The Yardworks Festival, one of Europe’s biggest events dedicated to street art and graffiti, returned to SWG3 for its fifth year at the weekend as SWG3 marked the official opening of the Yardworks Studio – an innovative space designed to house hundreds of artists, youth, and community organisations and part of SWG3’s ongoing transformation of the area into a distinctive cultural quarter and a hub for street art.
This year’s festival featured the work of more than 100 artists with a line-up that included global starts Rogue One, Tef, Vues, Panda, Rachel Miller, Chelsea Frew, James Klinge, Ross MacRae, Conzo & Glöbel, Box Vincent, and Taio.
Following the opening night, Gary Mackay, Yardworks Festival Director, said, “Last night was a proud moment for the Yardworks programme, opening the new studio officially as well welcoming some of Scottish hip hop’s biggest names to the stage to celebrate this incredible milestone for Yardworks. Sitting in a room full of people who share my passion and love for graffiti was special.”
The Yardworks Studio project has been supported by various funders, including the Scottish Government – Regeneration Capital Grant Fund, Foundation Scotland, William Grant Foundation, The National Lottery through Creative Scotland, and Scottish Enterprise.
Creative Scotland’s Creative Industries & Capital Projects Officer, Andrew Leitch said, “The establishment of the YardWorks Studio as the first purpose built dedicated workshop space for Street Art in Scotland is a significant achievement. The new facility will attract street artists from across the UK and internationally, as the YardWorks Festival already does. As long-term supporters of SWG3, we’re delighted to see how it’s grown to be an integral part of Glasgow’s creative ecology and an exemplar in community regeneration and sustainable development.”
Chris Holloway, Head of Social Investment at Foundation Scotland said, “We are delighted to celebrate the official launch of the Yardworks Studio, a grassroots and innovative project that will provide a home for, nurture and support hundreds of artists, youth organisations and community organisations from across the country.
“Our Social Investment support for this project was always rooted in the belief that their passion, innovation and experience would benefit not just the local community, but artists and projects from all over Scotland and beyond.”