FORGOTTEN sculptures stuck in storage could find new homes thanks to an art adoption project.

Health groups, charities, housing associations and other organisations will be asked to make room for contemporary artworks currently hidden from public view.

The scheme is inspired by the fate of giant bronze Spirit of St Kentigern (left), dubbed the “whale’s tail” by shoppers on Glasgow’s busy Buchanan Street, where the Neil Livingston piece stood for almost 25 years.

Designed to resemble a bird in abstract form, the five metre high sculpture was one of four pieces representing miracles attributed to the saint but was removed in 2001. It eventually ended up in a council store before its rediscovery by members of the Sculpture Placement Group (SPG) and now sits on the campus of City of Glasgow College.

SPG members Kate V Robertson and Michelle Emery-Barker, who are both artists, said the piece had been left in “purgatory” before appearing in their 2014 show dedicated to the “second life” of sculptures and “embodied the destiny of numerous sculptural works neglected, forgotten, unloved and unfashionable”.

Now the group, which also includes Martin Craig, aim to help more unseen works find new audiences in a pilot scheme set to run during the Glasgow International contemporary art festival this spring.

Prospective adoptees can take in the work at Glasgow Sculpture Studio, with other pieces not on display included in a catalogue currently being compiled by SPG.

Many of the works were commissioned for exhibitions at leading galleries.

Robertson said: “All over the country there are superb sculptures by respected artists that are hidden away and have no clear future when they could be seen and enjoyed by new and wider audiences.

“The art market puts a lot of emphasis on new work by sculptors with little provision for what happens to pieces after an exhibition is over. Some is destroyed but the artists put much of it into long-term storage. We’ve been talking to artists about whether they would like to give new life to some of their work by offering it for adoption and the response has been great, loads of enthusiasm.”

She went on: “If given the chance, works can take on new meanings in new places. Contemporary works do not lose their artistic value when their initial period on display comes to an end; they just need new audiences.”

Local artist Rachel Lowther said: “This is a great experiment – it is better to have art out in the world than in boxes. A sculpture is a better place to meet and talk than a water cooler.”

The adoption scheme is supported by the National Lottery through Creative Scotland’s Open Project Fund.

Amanda Catto, head of visual arts at Creative Scotland, said: “This is a great way to bring art – quite literally – into people’s lives. All artists want their work to be seen and enjoyed by as many people as possible. This project will get works out of storage and into public circulation. It is generous, exciting and of real benefit to all involved.”

Unveiling the Spirit of St Kentigern on its new plinth last summer, City of Glasgow College principal Paul Little said he was “delighted to see this almost forgotten sculpture reborn and at home” on the institution’s campus.