The Cromarty Arts Trust was established in 1987 with the following aims and objectives.
The Cromarty Arts Trust aims to develop appetite and capacity for cultural creativity in individuals and communities in Cromarty and the Black Isle.
We aim to promote the value of creativity and break barriers to participation and interest in all aspects of creative activity.
We will engage with people at an early stage in their experience of creativity to help stimulate a lifelong interest.
We run an annual programme of live music, theatre and performance, music and visual arts workshops, and applied craft courses. Since 1987, we have restored and converted three architecturally important bulidings in Cromarty:
The Old Brewery, restored in 1989 and now used for educational courses, accommodation, meetings and workshops.
The Stables a Listed Grade A building restored in 1995, now used as a gallery, performance space and artists studios.
Ardyne, a fine example of a merchant’s house restored in 1994, and used as offices and artists accommodation.
Trustees
The Trustees of the Cromarty Arts Trust are volunteers who give their time freely to help with the running and organisation of the charity. The Trustees are: John Nightingale (Chair), Pat Haynes, Alexander Nightingale, Annie Stewart and Mary Peteranna.
The Cromarty Arts Trust is registered as a Scottish charity, number SC003018.
You can download a copy of our most recent Annual Report & Financial Statements here.
Previous Projects
Hugh Miller’s Bicentenary in 2002
The Trust ran a series of projects connected with this event. These included the establishment of both Cromarty and Highland-wide Miller trails with supporting interpretative panels and leaflets; a Hugh Miller exhibition which was shown at museums and libraries throughout Scotland; a series of conferences in Edinburgh and Cromarty, culminating in a major international conference in October 2002. The proceedings were published in two volumes edited by L. Borley: Hugh Miller in Context (2002) and Celebrating the Life and Times of Hugh Miller (2003), both of which can be ordered from the Trust. The latter can also be downloaded here.
The Emigration Stone
The commission of the Emigration Stone by the stone letter carver Richard Kindersley to commemorate Cromarty’s role as the principal point of embarkation for emigrants who left the Highlands for the New World in the 1830s and 1840s. A 4 metre high Caithness flagstone sited on the Cromarty links, it is inscribed with the words that Hugh Miller used to describe the departure of the Cleopatra from Cromarty in 1831 and the names of the 39 ships known to have left Cromarty for the New World in the 1830s and 1840s.
The Salmon Bothy, Eathie
Restored a ruined stone salmon netting bothy beneath the cliffs at Eathie to provide a shelter for walkers and to house information panels on Hugh Miller’s discoveries amongst the fossil beds at Eathie, on the history of salmon netting and on the rich flora and fauna of the surrounding SSSI.
