Tag: musings

‘Spring Into Summer’ Art and Craft Fair, Saturday 2nd May 2015

Bloomin' Marvellous 2015, Events

We’ve put lots of photos on our website of all of the participating artists and crafters surrounded by their lovely work – Bloomin’ Marvellous Inverkeithing, May 2015.

These photos were all taken by volunteer Rosie Gibson. Thanks Rosie!

IAI love to mix together all kinds of creative people at our Art and Craft Fairs, from community groups who create for fun, skills-building and community participation, to amateur hobbyists who like the social buzz of meeting with fellow creative folk, to professionals whose creative work provides their livelihood. We think this makes for a fascinating mix, one which caters for all kinds of visitors to the Art and Craft Fair, and for different tastes and budgets.

At the Spring Into Summer Art and Craft Fair on May 2nd, our younger visitors had lots of fun making art works of their own at the kids activity table, and searching for the super-cute wee beasties, hidden at all the artists’  tables – supervised by volunteer Margaret Robertson and helped out by Ollie Kidd.

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Each participating maker donated a handmade item for the raffle table.

With many thanks to The Inverkeithing Food Group for collaborating with Inverkeithing Arts Initiative on this event and providing an excellent lunch made from locally sourced ingredients for visitors at the Friary (next door to Inverkeithing Civic Centre). It was extremely popular and received a lot of praise! Thanks also for providing the IAI directors and volunteers with some much needed sustenance. Delicious!

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Bloomin’ Marvellous? – It certainly was!

Bloomin' Marvellous 2015, Events

I think we can happily say that our two latest events in Inverkeithing, ‘Swing Into Summer Tea Dance’ on Friday 1st May, and ‘Spring Into Summer Art and Craft Fair’ on Saturday 2nd May, were thoroughly enjoyed by all who took part in them.

On Friday 1st May, Benita and her Jazzmen beguiled us with their fabulous blues and jazz songs and musical arrangements. They were: Benita Baugh (vocalist), Sean Hughes (drums), David Graham (piano), John Vance (bass) and Bill Marshall (clarinet) – they really were a treat to listen, and, of course, to dance to!

Much tea, coffee and delicious cakes were also enjoyed (cakes created by Millbrae Cafe, High Street, Inverkeithing).

The Masonic Hall was decorated with beautiful paper flowers, birds and butterflies to celebrate that spring into summer feeling, mostly created by volunteers during our two crafting evenings held at The Friary, Queen Street in the run up to the event.

Benita's dance    Benita's moves

Artist Rosie Gibson baked and decorated a May Day Cake especially for the event, which was raffled during the evening. She embellished the cake with a version of one of the ‘nuggets of wisdom’ from Generation 1925 -35 that she gathered in Inverkeithing and beyond, as part of her Luminate Festival of Creative Ageing project:

“Work and Play as tho’ we are living in the early days of a better world.”

Rosie's wisdom cake

The nugget is derived from writer and artist Alisdair Gray’s “Work as if you live in the early days of a better nation”, which is engraved in the Canongate Wall of the Scottish Parliament building. He attributes the quote to Canadian author Dennis Lee.

May Day & Beltane Celebrations

Bloomin' Marvellous 2015, Events

Play on the Green

When Inverkeithing Arts Initiative decided to hold our next event(s) on the 1st and 2nd May 2015, our thoughts turned to May Day, and traditional celebrations which mark the changing of the seasons.

http://www.rampantscotland.com/features/festivals.htm 

In Scotland, May Day was usually celebrated as the Celtic Beltane’s Day, a fire festival, still celebrated on Edinburgh’ Calton Hill, the purpose of which was to celebrate the changing of the seasons from spring to summer, and encourage crops to grow, while girls rose early to wash their faces in the dawn dew. We don’t think we can introduce real fire to the celebrations (!) but we’re thinking it’s a great excuse for us all to celebrate the fresh summer days, the budding of nature, and to have some fun outdoor activities for children (if possible).

We also found, from the book ‘Inverkeithing & North Queensferry Through Time’ by Eric Simpson and George Robertson, that the garden area next to the Civic Centre and behind the Friary was once known as ‘the children’s playfield’. We thought this was appropriate as we plan to have our daytime event on 2nd May at the Civic Centre.

This made us begin to wonder if Inverkeithing has ever had Beltane/May Day celebrations, after all, it is one of the places in Scotland which still celebrates the Lammas Day on 1st August, with a procession, a Lammas Queen and the Hat and Ribbon Race.

For lots more interesting information about traditions in Scotland, visit

http://www.margaretbennett.co.uk/folklore-resources/lammas

If anyone has any reminiscences of the past in Inverkeithing, or ideas for the May events, please do post on Facebook or get in touch by email: info@inverkeithingarts.org

(This comes from the blog at http://www.inverkeithingarts.org)

images The Children’s Playfield, Inverkeithing (pre-1950s)

images-9  In more modern times

A Weekend of Wonderfully Creative People

Events, Handmade Holiday 2014

A (Very) Live Reading of A Christmas Carol (12th December) – The readers did a superb job of drawing the audience into the story, and taking us along with Scrooge on his journey of self-discovery and re-found love of life. And they did this using only their voices and a minimum of actions and props. Quite wonderful performance art!

It was very well attended, with everyone there appreciating the dedication and passion of all of the actors, as well as Donna as writer/director and Michelle as production assistant. The Civic Centre does make a lovely venue, (although it could do with the stage lights being fixed!).

The Arts & Crafts Market (13th December) – Inverkeithing Arts Initiative would just like to express their deep appreciation of how much everyone took this event to heart. With such a collection of creative people showing their work, the event could hardly fail to attract praise, and with all of the visitors who came along, the Civic Centre had a wonderful buzz all day long.

The singing by New Musical Theatre Alliance at 1.30 was a joy, and helped make the day feel like a real celebration of the season, and a real celebration of the creativity of all of the people who were gathered together in the hall.

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The raffle prize table – photo by Rosie Gibson

Mary, Michelle, Jane and Donna had a chance to speak to so many people about the aims and plans of Inverkeithing Arts Initiative. Thanks to everyone who wanted to know more, and caught our enthusiasm, and added their names to our fast-growing mailing list. Thanks also to the people who approached us with their ideas of how we can work together. That really is what IAI is all about!

A special thank you to our volunteers, Margaret Robertson, Sue Walker Rosie Gibson and Sandy Stephen, who added so much to the day, and who are all creative and talented people in their own rights.  Thanks to Andrew Quinn for his hard work and patience in helping us set everything up and take it back down again. Thanks also to our children, who helped put up and decorate the Christmas tree with such care and dedication!