Known as the ‘Artists Town’, Kirkcudbright was the home of an artist colony in the early twentieth century which included Jessie M King, E A Taylor, Charles Oppenheimer, and E A Hornel along with many others. Details of the lives and work of these artists whilst in Kirkcudbright can be found in ‘Tales of the Kirkcudbright Artists’ by Haig Gordon, Price £15.99 in paperback. This can be purchased through www.gcbooks.co.uk

The harbour town of Kirkcudbright is a popular holiday destination. The Long established harbour was originally a wooden platform laid on a high sandbank and today this is known as the Harbour Square. The discovery of ‘Queenies’, a type of scallop during the late 1960 has led to the growth of a small fishing fleet at Kirkcudbright.

The Summer festivities, organised by a superb band of volunteers, take place in the Harbour Square and the Soaperie Gardens and include a Medieval Festival, Vintage Car Rally, Spring Plant Fair, Galloway Children’s Festival, and a regular Thursday Evening Scottish Night with the Award winning Kirkcudbright Pipeband and Scottish Dancing . This is just a small sample of the events in a fun packed summer programme.

The Arts and Craft Trail on the first weekend in August grows annually and is widely supported by local artists with a great deal of work on display, much of which is available for sale. The Highlight of the season is the Tattoo held on the Bank Holiday Weekend at the end of August it is fantastic evening culminated with the lone piper playing high in the ruins of MacLellan’s Castle.

A full programme of events can be found at www.summerfestivities.com

Image courtesy of Philip Dunn.