V&A Dundee
V&A Dundee is a design museum in Dundee, Scotland, which opened on 15 September 2018. The V&A Dundee is the first design museum in Scotland and the first Victoria and Albert museum outside London. The V&A Dundee is also the first building in the United Kingdom that has been designed by Kengo Kuma.
History
The plan for a V&A museum in Dundee originated at the University of Dundee in 2007 when Professor Georgina Follett suggested it to University Principal, Sir Alan Langlands. Subsequently, Joan Concannon, the university's director of external relations, made a 20-minute pitch to Sir Mark Jones, then director of the Victoria and Albert Museum, in which the case for Dundee was made including its potential as an anchor for the urban regeneration of the waterfront. A design competition took place in 2010 to decide what the museum would look like. The Japanese architect Kengo Kuma won the competition; his design was inspired by the eastern cliff edges of Scotland.Construction
carried out the construction work beginning in April 2014. The original completion date was 2017 but it was delayed to 2018. During construction a cofferdam was installed to allow the outer wing to expand onto the River Tay and 780 tonnes of pre-cast grey concrete slabs were added to the outside of the building. It cost £80.1 million to complete.Opening
The V&A Dundee opened to the public on 15 September 2018 with international and national press previews taken place beforehand from 13–14 September 2018. The opening was celebrated with a 3D Festival which featured acts such as Primal Scream, Be Charlotte and Lewis Capaldi and had featured a light show and a firework display. The opening highlights were broadcast on BBC Two Scotland in a programme hosted by Edith Bowman. The museum attracted 27,201 visitors during its first week and 100,000 in its first three weeks.The museum was officially opened by Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge in a private official opening which was held on 28 January 2019. On 30 March 2019, the museum achieved its target of 500,000 visitors within a year, six months earlier than expected.
Temporary closure
The V&A Dundee was due to launch its fourth exhibition focusing on the fashion of Mary Quant. The exhibition was due to open in early April but the museum temporary closed from 18 March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.Features
Exhibition galleries
The exhibition galleries are where the temporary exhibitions are placed.| Exhibition | Dates |
| Ocean Liners: Speed and Style | 15 September 2018 – 24 February 2019 |
| Video Games: Design/Play/Disrupt | 20 April 2019 – 8 September 2019 |
| Hello, Robot: Design Between Human and Machine | 2 November 2019 – 23 February 2020 |
| Mary Quant | On hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic |
Scottish Design Galleries
The Scottish Design Galleries feature permanent design works from across Scotland.The Oak Room
's Oak Room was originally completed in 1908 after being commissioned by Catherine Cranston for use as a tearoom on Ingram Street in Glasgow. The 13.5-metre long double-height room now forms a part of the permanent Scottish Design Gallery at the museum. The Oak Room was restored from over 700 original parts that were stored by Glasgow City Council for over 50 years. The room took 16 months to install and the total cost of the restoration and conservation was £1.3 million.Reception
V&A Dundee has received mixed reviews. It had been praised for being Scotland's first design museum and opening interactive exhibitions such as Hello Robot exhibition in 2019.The museum was also named as one of the best places to visit in the world by TIME Magazine in 2019.
The museum was also criticised by architects who criticised the unused space and called the building "boring" in the first few months after opening.