Galleries' masterpiece opens with Duke's seal of approval

• Duke of Edinburgh opens revamped gallery

• Donation from Sir Tom Farmer revealed

• Sir Tom calls for Scottish painters like Vettriano to be included in gallery

Key quote

"It is a tremendous gathering place for people. I’ve been given a wonderful opportunity to do something, to play a part." - Sir Tom Farmer

Story in full THE 30 million overhaul of the National Galleries of Scotland was formally opened by the Duke of Edinburgh yesterday.

Prince Philip hailed the Playfair Project as a "brilliant idea" that has created a centre for the visual arts in the heart of Scotland’s capital.

Part of the project, the underground Weston Link - which joins the National Gallery building and the Royal Scottish Academy - opens to the public today, along with The Age of Titian, the galleries’ major summer exhibition.

Yesterday, it emerged that a personal request from the galleries’ director general, Sir Timothy Clifford, had brought a huge new donation to the Playfair Project from Sir Tom Farmer, the Edinburgh multi-millionaire.

Sir Tom is giving 500,000, partly aimed at supporting the educational facilities in the Weston Link, which also boasts a restaurant, a shop and a 200-seat theatre.

The Playfair’s fundraising drive has already raised 12 million in donations from private funds and individuals. But it is seeking to raise at least an additional 1 million by the end of the year.

The link’s central concourse has been renamed the Farmer Concourse. Sir Tom said: "It is a tremendous gathering place for people. I’ve been given a wonderful opportunity to do something, to play a part."

But Sir Tom, who includes the work of Jack Vettriano in his own collection, said the gallery that shows Titian should also be ready to show the Fife-born painter’s work.

"Vettriano is a Scottish painter, and I think the art gallery should represent all Scottish painters," he said. "Let’s not wait until he’s dead and 200 years old."