Gracefield Arts Centre

About the museum

Gracefield Arts Centre began in 1951 as a gallery in a Victorian villa called Gracefield on Edinburgh Road in Dumfries. A committee of local people raised the money to buy the house and convert it, and the first exhibition was held as part of the Festival of Britain celebrations. The first paintings came from the Dumfriesshire Educational Trust, and the collection has grown since then.

Responsibility for the gallery passed to Dumfries and Galloway Regional Council in 1975 and to Dumfries and Galloway Council when the unitary authority was created in 1995. The original villa is a listed building. In 1988 a second building, a former school, was added as Gallery 2, giving more exhibition space together with meeting and activity rooms, a craft shop, a café and a printmakers' workshop.

Today the centre shows a programme of local, national and international exhibitions and selections from its permanent collection. More than 600 paintings, drawings and prints by Scottish artists are held in store and can be viewed by appointment. The printmakers' workshop can be hired by practising artists for etching, relief printing and screen printing.

Highlights

• Changing exhibitions of local, national and international art
• Collection of more than 600 works by Scottish artists in store, viewable by appointment
• Contemporary craft shop with work by local and UK makers
• Printmakers' workshop with etching, relief and screen printing
• Studio Café with home baking and light lunches

Founded

1951

Operated by

Dumfries and Galloway Council

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Entry to the exhibitions is free.

Accessibility

• Partially wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

Gallery 1 has a gentle ramp to its ground floor, but its first floor is reached only by stairs. Gallery 2, the shop, the studios and the café are fully accessible by wheelchair. There are automatic entrance doors, a ground-floor accessible toilet in Gallery 1 and accessible toilets in the Gallery 2 foyer. A non-electric wheelchair is available on request, and large-print menus and gallery guides are provided. Disabled parking is marked in the car park, and a step-free route from the rear door of Gallery 2 can be arranged by contacting the gallery in advance.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Museum shop

The Studio Café serves coffee, tea, home baking and light lunches with table service. The craft shop sells work by makers from Dumfries and Galloway and invited makers from across the UK.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit