Charity hopes lane artworks will encourage more people to explore Wick

The charity at the forefront of Wick’s town centre lanes project has thanked local residents for playing their part in the design process.

Sustrans Scotland said it hoped the artworks installed in lanes leading off High Street would contribute to wider regeneration efforts and encourage more people to explore the area.

The charity had been invited to comment after members of the Royal Burgh of Wick Community Council (RBWCC) admitted they were underwhelmed by what had been achieved in the Wick Lanes Pocket Places project.

Five designs by artists Aimee Lockwood and Hannah Cambridge – inspired by aspects of local history, and plasma-cut from weathering steel – have been installed in Wares Lane (Back Bridge Street), John Street and Market Lane. The aim is to make the town centre more appealing and welcoming.

The project was supported by the Scottish Government through Sustrans Scotland’s Pocket Places programme and delivered in partnership with Highland Council and RBWCC with a grant of £45,000.

At the May meeting of the community council, last week, chairman Allan Farquhar commented: “It’s not really what we wanted or what we expected.”

Similarly, treasurer Joanna Coghill called the project “disappointing and personally not what I expected at all”.

Speaking after the meeting, Mrs Coghill said: “What we see cannot be described as a success… The end result, in my opinion, is poor and doesn’t reflect the work we as a community council contributed.”

A Sustrans Scotland spokesperson said: “Sustrans’ collaborative design process puts the people who use the space at the heart of designing solutions to local issues.

“Throughout the process of delivering Wick Lanes Pocket Places from August 2023 to March 2024, Sustrans, along with project partners the Royal Burgh of Wick Community Council and Highland Council, spoke to 325 people at 14 in-person meetings and events across the town, with many more sharing their views online and taking part in our post-project survey.

“We are grateful to those local residents, school pupils, staff and business owners for sharing their views and aspirations for the lanes as well as taking the opportunity to feed into design ideas.

“We hope the artworks can now play a role in supporting the wider regeneration work across the town and encourage more people to explore the historic centre under their own steam.”

Opinions have been divided among the public, with some social media users describing the artworks as looking rusty and unattractive.

One person called the series of installations “appalling, not appealing”. Others took a more positive view, however, with comments such as “well done to this small team for trying their best to lighten our town centre”.

Two of the artworks, in Wares Lane, are only partly visible as commercial bins are placed in front of them.

Along with the five artworks inspired by Wick’s heritage, benches and planters were put in place and barriers removed to increase accessibility.

Questions have been asked about the Caithness provenance – or otherwise – of dialect phrases incorporated in a decorative barrier near the bottom of John Street.

Sustrans Scotland has said the artworks will “stand as a lasting testament” to the town’s heritage, with the materials used acquiring a “distinctive look” over a period of months and years.

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