Fair Maid's House Nominated for Architecture Award

The Royal Scottish Geographical Society's visitor centre has been nominated for a prestigious architecture award.

Perth’s oldest house has been shortlisted in the Glasgow Institute of Architecture Design Awards. The Fair Maid’s House was renovated and extended by Page/Park Architects between 2010 and 2011 to become the RSGS visitor and education centre.

The annual GIA Awards are recognised at local and national level and are one of the main highlights of the annual GIA programme.

Glasgow Institute of Architects

The visitor centre has been shortlisted in the ‘Office, Commercial, Industrial, Leisure or Retail’ category. Past Winners in this category include a design award for Shettleston Housing Association Offices and a commendation for the Creative Industries and Media Centre in Stornoway.  The GIA award a number of design awards and commendations, a sustainability award, and sometimes a Supreme Award for a stand-out property.

Awards will be presented by the RIAS President at the GIA Annual Members Dinner on 9 November 2012.

The Royal Scottish Geographical Society relocated to the historic North Port of Perth in 2009, purchasing Lord John Murray’s House and taking a long lease from the Council on the adjacent Fair Maid’s House, giving the Society the opportunity to meet our expanding needs and establish a permanent headquarters capable of fulfilling our requirements. 

Lord John Murray’s House serves as an administration base, while the link and new extension to the Fair Maid’s House provides archive and general collections stores, an education room, exhibition and interpretation areas, and a story telling room.

The new architecture, based on the design of a map chest in a palette of glass, steel and copper, appears to slide out of the less historically significant ‘link’ building, highlighting the importance of the Fair Maid’s House and Blackfriar’s wall, while not impacting on the historic front elevation of the house. 

The Fair Maid’s House was made famous in1828 by the Sir Walter Scott novel The Fair Maid of Perth.  Parts of the building date back to the 1400s.  The visitor centre opened in July 2011. It is currently closed for the winter season, but is used for educational visits, and is available for larger group bookings and as a venue