Kirkcudbright Arts and Crafts Trail 2013 Part 1

The appearance of this chap can only mean one thing, it's Kirkcudbright Arts and Crafts Trail time again. This is the 10th annual celebration of arts in the town. If you think you've missed this 4 day extravaganza, your wrong (as long as you've found blog while it's fresh) there is still the Monday left. I've blogged the trail before on two previous years (read them here, here, here and here). There will be new trail people and some new things from some old favourite, either way, there is certainly too much to get into one blog.

With 92 venues listed in the program, it takes a good bit of shoe leather to get round them all. I didn't see them all this year and even then I cheated by using the car a little but, for the first venue I saw, I only had to wander across the road where I found the Octopus's Garden, which was a collection of lanterns. I believe they came from a lantern parade last year to celebrate the Jubilee (I wasn't there due to having to earn a living).

For those further afield venues, a trail bus had been laid on.....and a trail bus stop of course.

 

Here's the bus now.

That particular bus stop takes you to Margaret Milligan's Studio. Margaret also has a blog where you can read her own story of the trail and painting tales over the last year or so.

Ruthie Redden is the other blogger who has a venue on the trail (her blog is here). She's made this Selkie for the show. I'm sure she will have plenty of company before too long.

Also new this year are her Galloway Faeries.

 

And of course there's still a good selection of her characterful foxes, hares and other wildlife.

 

There's one of these hares sits on my desk and watches over my typing usually. Not today though, I'm sat at the kitchen table.

 

There are three generations of artist in the family and venue also featured paintings by Jean Redden.

Also on the High Street were these delightful needlework pictures by Fleur McIntyre.

 

Opposite the castle, the work of the Burnhead Woodturners was to be seen. As usual they had set a lathe up at the venue and were demonstrating turning though out the trail.

The bridge in Kirkcudbright may not be my favourite structure in the entire world but it is distinctive and has become quite iconic of the town. It has lead to many good pieces of art including this piece by Jim Campbell, who is to be found in the Wasps studio in the town.

This year situated in the dining room of Broughton House were the Lockerbie Sugar Craft Guild. They certainly impressed me with what can be made out of sugar last time I was on the trail and this time was much the same. These brambles look good enough to eat - well you could of course, they're made of sugar, and the leaves and stems.

A woolly dinosaur - I do believe that nothing in the fossil record so far has proved this colour scheme to be incorrect. Very neglectfully I have no name further than you can read on the label in this picture, so well done Hazel.

Almost a century ago, Greengate on the High Street and the cottages behind it were one of the centres of the town thriving artist community, today it remains the same and houses the studio of Pauline Saul. It's very difficult not to be cheered by her cat paintings. This one is standing in front of the castle that is at the end of the street.

 

Amongst other things, she also made this felt fox broach.

 

There's always a few quirky items about the town. This, as you can see, is a bed of roses.