WATCH: ‘Dundee is buzzing’: V&A Dundee countdown officially begins

We are one month away from the opening of V&A Dundee.

The £80.1 million pound design museum opens on Saturday 15th September.

The project is at the heart Dundee’s £1 billion Waterfront redevelopment, and has been over ten years in the making.

It is the vision of Japanese Architect Kengo Kuma, who was inspired by Scotland’s north eastern coastline, and has been under construction for the last three years.

Dundee, known for its design heritage, is the first Scottish city to house its own design museum, and it is now the only V&A outside of London.

However, communities’ producer Peter Nurick says having local people at its heart, is what makes it truly special.

He said: “Throughout the time that I have been with V&A Dundee, my focus has been on connecting the museum with the local community.

“All of this work is now coming to its culmination, really, to try and get the museum ready for the people.

“The original idea for the museum was to be this living room for the city, so it is really important to us that everyone feels they can come and visit, relax, experience fantastic design and enjoy what it has to offer”.

City of Design

Dundee was named the UK’s first city of design by the United Nations a few months before construction began on the project.

Anna Day oversees that work in the city, and said it showed how it is the perfect place to house it.

She said: This is the marker on a journey- So I have been involved on the periphery since the very start of the V&A conversation.

“I remember those first happening in the University of Dundee and being privy to those, so for me, this has been a ten year journey”.

She added: “I think it will mean a real change for the city, I think it will being a huge amount of new people- it already does, and that is hugely exciting!

“I think also for creative businesses, that UNESCO support it means opportunity”.

Inside the museum, there will be many artefacts on permanent display from the V&A’s vast and unique collection, including a vintage Cartier tiara from 1935, and a restored interior of a Charles Rennie Mackintosh tearoom.

The first exhibition will be Ocean Liners: Speed and Style, which runs from the 15th September to 24th February 2019.

Dundee’s 3D festival, organised largely by the V&A Dundee Young People’s Collective, will take place the day before the official opening.

20,000 people are expected to attend the event, which will be headlined by Scottish music legends, Primal Scream.