Kirkcudbright

We happened upon Kirkcudbright while touring southwest Scotland and liked it so much we stayed a couple days. The town has always had a long association with the Glasgow art movement. Many artists, including the Glasgow Boys and the famed Scottish Colorists, based themselves here and established the Kirkcudbright Artists’ Colony. The presence of accredited artists helped Kirkcudbright become known as “the Artist’s Town”.

We lodged at the Selkirk Arms Hotel and couldn’t recommend it more highly if you like good food, great beer and terrific people.

The hotel is named after Thomas Douglas, the 5th Earl of Selkirk, one of Kirkcudbright’s most famous sons. He devoted much of his life to helping landless Scots immigrate to Canada and from around 1790 to 1812 founded colonies on Prince Edwards Island, Ontario and Manitoba. The site of his original settlement on the Red River is now part of Winnipeg, Manitoba’s capital.

Kirkcudbright became a royal burgh in 1453. The Tolbooth/City Hall was built between 1625 and 1629 and served as tollbooth, council offices,  courts and the criminal and debtors’ prison. It’s most famous prisoner was the American Naval hero, John Paul Jones. The building, after a £3 million renovation, is now the city’s largest art museum/gallery.

Jessie Marion King

Jessie Marion King was one of the artists known as the Glasgow Girls. She lived and worked in this house with her husband E. A. Taylor. She was a hugely independent woman and chose to keep her maiden name, something very unusual in Scotland at the beginning of the 20th century.

A prolific artist, she always moved against the grain and was inspired to create unique designs in her paintings, illustrations, books, fabrics, pottery and jewelry.

Jessie Marion King

With it’s many pastel colored homes and narrow passageways, the town is almost the definition of quaint.