Posts for February, 2025

Family fun day with trade fair, bouncy castle, pony rides and more. Finishes with a duck race at 3pm followed by a pipe band parade through the village.

A family fun day on the village Greens in the centre of Ballater on Royal Deeside involving over 50 trade, craft and food stalls, with entertainment for children including hook-a-duck, merry-go-round, bouncy castle and slide.

The Ballater Pipe Band and a 20-piece brass band will play throughout the afternoon, culminating in a giant inflatable duck race on the River Dee at 3pm and a Tote operates if anyone fancies a ‘flutter’ on one of the ducks

Arboreal By Liz Green explores the iconic Highland woodland types made by Pine, Birch and Oak trees as well as plantations. These paintings are a feast of colour, pattern, texture, season and botanical identity distilled to depict the character and atmosphere of uniquely different woodland places.
‘I hope these paintings immerse the viewer in arboreal realms that I have found to be awe-inspiring, grounding and uplifting. Knowing trees can span several human generations and support an intricate wealth of other life is endlessly fascinating at every scale of observation’.
Liz Green is a self-taught artist based at WASPs Inverness Creative Academy and living in Inverness since 2003. Working in both oils and acrylic, her paintings include a mixture of realistic detail and stylised abstraction at differing scales. Her previous life strongly informs her art. With a degree in Botany and career as a plant ecologist, then environmental campaigner Liz has a deep understanding of ecosystems, the value and jeopardy of habitats and the complexity of trying to influence policy. Doing garden design work to suit places and people, then working in schools embedded her interest in visual communication. It was worsening arthritis that propelled her to start painting more in 2010 and she has not looked back.

WENDY GROSVENOR
BA(Hons)Fine Art

AN INTENTION – A stretching or bending of the mind toward an object; closeness of
application; fixedness of attention.

You are invited to view an artist’s exhibition of intention, process and outcome. And to take a tiny glimpse into the world of a sensory practice.
Semi-figurative artist Wendy Grosvenor uses a variety of different mediums to explore and respond to sensory connections and the sensory places that she inhabits.
‘My artmaking always begins with an intention.
My practice embraces tactile markmaking :- paint, water, charcoal, graphite – spoken word, sounds, found objects and three-dimensional form.
My process takes me to unexpected places and invariably, regardless of my intent, my painting seems find a life of it’s own. This is the explorative part for me.
It is exciting to visit a ‘different place’- an unexpected place – on a canvas. There is the gambler’s thrill in the unknowing, together with pure happenstance, which is quite addictive. When this overrides the intention – well, then I am delighted.
Wendy Grosvenor

Join us this Mother’s Day for a delicious lunch in the Keiller Brasserie. Please email or call to reserve a table or to receive a copy of our special menu.

Strathfest is up and running again this year, with competitions from 24th February to 27th February, culminating in a Showcase concert on Saturday 1st March. Competitions, spread along the Strath, are open to all school age youngsters, in classes covering traditional instruments, classical instruments, singing and Gaelic.

Some of the winners will be performing in the Showcase Concert, 6.30pm in the YMCA Community Centre, High Street, Grantown-on-Spey. Everybody is welcome to come and enjoy the youngsters’ music for a suggested donation of £5. An appreciative audience will be a great encouragement to the young musicians.

See https://www.strathfest.org to discover the heritage and scope of this long-running festival.

After the success of our annual Christmas Fayre last year, we’re delighted to be hosting it again in 2025, this year Sunday, 7th December.

Each year as winter draws in around the Cairngorms, its mountains and forests turn into a magical winter wonderland. So what better place to host a cosy Christmas market than nestled amongst the Narnia-like pines at Badaguish?

We will have lots of stalls with a wide variety of gift ideas from local crafters and producers. From food & drink to Christmas homeware, something for everyone.

There will be hot food and drinks along with activities for the children before they meet Santa.

All the stallholders donate an item for our charity raffle, so lots of great prizes to be won on the day!

Confirmed stalls include;

TBC

2024 stalls included –

Silver-n-Things Achnahannet Farm Produce EJ’s Highland Creations Collared by Mark Jackie Hichens Art Dalwhinnie Deli Funky Attire

Veronica’s Crochet, Diamond Art Painting by Joannie, Unique Skin Clinic, Leah Grace Creations, Fleurs

Scottish Disability Sport are delighted to announce that we will be hosting our annual summer camp at Badaguish 9th – 11th July 2025! The camp is available to anyone aged between 10 and 17: who has a physical disability, vision impairment or hearing loss, as their primary disability.

Join us for the ever popular cinema quiz night! Cost £30 for a table of 4. Nibbles platter on your table included. Grand prize to be announced.

Join us for the popular Cinema Quiz!

£30 per table of 4. Price includes a nibbles platter for your table. Grand prize to be announced!

Join us for a showing of the musical Mamma Mia!

Licenced bar available. Tickets available to purchase online (preferred). Parking either on the street outside the YMCA Building, or there are 2 small public carparks within a minutes walk.