Empty shops could be studios for next Bacon or Hirst, says leading curator

Opening up dead retail space to artists could revive town centres and cultural life, says Whitechapel Gallery directorBritain’s empty high street shops and derelict department stores should be transformed into artists’ studios and galleries to bring life back to city centres, according to the outgoing director of one of the country’s leading art spaces.With artists being pushed out of city centres by soaring rents and living costs, galleries under financial pressure and high st