Glasgow Life secures complete Third Eye Centre and CCA archive for the city
Glasgow Life, the charity which manages Glasgow’s archives, museum and library collections, has formally secured the complete archive of the Third Eye Centre and Centre for Contemporary Arts (CCA), ensuring this important record of Glasgow’s contemporary arts history remains in the city.
The acquisition safeguards more than five decades of material charting the development of two institutions that have played a significant role in shaping Glasgow and Scotland’s cultural life.
The collection includes exhibition records and programmes, photographs, film, posters and flyers, and artists’ correspondence documenting the people and creative practice that helped establish Glasgow as a major centre for contemporary art.
Since the CCA closed and the Sauchiehall Street building and its assets were listed for sale, Glasgow Life has worked with Creative Scotland and The Ballast Trust, a specialist archives charity for business records, to secure the collection for the city.
The acquisition has been made possible through funding from Creative Scotland and will see Glasgow Life take responsibility for the archive’s long-term care and preservation.
Glasgow Life’s City Archives team will now begin cataloguing the collection ahead of making it accessible to researchers, artists, students and the wider public. Glasgow Life will also assess the most appropriate long-term home for the archive.
Glasgow Life’s Head of Museums and Collections, Jane Rowlands, said: “The Third Eye Centre and CCA helped shape Glasgow’s reputation as a place for creativity and contemporary art. Securing this archive means an important part of that story will remain in Glasgow, where it can be cared for and made available to future generations. We’re grateful to Creative Scotland for making this acquisition possible, and to The Ballast Trust for its expertise and support.”
Scottish Government Cabinet Secretary for Education, Culture and Gaelic, Màiri McAllan, said: “I am delighted that the archive of the Third Eye Centre and Centre for Contemporary Arts has been secured for public benefit. I have been clear that it should be publicly owned and accessible, given its importance to Glasgow and Scotland's cultural heritage.
“I thank Glasgow Life and Creative Scotland for their efforts in securing the archive and look forward to hearing next steps on making it available to the public. The Scottish Government's record investment in culture reflects the importance I attach to the sector, and I am glad this support has helped protect a key part of Glasgow’s and our country's recent cultural heritage.”
Creative Scotland’s Chief Executive, Iain Munro, said: “We’re delighted to have worked closely with Glasgow Life and to have provided funding to secure the Third Eye Centre and CCA archive for the city. The archive represents an important resource in Scotland’s contemporary culture, and its long-term preservation and accessibility will be invaluable for artists, researchers and the public for years to come.”
Director of the Ballast Trust, Kiara King, said: “It’s wonderful news that Glasgow Life has secured the Third Eye Centre and CCA archive. This successful outcome reflects strong partnership working across the archive and cultural heritage sector. The collection documents more than fifty years of artistic activity, innovation and community engagement in Glasgow, demonstrating how organisational archives preserve stories of wider social and cultural significance and can enrich our understanding of Scotland’s cultural life for generations to come.”