Cromarty art and flowers and open gardens event set to honour talented local painter
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TRIBUTE will be paid at a Black Isle floral event to a much-loved man who se memory will be honoured later this week.
From this weekend, Cromarty, will offer a stunning showcase for horticultural and artistic endeavour with a cornucopia of flowers.
Botanic art and open gardens will be available to enjoy the following weekend.
The Art and Flowers display being held in Cromarty’s East Church from Saturday, June 17 for eight days will pay tribute to the late Campbell McCracken who had been attending classes for nine years.
He was a talented and prolific painter who produced some beautiful and delicate work and many of his paintings will be in the church in a special display dedicated to him.
He died aged 66 last month at Invergordon County Community Hospital. His funeral tales place at Inverness Crematorium on Friday with mouners invited to "wear a splash of colour to celebrate his love of music and dance".
Donations, if desired, in memory of Campbell towards Macmillan Cancer Support may be given at the door.
The outstanding display art and flowers is typically enhanced by the atmospheric setting of the historic old East Church.
All Things Bright and Beautiful is the theme of the floral displays created by local flower arrangers and co-ordinated by Evelyn Wilson.
Well over 2000 blooms will be used to assemble the floral works of art with a team of arrangers and helpers working together to achieve the designs.
Alongside these elegant flower displays, detailed botanic and wildlife artworks will be exhibited, the work of up to fifteen pupils studying with local botanic artist, Julie Price. Each work can take hours of concentration in order to achieve the intricate detail of the flora and fauna being painted and the results are beautiful to observe.
The Art and Flowers display is open daily from 11am to 4pm from Sunday, 17th to Sunday 25th June.
Admission is by donation with an amount of £1 per person suggested. All monies raised are part of the Open Gardens/Art & Flowers fundraising event and will be distributed to local charities and organisations, including towards the upkeep of East Church.
At the end of the week, Cromarty Open Gardens makes a welcome return on Saturday 24th and Sunday 25th, June giving locals and visitors the chance to see behind the walls or peer over the fence at the many lovely gardens around the town, large and small, each one a special haven for its owners.
It is touted as a wonderful opportunity to pick up ideas for your own patch and, with over 30 gardens taking part plus the allotments to visit, "you are sure to find something of interest".
Plants and books will be on sale plus there is the chance to win a prize on the tombola. On Sunday, local traditional fiddle group Wall to Wall will add to the entertainment in the afternoon.
Two gardens will be serving tea and home baking and, with many local shops and places to eat and drink, organisers say it all adds up to a great day out.
Gardens are open from 11am to 4pm on both days. Admission is £5 per person (under 12s free) and tickets are valid for both days.
Tickets and lists of open gardens are available from The Hub at East Bellevue House on Church Street or from the dedicated Open Gardens car parking area on The Links.
Dogs are welcome on leads in many of the gardens but please respect the wishes of owners where a ‘No Dogs’ sign is displayed.
Spokeswoman Alison Palmer said: "The Open Gardens and the Art and Flowers display are big fundraising events. It is hoped that this year we will be able to better the £5600 raised last year – this amount was distributed between 10 local charities and organisations.
"We are extremely to the many local businesses, large and small, that provide generous sponsorship for these two events so please do give them your support."
The group can be found on Facebook as 'Cromarty Open Gardens'.
