I am part of a month-long event at the beautiful Barony Centre in West Kilbride which is known as Craft Town Scotland. Its origins are not dissimilar to the village where my first studio was at The Hearth in Horsley, Northumberland.
You will find me at The Barony Centre this Friday, April 14th, from 10 am - 4 pm demonstrating printmaking and talking about the inspiration behind my work.
In West Kilbride, a group of community activists and elected representatives, supported by the community, launched West Kilbride Community Initiative Limited (WKCIL) in 1998. It was a vehicle to regenerate the community by creating Scotland’s only designated Craft and Design town.
A similar ethos was behind The Hearth Art Centre in Horsley. Local representatives were keen to use art, design and craft in the social, economic, cultural and environmental regeneration of the village community, based in the Methodist Church buildings at the centre of the village following the devastation wrought by the foot and mouth disease outbreak.
I’m looking forward to getting involved with the wider creative community not just on the Isle of Bute but also across Argyll.