PENICUIK ARTS CENTRE

Penicuik Community Arts Association

Run entirely by volunteers since 1977

upcoming events recent events

Penicuik Community Arts Association Open Day 2007 –a celebration

Mamie Munro silkpainting at Penicuik Arts

Jenni Fraser violin at Penicuik Arts

Edinburgh Renaissance Band plays in the Gallery Café garden

Annie Patch sings in the Gallery Café garden at Penicuik Arts

Jo Powell children’s art workshop at Penicuik Arts

Catherine Freeland demonstrates spinning at Penicuik Arts

Annemarie Grant demonstrates knitting at Penicuik Arts

Jane Kelly demonstrates pottery and Emily Scott sings

Emily Scott at Penicuik Arts photo Tony Dore

Catherine Freeland spinning workshop at Penicuik Arts

Hazel Vellacott mosaic workshop at Penicuik Arts

The Beggar Girls play the Gallery Café garden at Penicuik Arts

at Hazel Vellacott’s mosaic workshop

Neil Pennycook sings in the Gallery Café garden photo Tony Dore

James Spence storytelling at Penicuik Arts

. photo Tony Dore

Aine Divine portrait painting at Penicuik Arts photo Tony Dore

Aine Divine portrait painting at Penicuik Arts

Fanattica plays outside and in at Penicuik Arts photos Tony Dore

Penicuik people started our Community Arts Association back in 1977 in this once-papermaking town ten miles south of Edinburgh overlooked by the Pentland Hills. Over the years we’ve built up an arts centre to be proud of here at 2 and 4 West Street. It’s used by lots of local groups from writers, embroiderers, artists both adult and children, to musical society and bridge club.

We’re a voluntary organisation, open to all, with self-governing co-operatives running the café and the craft shop day by day. Most of our income is generated by ourselves.

THE CRAFT SHOP

Over 20 talented craft workers and artists have a co-operative craft shop in the Arts Centre.

Because overheads are low, we’re able to sell our work without the inflated prices that larger shops charge. There’s a happy, friendly atmosphere and you can have a snack in the cafe downstairs, and browse and chat in our shop. We hold craft fairs in the town hall too.

Crafts we sell include: silk batik, pottery, aromatics, dried flowers, knitwear, hand painted silks, jams, honey, hand made cards, watercolours, wooden articles and stained glass.

Many members take commissions.

The Craft Shop is open on:

Mon/Tue/Thur/Fri/Sat 10am-4pm

Wednesday 10am-1pm

and closed on Sundays.

OLD PENICUIK

The Arts Centre is the cultural focus at the heart of the old town centre.

In the days when Penicuik made the paper for Scotland’s bibles, banknotes, books, envelopes and encyclopaedias, this was the Burgh Offices where weddings were held.

Within a few minutes walk are 18^th, 19^th and 20^th century buildings that reflect the special character of our town, like Robert Hamilton’s Valleyfield Monument shown here,

Frederick Pilkington’s Park End and South Kirk, Campbell Douglas’s Cowan Institute (now Penicuik Town Hall) and Frank Mears’ Coronation clocktower.

THE GALLERY CAFÉ

The Gallery Cafe is the heart of the Arts Centre at 4 West Street. On Monday to Saturday from 10 till 4, it’s run by a handful of our members and known for friendly atmosphere and tasty food.

Everything you see is home made: -soups, organic bread, cakes and biscuits. Beyond the cafe is the sheltered sun garden for eating out on warmer days.

With a good cup of coffee, you can enjoy the gallery all around you. A different selling exhibition is featured here every month.

UPSTAIRS EVENTS

Upstairs at Penicuik Arts is a matchless exhibition and acoustic performance space. Our members organise a very wide programme over the year with folk, world music, jazz and classical concerts, international and Scottish evenings, plays, parties, dance, poetry, talks on art and local history, film showings, art, music and craft workshops and children’s events. Many local and international performers develop a great rapport with the intimate Arts Centre audience and come back again for more!

Exhibitions often feature in the main gallery upstairs. There’s the Association’s own big exhibition in June each year. Plus one-off special shows like Models and their Makers, Wood and Stone, Scottish Ecology Design, Pilkington’s architecture, Inspired by Horses. Our two Memorable Clothes exhibitions showed some Penicuik surprises and the stories behind them. The native-american jacket given to a man who went down with the Titanic. The dress made in 1840s Paris for an Indian princess. Or the shoes worn here for a wedding.

Sometimes we use Penicuik Town Hall to bring bigger theatrical or musical events to Penicuik. . Or the ornate South Kirk, where an exciting concert by the Passacaglia Quartet was sponsored for us by the Tunnell Trust.

PENICUIK COMMUNITY ARTS ASSOCIATION

website: www.penicuikarts.org

find upcoming and recent events easily on this website

^{we also sometimes post events on the friendly Penicuik Folk Club website}

Arts Centre, 2 to 4 West Street, Penicuik, Midlothian, EH26 9DL

Telephone 01968 678804

^{Penicuik Community Arts Association}

^{Penicuik Arts Centre}

^{Penicuik Gallery Café co-operative}

^{Penicuik Arts Craft co-op}

^{You’ll find us beside the Belgian Consulate - look for the flag}

Here are a few upcoming Penicuik events,

Some so far this year, some from 2006

And a few back in 2005, in 2004, in 2003, in 2002, and in 2001

PENICUIK ARTS FESTIVAL (August-September)

website: www.makers.org.uk/penicuik/festival

PENICUIK HOME KOSMOID HOME

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