Scotland’s First Design Museum Opens to Public this Fall

V&A Dundee, Scotland’s first design museum, will open to the public on Sept. 15. It will be the only V&A museum in the world outside London, an international center for design – a place of inspiration, discovery and learning. Visitors to V&A Dundee will experience the story of design past, present and future, and the contribution design makes to all our lives.

Designed by architect Kengo Kuma, V&A Dundee stands at the center of the $1.4-billion transformation of the Dundee waterfront, once part of the city’s docklands. With its complex geometry, inspired by the cliffs along the East Coast of Scotland, it stretches out into the River Tay – a new landmark reconnecting the city with its historic waterfront, and a major new cultural development for Scotland and the U.K.

The new museum will feature permanent galleries of Scottish design, as well as an international program of changing exhibitions showcasing the very best of design from around the world, new design commissions, fast-changing installations by emerging designers and creative projects developed through its learning program for all its audiences.

At the heart of V&A Dundee, the Scottish Design Galleries will tell the story of Scotland’s design heritage. Curated in collaboration with the V&A, these galleries will be free to enter and feature around 300 exhibits drawn from the collections of the V&A, as well as from museums and private collections across Scotland and the world, covering architecture, ceramics, engineering, fashion, furniture, healthcare, jewelry, textiles, video game design and more.

The museum will also include dynamic learning spaces to accommodate visitors of all ages and backgrounds to learn from and participate in design creativity; a design residency studio where designers will share work-in-progress with visitors; a multi-purpose auditorium for conferences, design jams and community events and a restaurant with spectacular views from its open terrace over RRS Discovery and the River Tay.

V&A Dundee is being delivered by a founding partnership of the V&A, Dundee City Council, the University of Dundee, Abertay University and Scottish Enterprise. BAM Construction Ltd. is the general contractor on the project.