SOME of Scotland’s leading artists are boycotting the flagship Gallery of Modern Art in Glasgow (Goma) in a dispute over the city’s Tramway arts centre.

Acclaimed young artists — including Lucy Skaer, Toby Paterson, Graham Fagan and Alan Currall — are blocking sales of their works to the Goma collection in protest at plans to house Scottish Ballet in the Tramway.

Scottish Ballet is planning to develop the venue as a new administrative headquarters and rehearsal space, threatening the future of the venue as a space for experimental and established artists.

Paterson, who won the £24,000 Becks Futures prize in 2002, said he is postponing the sale of a piece of his work to Goma — part of a large contemporary art acquisition by Glasgow city council — until Tramway’s future is secure.

“Although I don’t want to undermine the people we have been working with, I have held off signing on the dotted line until we hear about the future of Tramway,” he said.

Skaer, who was shortlisted for the same prize this year, has withdrawn one of her drawings because of her concerns. “Even though Scottish Ballet have said they will preserve part of the Tramway, there needs to be a formal way of making sure the visual arts are kept on an equal footing at the site. Everyone is postponing their sales until we hear what happens.”

Fagan confirmed that he is still in negotiations with Glasgow city council over the sale of two pieces to Goma. However, he said an exhibition of his work at the Tramway at the end of 2004 has effectively been cancelled.

“I have been told that after April next year, the Tramway art programme is up for review and there are no plans at all,” he said. “Our community of visual artists is more famous than Scottish footballers, but the council is as ignorant as ever about art in its own city. The acquisition programme was fantastic news, but now I am being punched from both sides.”

Currall, another artist lined up for the acquisition, confirmed that he had not yet made a sale, and said Glasgow needs a coherent public art policy.

Glasgow city council said: “It is baffling that any artist would choose to withold selling their work to the council on a point of principle, given that we have not taken any decisions about the future of Tramway.”

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