Big Art in Kirkcudbright - the final product.

Well that's the sculpture symposium over for another year and the sculptors have all gone home. Well almost - Andy Breen who started later than everyone else due to having to be elsewhere is still carving away with gusto round at Greengate and Peter Dowden stayed on a couple of days to take part in the Arts and Crafts trail (I'm going to give them a mention in the last blog for that). I'm going to leave you here with just a few pictures of the finished sculptures that are on display down at the harbour.

Eldon Guay's piece

Some of its curves are nicely rounded and to me the feel very tactile.

Ali Thompson's piece - surprisingly volumptuous for a lump of sandstone.

Martha Quinn's work here has been fascinating ever since she found that first knot in her rock.

Chris Ward's piece has reminded me of a lump of flint from fairly early on in the symposium - just the way the inside seems so different from the outside surface. There are some dark lines in the rock which seem as if they are running from the tartan side.

Nigel Mullan's piece reflecting local cup and ring markings but in a very different way. Funny that he should have started out with a wee clay model for it all looks as if it has a kind of pottery shape to me.

Alan Ward put in some long hours to get this done to his satisfaction and all done without power tools. Chris came and helped him after she had finished her one.

It's worth a closer look at the face.

Michelle de Bruin's lettering has been exquisite from the start. This picture was taken just after she had washed off all the lines.

As it dried it looked as if it had fallen under the shadow of a tree.

Art and Crafts Trail - Part 2

There is a whole lot of effort and preparation goes into putting on these great big events in town. I suspect there are people thinking about next year’s arts and crafts trail already. Certainly a few people turning up to put up beach huts at the harbour a few days before hand are only the tip of the iceberg.

And on a skeleton staff too.

Amongst the needlework on display at venue 14 was this lovely banner of houses by Fleur McIntyre.

Up one of the closes was a board of artwork by Kayleigh, aged 3 ½, including some stones with jolly faces.

Flower arranging was displayed in Greyfriar’s church. When I was there there was a demonstration of flower arranging too – I didn’t wait to see it.

This is Ian Dawson of the Burnhead Woodturners demonstrating a little lathe work. Since there are only two of them, perhaps I should mention Bill Johnstone too, who was also doing demonstrations over the weekend.

Some of their work.

There is a famous painting of James Guthrie’s which shows an old Kirkcudbright worthy (here) and bears the date 1886. In his painting Geronimo (after Guthrie) Richard Ipaint has coupled this image with the words of Ten Bears. 1886 is also the year Geronimo surrendered.

As well as studio, there are a number of gardens open around the town. This one from along the High Street is delightful every year.

Sometimes you strike it lucky photographing bees.

Art and Crafts trail - part 1

As if it wasn’t enough to have the sculpture symposium in town, this weekend it is the Kirkcudbright Arts and Crafts Trail. This year it is over 4 days to give people a better chance of seeing everything – perhaps as well as there are over 70 venues, some of the venues are thankfully very close together saving much shoe leather. Some venues have many artists in the same place, so I wouldn’t like to hazard a guess as to how many are involved (by the way, last year’s trail blog here). There is considerably more to see than I could put into one blog, so this will be the first of at least two (more I should think).

This chap turns up every year – he doesn’t seem to do much more than sit in the sun. I see this year he has a lady friend.

Colin Warden hard at work – just because your studio is full of people is no excuse for not getting a day’s work done.

He had this marked down as a work in progress if I remember correctly – looks pretty good to me as it is.

In Mike Quirk’s studio, a canvas has been set out so that passing kids can each paint a little bit of the picture. This picture was taken on Friday and he thought that this year he was going to be needing a second canvas to get him through the weekend.

Last year’s picture on display at the harbour.

Here’s one of Mike’s own which I thought rather fun.

At the small, but perfectly formed, Greyfriar’s church in the middle of the town, there was a recorder recital yesterday afternoon.

A look around the garden and washing line art at venue 31…………..

………..but for two young ladies I came across here, this venue was the highlight of their visit, peg dolly making.

Towards the end of last year, or maybe this year, I can’t remember, the Wasps studios in the High Street opened up. The next three artists, among many, have found a home there.

Liz Farey sculpts these wall hangings from local willow and other woods.

I particularly like this.

Worth a much closer look.

This print is from Claire Cameron-Smith who specialises in Japanese techniques of woodblock printing. If you drive around the area with your eyes open, you’ll see many trees which will remind you of this print.

Here is the block it was made from.

Prints comprising many colours require many blocks to print them. Claire includes information on each of the separate printings required for every print on the back of every one she sells.

Maggie Ayres is a mixed media artist who creates these flowing works by combining textiles and paints.

She had a small sculpture out yesterday – first of these I’ve seen from her.

The Feral Choir gave an excellent concert in Greyfriar’s church last night which rounded off the day perfectly.