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Steve Dilworth's mailboat in Village Bay, St Kilda
Steve Dilworth‘s St Kilda Mailboat leaves Village Bay.
Steve Dilworth launches his St Kilda Mailboat in Village Bay
Artists are drawn to the extremes of the Hebrides. One of the best known artists is the sculptor Steve Dilworth.
To commemorate the evacuation of St Kilda (a remote group of islands lying 60 miles west of the Outer Hebrides) Steve sailed to St Kilda, where he launched a small mailboat made from whalebone and oak.
An art statement maybe, but until the islands were evacuated in 1934 this was how the islanders communicated with the outside world.
Fiddler at the Stones
Calanish is an inspirational megalithic stone circle. Many artists and performers are drawn here to the stones.
School Dance
Dancers perform the ‘Dance of the Small Schools’. This was the first Hebridean Dance composed for over a hundred years after an old woman was discovered who remembered this ancient art form.
This particular dance was composed to fight the closure of Eoligarry school on the island of Barra; the school stayed open.
Sarah and the Stones
The Calanish stones are the second most important Neolithic monument in the UK. Each year, thousands of people visit the stones. Theories abound as to why the stones were erected; the powers that be call them ‘an ancient site of community interest’.
Dancing druids, stone huggers, or hamper campers; they all visit, and because the place is so ancient and enigmatic, many people are freed by the theatre of the stones.
Duncan on Mangersta beach
It’s often said of the Hebrides that it’s a great place to bring up children. The area has the highest number of graduates per head of population in the country.
But after finishing school many young people leave the islands for further education.
The lure of jobs and urban entertainment stops many returning, except for holidays.
This picture of Duncan Maynard was taken on Mangersta beach on the far west coast of Lewis in 1983.
Carnish Kids
These children are playing at a Gaelic medium school in Carnish, North Uist, which lies in the middle of the Hebrides.
Although there are some schools where Gaelic is taught like Carnish, it is not compulsory in Scotland to teach children the language. There are many who see Gaelic as the native language of Scotland, but it hasn’t got the same official status as either Irish or Welsh have in there own countries.
Many parents of children in the Gaelic medium schools that do exist in Scotland are not Gaelic speakers themselves, but prefer that their children learn the language.
Calum Macdonald
Calum Macdonald from Point was the Western Isles MP. He lost the seat to the SNP in the 2005 election.
He was elected in 1987, and this image was taken during his election campaign.
Annie Martin
Annie Martin and her husband Chalkie White live and work in the Island of Skye. They run an outdoor centre, called White Wave, in the north of the island, and Annie is a well known Gaelic musician.
This picture was taken on their wedding day in 1994, on the ferry between the islands of Skye and Raasay.
An Diugh
An Diugh means ‘today’ in Scottish Gaelic. Some say the writing is in the sand for the language.
Gaels speak of their unique language and culture. But the Hebrides are also populated by many ‘white settlers’. These incomers have been attracted by jobs, cheap property, low crime, fresh air, the surf, empty beaches, or to just escape. To these new locals, Gaelic culture is as valid as any other and can sometimes be exclusive.
Trying to make Gaelic appealing in a modern context is an industry in its own right. This picture was taken for Proiseact nan Ealan, (The National Gaelic Arts Agency) to draw people’s attention to the perilous state of the language.
