Visionary plans to transform the Scottish Highlands - first unveiled 80 years ago - are being showcased in a compelling exhibition informed by an Edinburgh scholar.
Paintings and drawings that heralded the coming of hydro-electric schemes to Scotland's glens have been reappraised by architectural historian Alistair Fair.
Striking illustrations of dams and power stations - dating from the 1940s and 1950s - have gone on show in Inverness accompanied by Dr Fair's insightful texts.
The artwork on display was originally held in the archives of energy company SSE plc, and the selection has been curated by SSE's Heritage team.
The exhibition's focus is the 1943 Hydro Electric Development (Scotland) Act, which led to the construction of 54 power stations, 78 dams and some 200 miles of tunnels.
Ailing economy
Legislation proposed by Secretary of State for Scotland, Tom Johnston, sought to modernise the Highlands' ailing economy and tattered social fabric.
"Depopulation was a real issue," says Dr Fair, a reader at Edinburgh College of Art. "Rural housing conditions were often poor, and wages could be low. Electricity supplies were patchy, affecting people's lives at home and discouraging investment."
When the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board was formed in 1943 it quickly identified 102 potential sites for dams and power stations.
Planning applications often provoked criticism, so the Board's architects would ensure, where possible, that buildings were more than simple expressions of their function.
Original drawings
The exhibition includes the architects' original design drawings, which reflect the two dominant approaches in Scottish architecture at the time.
"There are those who drew inspiration from Scotland's past and those who looked to contemporary European and North American designers for ideas," Dr Fair observes.
"Some images are boldly monumental, evoking urban civic architecture, but others seem more rural in their form. We also see how, in many cases, designs were subtly adapted, possibly in response to debates at the time."
Leading artists
The exhibition also features paintings and drawings by leading artists. commissioned by the Board, to illustrate how the plans would translate to their majestic settings.
"In some of the artists' images, the dams and power stations boldly stand out - almost gleaming in their newness and their precise geometry," says Dr Fair.
"In others, however, they look very much part of the scenery, fading into the background and appearing altogether more natural."
All the illustrations, says Dr Fair, reveal how the post-war modernisation of the Highlands was bound up in debates that resonate today - about nature, the environment and the development of Scottish architecture.
Successfully resolved
What is remarkable, with 80 years' hindsight, is just how successfully those tensions - between modernists and traditionalists; industrialists and conservationists - were resolved.
The resulting infrastructure has become as much a part of the landscape as corries, lochans and mountain peaks - and the clean electricity it produces continues to be vital to the wider energy system.
"It all started with the visionaries behind the pioneering designs and artwork in this exhibition," Dr Fair concludes.
"They were responsible for a technology that has endured for 80 years and has new relevance today as Britain seeks to decarbonise its energy system."
SSE Heritage's Power from the Glens exhibition is at Eden Court Theatre, Inverness, until 26 September. Admission is free.
