There's a new face behind the scenes at The Brewery Arts Centre and it belongs to Trevor Avery, a long-in-the-tooth concept artist who is getting to grips with his juicy role as the centre's new visual arts officer.

So, what can artists and audiences expect from Kendal's new kid?

"Evolution not revolution," are Avery's first words to sum up his plans.

" There will be changes to the visual arts exhibitions and activities but they will be gradual and will build on Lene Bragger's achievements," he adds before going on to praise his Danish predecessor's work.

Beyond this, Avery is a bit anxious about being pinned down to detail.

Born in York in 1959 he went on to study fine art sculpture at Gloucestershire College before notching up a pedigree as a sculptor and concept artist working in London.

Eight years ago he made a huge move to Inverness, becoming a stalwart of media-savvy arts projects in the Highlands.

And it is this last assignment as part of the Inverness Museum and Arts Gallery and as director of visual arts charity Another Space which give the most clues as to where Avery will be taking the Brewery's visual arts.

Rooted firmly in the landscape of the area, Avery developed the exhibition Sheep, commissioning artists to respond to the sheep farming industry and the phenomenon of thousands of ruminants roaming the Highlands after the mass emigration of the clearances of the 18th century, when landlords cleared tenants out of small farms.

He ended up on Radio 4's Front Row being interviewed about the cultural and economic significance of sheep a year before the foot-and-mouth outbreak.

Working as Another Space, Avery produced a multi-media environment dubbed Subterranean Landscape Blues investigating James Bond-style hidden military command centres in the Highlands after the information became declassified.

In Cumbria, Avery is equally keen to investigate cultural identity through landscape and history.

"A major priority is just to take a contemporary look at the Lake District - it's not just about the Wordsworthian romantic legacy.

It kind of harks to foot-and-mouth - you have this beautiful area but under the surface there is a lot of trouble going on."

He is also keen to look further afield to West Cumbria and its heritage "which has everything from the slave trade through to submarines," he enthuses.

Avery's other catchphrase is social inclusion.

He wants to ensure that the gallery's exhibitions are accessible and are always accompanied by full information on the artists and their work.

"It is amazing what the public will take on board with a little bit of help," he says.

He is also adamant that inclusion means inviting local people in to use the Brewery's exhibition space "to turn audiences into participants".

On a more practical level, that commitment to inclusion meant his first job was improving the wheelchair ramps.

Critically, Avery is enthusiastically seizing his role.

"I have seen life from both ends of this small island we inhabit but I am still fascinated by the rich diversity of cultures and people found within it.

That is what I hope I can carry on exploring and developing at the Brewery."