In April 2026, Lyth Arts Centre will launch our Year of Building, the second chapter of our three-year Beyond Lyth programme. Following Year of Living, this year turns our attention to the buildings that shape life in Caithness – from crofts, workers’ housing and village halls to harbours, castles and industrial infrastructure.

Across the year, artists, historians, communities and different partners will come together to explore how buildings reflect power, labour, land use and identity and how past building decisions continue to influence housing, regeneration and future change today. Activity will take place right across the county, using buildings themselves as sites of exploration, gathering and imagination.

Highlights will include archive-led exhibitions and talks, guided walks at sites such as Badbea, Whaligoe and Stroupster, artist residencies, pop-up social spaces in village halls, Halloween in historic castles, deepdives into harbours, exclusive looks into some of the counties big houses and estates, and Within Five Miles – a participatory programme supporting communities to research and creatively respond to a local building of significance.

Year of Building is about more than heritage. It’s about asking how we build, why we build, and what kinds of places we want to carry forward, laying foundations for the final year of Beyond Lyth: Year of Telling in 2027 / 28. 

More details coming soon, we hope you’ll build this year with us! 

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Supported by Creative Scotland Multi-Year Funding Programme.