the facilities at The Booth may not seem to suit some practices such as ceramicist or print-makers there are other facilities available locally which you may be able to access by prior arrange-ment. Wasps are also keen to encourage artists working in digital media, performance and those work-ing in cross art-forms to visit The Booth as these practices are currently underrepresented in Shetland.

Printmaking

There are currently no external printmaking facilities on Shetland, Shetland College are working on developing facilities which may be available by 2014.

KilnsWe currently have no access to kiln facilities but we do try to keep in touch with developments in Shet-land so if you do think this is essential to your visit please ask and we will do our best to see if we can facilitate access to a kiln.

PhotographyTheIsleburghphotographicclubmeetonceamonth(October-May)attheIsleburghCommunityCentreinLerwickyoucanfindmoreinformationontheclubontheirwebsitehttp://www1.clikpic.com/islesburgh-photoclub/gallery.html

Exhibition Opportunities

ManyartistswhovisitTheBootharekeentosecureanopportunitytoexhibittheworkthattheyhavepro-duced.TherearefacilitiesonShetlandmainlandtosupportthishowever,theseareofteninhighdemandsoitislikelythatyouwouldneedtobookthesewellinadvance.

Shetland MuseumShetlandMuseumhastwospacesfortemporaryexhibitions.DaGadderieisalargespacewithmovableex-hibitionboards.Therearenoparticularapplicationcriteriatoexhibitinthisspacebutthereisalongwaitinglistsoitisadvisabletosubmityourproposalwellinadvanceofthetimeyouwouldliketoexhibit.

Themuseumalsohasasmallercorridorspaceatthefrontofthemuseumwhereexhibitionscanalsobehung.Thisspaceisoftenavailableatshortnotice.

Ifyouwanttohaveanopeningforyourexhibitionthiscanbearrangedifyouarehappytocoverthecostsofstaffextendingopeninghoursandprovidingrefreshments.

ToenquireabouteitherofthesespacespleasecontactJohnHunterwhoistheexhibitionsofficeratShetlandMuseumexhibitions@shetland-museum.org.uk.

BonhogaBonhogaGallerytakeproposalsexhibitionprogrammeonanongoingbasis.Bonhoga’sprogrammeissetatthebeginningofeachyear.IfyouwouldliketosubmitaproposaltoexhibitatBonhogapleasesendyourproposalalongwithaCVandimagesofyourworktoClaireAldingtonatShetlandArtsclair.aldington@shetlandarts.org

WaspsWaspshasanumberofexhibitionspaceslocatedatwithinourbuildingsthroughoutScotland.InparticularwehavetwoexhibitionspacesatthefrontofourTheBriggait,inGlasgow’scitycentre.Thesespacesareprogrammethroughamixtureofinvitedartistsandopencallopportunities.Althoughproposalarereviewedthroughouttheyear,theprogrammeissetayearinadvancesoyoushouldbearthisinmindwhenapply.PleasesendyourproposalalongwithsiximagesofyourworkandaCVtoinfo@waspsstudios.org.ukManyartiststhathavevisitedTheBoothwillexhibitthisworkelsewhereintheUKorinternationallyWaspsareveryinterestedinhearingwhatyouhavedonewiththeworkyouproducedduringyourtimeatTheBooth.