CVG Column July 2010
CVG update July 29 2010
Wick Society exhibition gives a fascinating view of the past
The Wick Society’s latest exhibition offers another fascinating glimpse into the past through the eyes of the celebrated Johnston family of photographers.
Entitled WK, and featuring more than 60 superb images from the Johnston Collection, it is on show at the St Fergus Gallery until mid-August.
Many of the photos date back to when Wick’s herring trade was at its peak, and one in particular – showing the schooner Elba in the harbour, its sails and masts dwarfing all the smaller vessels, and with barrels crammed into every spare space on the wharf – illustrates just how huge an industry it was.
The images are all the more striking for having been enlarged to A1 format, four times bigger than A3. This allows the viewer to pick out intriguing incidental details, “pictures within pictures” – such as the grand old gent who is gently guiding the Pulteney Distillery horse and cart along the road in another harbour scene, seemingly oblivious to all the hustle and bustle on the quayside.
Carefree bairns playing in the street, solemn-looking workers taking a break from their labours, elegant Victorians having a tea party, rough-and-ready local worthies obligingly posing for studio portraits… all shades of Wick life are depicted here.
Several outlying districts are featured too, with photos of Staxigoe and Keiss harbours, Kildonan gold prospectors, German prisoners in the Watten camp, and a team of servants captured on camera outside an unidentified country house.
In this 70th anniversary year of the bombing of Bank Row, it is fitting that a series of four pictures taken in the aftermath of the devastating air raid should have such prominence.
The Johnston section of the Wick Society is to be congratulated on putting together such an impressive showcase, and a quick glance at some of the enthusiastic comments in the visitors’ book indicates just how popular it has been.
The exhibition runs until August 14 at the St Fergus Gallery in Wick Library. Admission is free and opening times are as follows: Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, noon to 5.30pm; Friday, 2pm to 8pm; Saturday, 10.30am to 1pm; closed on Wednesday and Sunday.
Prints, either mounted or unmounted, can be ordered from the Wick Society from as little as £8.
THE Scotland-wide programme Make a Splash! is offering grants of between £250 and £2000 for small voluntary groups looking to help people discover the benefits of taking part in the arts.
Grants can be used for a range of purposes, including equipment, publicity, venue hire, staff time, volunteer training and materials. You can apply for 100 per cent of the costs if necessary.
The main requirement is that the money helps create new opportunities for people to participate in creative activities, and keeps them involved. For example, if you run taster sessions, there should be a way for participants to pursue the activity further if they wish.
Make a Splash! is being run by Voluntary Arts Scotland. It is part of a wider programme, People Making Waves, which seeks to connect people to the spirit and values of the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games through volunteering and being active within their community.
Applications are made via a Make a Splash! application form which should be sent to the Scottish Community Foundation. There are no deadline dates.
For more information, go to http://www.peoplemakingwaves.org.uk/makeasplash
A free training course in Basic First Aid is being run in both Wick and Thurso on various dates over the next few months.
The full-day course covers blood loss, burns and scalds, fractures, strains and sprains. It is suitable for community groups, sporting clubs, youth organisations or any other groups in the voluntary sector that would benefit.
The course will be run in the Assembly Rooms, Wick, from 9am to 5pm on the following dates: Tuesday, August 17; Tuesday, October 5; and Thursday, November 11.
The course will also be provided at T3UK, Janetstown, Thurso, from 9am to 5pm on the following dates: Wednesday, August 18; Wednesday, September 22; Wednesday, October 6; and Wednesday, November 10.
To book a place or to find out more, contact Yvonne Hendry at CVG (01955 609960; .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)).
A free workshop on insurance issues will be held at the Wick Family Centre on Tuesday, September 7, starting at 9.30am.
The aim is to enable you to make informed choices about what you are buying. So if you are involved in a voluntary group, or are thinking of setting one up, this is an opportunity to find out about getting the right insurance for your activities.
The course will cover:
• How do you decide which cover your organisation needs?
• Have you evaluated the risks that you face?
• How do you present the information in the best way to obtain quotes?
Training is delivered by Keegan & Pennykid (Insurance Brokers). To book a place or to find out more, contact Yvonne Hendry at CVG (01955 609960; .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)).
The Big Lottery Fund has joined forces with the BBC Wildlife Fund’s Go Wild campaign to launch the Community Wildlife programme.
It will support projects that bring people together to discover, enjoy or protect the wildlife in their local area.
The programme will provide grants of between £300 and £10,000 for projects that improve rural or urban environments, for example by:
• Protecting wildlife habitats.
• Creating a nature trail, woodland walk or wildlife garden for people to enjoy.
• Improving natural community spaces, such as rivers, ponds and woodlands.
At the same time, it aims to get people more healthy through activities such as exploring rivers and the countryside to look for rare or endangered species, taking up gardening, going on nature walks or providing opportunities for children to learn about nature.
For more details, call 0845 367 0610, email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or visit http://www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/prog_community_wildlife
For more information on any of the above, contact CVG on Wick 603453 or 609960 and speak to Yvonne Hendry or Niall Smith; e-mail .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address); or pop in to Telford House, Williamson Street, Wick.