GLASGOW.- The final visitor numbers for the landmark series of exhibitions celebrating 25 years of contemporary art in Scotland were revealed today (10 April 2015). GENERATION: 25 Years of Contemporary Art in Scotland attracted over 1.3 million visitors in 2014 and early 2015 across 60 venues throughout the country, exhibiting over 100 artists. This major exhibition, which was part of the Glasgow 2014 Cultural Programme, was delivered through a partnership between the National Galleries of Scotland and Glasgow Life and was supported by Creative Scotland.

Several venues saw record attendance figures at their venues with over 323,000 at the Gallery of Modern Art in Glasgow (GoMA) over the Commonwealth Games, with peaks of over 5000 on Super Sunday. The National Galleries of Scotland welcomed over 390,450 to the exhibitions at their three Galleries in Edinburgh, 33,598 at the McManus Galleries in Dundee, 8,666 at An Lanntair in Stornoway, over 16,000 to Mount Stuart and 11,787 to the Pier Art Centre in Orkney. Other highlights included the Travelling Gallery which toured through 8 local authorities in Scotland from the Borders to the Western Isles.

Sir John Leighton, Director-General of the National Galleries of Scotland, said: “GENERATION was probably the most ambitious exhibition ever mounted in Scotland and we are thrilled that it stimulated such a tremendous response from audiences all over the country. I believe that in future years we will look back on GENERATION as a landmark project that helped to raise the profile of contemporary art in Scotland both at home and abroad.”

Councillor Archie Graham, the Chair of Glasgow Life, said: "GENERATION was a once in a lifetime opportunity to tell the story of 25 years of contemporary art in Scotland, a period which coincided with Glasgow's remarkable record of producing and nurturing artistic talent. It is especially fitting that these artists and their works were seen by so many people during the best ever Commonwealth Games as part of the Cultural Programme. GENERATION has once again confirmed Glasgow's huge appetite for contemporary art exhibitions as the city prepares to host the 2015 Turner Prize."

Janet Archer, Chief Executive of Creative Scotland, said: "We are delighted with the audience figures achieved by GENERATION. The project set out to encourage a deeper engagement with contemporary art in Scotland and to build audiences for the future. Exhibitions were designed to reach out to people across the country, encouraging them to experience work that they might find new and unfamiliar.

"We have been particularly excited by the project’s engagement with young people, which has been extremely successful, and we hope they have been inspired to participate in contemporary art into the future. National Lottery funding from Creative Scotland has enabled this to be a truly national and inclusive project. We look forward to building on GENERATION’s success with all of the partners, across all of Scotland, into the future."

One central aim of the project was to engage with a new generation and bring to life the possibilities that contemporary visual art presents to young people with an extensive education and outreach programme specifically devised to fuel their imagination and increase their participation. From projects co-produced with young people to gallery talks and workshops, over 65,520 participants took part in the learning and engagement activity across the venues. In addition, a guide to all of the exhibitions and displays was sent to every single secondary school in Scotland.

Another huge achievement was the dedicated website generationartscotland.org which attracted 770,587 page views, 119,932 user sessions and has provided a lasting legacy of the project with an interactive timeline, 90 online features and 17 videos for the public to enjoy. There was also international recognition for the project and the partners are working with the British Council on taking aspects of the exhibition abroad.