A £4m grant towards the £12.5m Peacock Visual Arts project has been announced for Aberdeen.
The money will come from the Scottish Arts Council which will provide capital funding for the centre.
Councillors have already approved the project which would see part of Union Terrace Gardens leased for a nominal fee to Peacock Visual Arts, and a new arts centre constructed on the site.
The Brisac Gonzalez Architects plans, which have won praise from Architecture and Design Scotland, will see a new gallery, performance spaces, studios and an education suite constructed in the Victorian sunken gardens by 2010.
It is planned as a centre of excellence which will attract some of the world's finest contemporary artists to come and work and exhibit in Scotland. The centre is also expected to attract about 200,000 visitors a year and bring about £5m annually into the local economy.
The Scottish Arts Council is the first of three major funding decisions. News about an Aberdeen City Council loan and grant from Scottish Enterprise Grampian is expected to follow.
A scale model of the centre is currently on display at the Glasgow Art Fair which runs until 30 March at George Square in Glasgow.
