Plans to transform gardens at the heart of Aberdeen have taken a step forward as the winner of an international design competition is chosen.

A panel of experts has chosen their favourite of six designs for the £140m renovation of Union Terrace Gardens.

The Granite Web was announced as the winner on Monday, beating second favourite design Winter Garden.

Aberdeen residents will now be given the chance to have their say on whether the transformation of the gardens should go ahead.

If the majority vote in support of the project, detailed designs will be produced for a planning application.

The chosen design, from Diller Sofidio & Renfro/Keppie Design, provides an extra 70,000 square feet of green space.

The sculptured space would include eight distinct gardens, a cultural and arts centre with cafe and two new plazas on Union Street and Belmont Street.

Charles Renfro, partner at Diller Scofidio & Renfro, said: "While the City Garden is at the heart of Aberdeen, that current heart has little pulse.

"We feel that we can make it throb and bring life and energy into the centre of town.

"By making the park greener, more accommodating to passive and active uses, more engaged at its edges, the gardens can become a magnet for this otherwise youthful and energetic city.

"The project reflects an integration of landscape design, museum design and design for the performing arts, the primary focuses of our practice."

The Granite Web proposal scored higher in all key areas of the design brief including the creation of new space, cost and viability in construction and maintenance, environmental sustainability and energy efficiency.

Malcolm Reading, competition organiser, said: "This is an exciting outcome and a great coup for the city.

"This ingenious and inspiring design for Aberdeen’s key public space gives the city a new social landscape but one rooted in its extraordinarily rich heritage and natural assets."