Ruthin centre misses out on £100k art prize

Jun 24 2009 by Andrew Davies, Denbigh Visitor

Ruthin Craft Centre

RUTHIN Craft Centre has missed out on the £100,000 Art Fund Prize after the winners were announced at a ceremony at the Royal Institute of British Architects in London.

The Wedgwood Museum in Stoke-on-Trent snapped up the prize for museums and galleries last Thursday, but it is still thought just being in the competition will put Ruthin on the map.

Having re-opened its doors in 2008, the Ruthin Craft Centre had been shortlisted earlier this year after judges had visited the centre and were impressed by the excellence of the centre’s exhibitions and publications programme and by the energy and enthusiasm of its small team.

Chairman of Denbighshire County Council, Cllr Joan Butterfield congratulated Ruthin Craft Centre for being in the final four for the award.

Cllr Butterfield said: “To have got this far is an incredible achievement for Ruthin Craft Centre and for Denbighshire as a whole.

“The Centre, which recently won the RIBA Award for excellence and design, was the only building in Wales to make the final four and was up against tough competition from other prestigious establishments around the UK but to have made it into the final four will still place the Ruthin Craft Centre on the map for applied arts in Wales and the UK.”

Ruthin Craft Centre received a £3.15 million Capital Lottery Grant from the Arts Council of Wales, one of the largest grants of its kind in North Wales. The other funders are: the Welsh Assembly Government (Department of Economy and Transport), Denbighshire County Council, Ruthin Town Council and Cadwyn Clwyd.

The judges for the competition, including artist Grayson Perry and mathematician Marcus du Sautoy, said they were ‘bowled over’ by the Stoke museum.

David Puttnam said: “This Museum is extraordinary for so many reasons and we were all but unanimous in our decision.”