A major piece of community-led artwork which forms part of  Highland 2007, the year Scotland celebrates Highland culture, has received a £6,000 grant from Scottish Natural Heritage.

The Tain Mussel Mural is to go on permanent display at the Royal Burgh during next year's festival.

As part of the year of culture the people of the town have commissioned international shell artist Blott Kerr Wilson from France to undertake a mussel shell mural project.  The finished artwork will be situated at a permanent site in the town at a location yet to be finalised.

The mural and interpretative panels will inform locals and visitors about the history and importance of the Dornoch Firth mussels from medieval times to the present day.

The panels will also explain the importance of the marine environment of the Dornoch Firth in sustaining the mussel resource over the centuries and the completed artwork will use mussel shells and other local materials.

The importance of mussels to the local economy is demonstrated by the fact that the mussel company is still owned by the town's Common Good Fund.  And archaeological digs have found evidence of the importance of mussels at nearby Portmahomack.

Blott Kerr Wilson lives in the Poitou Charente region of France - an area famous for its mussels and oysters.  It has a similar history to Tain in that it too is dependent on the harvest from the sea.  Ironically, the majority of Tain's mussel produce are now exported to France.

Blott will undertake a series of workshops and run an outreach project for primary and secondary school pupils and community groups next year, Scotland's year of Highland culture.  This comprises working with schools in Portmahomack, Invergordon, Fearn and Tain and it is expected she will travel to Scotland next spring and stay for at least 10 weeks.

The school schemes involve groups in making shell pictures and researching local history while working on a specific piece of public art helped by community volunteers.

Peter Wortham, SNH's area officer for East Ross and Cromarty, applauded the concept of the mural and said it would be of great benefit to Tain.

"Tain has an historic association with mussel farming and this new mural with the interpretative panels will highlight that link as well as the marine environment of the firth.  At the same time it will provide locals and visitors with an outstanding example of art," he enthused.

"The level of interest from the community demonstrates the popularity of this exciting project and SNH is delighted to play our part in showcasing this initiative.

"The project has attracted great enthusiasm from local people and is being managed by Tain Community Council.  We are confident that once the mural goes on display and the panels are erected it will prove a popular draw for locals and visitors alike."

The project was formulated by Alan Torrance, the Tain east Highland councillor, who visited Blott and her family in France last year and realised that using her skills to provide a lasting piece of art would show the value and benefits Dornoch Firth mussel fisheries have given to Tain and the surrounding area.  He has in turn been backed by the local community.

He said: "She has already visisted the five schools in my ward - four primaries and Tain Royal Academy - and each school will do a small project on shells.  This project will be of benefit to the children as they will learn about their own area and will also help with the overall design of the piece.

"We are very grateful to SNH for their funding towards this valuable community-based project which will help enrich the lives of folk living in the area and I hope to have an interior location for the mussel mural finalised shortly."

And Mike Herd, chairman of Tain Community Council, added: "It's great to see a direct link between the environment and the community and this demonstrates how important the natural world is to us all."

The mural will be set alongside interpretative panels to highlight the importance of the firth's environment for mussels in partnership with local organisation Tain Through Time and will tell the story of the Royal Burgh's mussel fishings, and highlight their importance to the community.