East Pollokshields Fun Day - 26th August 2012

The second fun family event taking in Pollokshields this weekend is the annual East Pollokshields Funday which is happening on Sunday 26th August 2012 from 1pm-5pm. The event will take place in the East Pollokshield Quad. There will be Cricket Tasters, Face painting, Music. 

With the New Victoria Allotments open day on he Saturday and both Locavore and Urban roots taking part with the Fun day the Southside Gardening fun knows no bounds. That's not even taking into account the Ready Steady Grow or South Seeds. Hmm I think a post about allotments and all the great gardening projects happenings in teh Southside might be required.

More information about the Fun Day is available on the East Pollokshields Quad Facebook page.

New Victoria Allotments - 25th August 2012

Another one of the Southside's nicest events is taking place this weekend.

Behind a little brick wall off Albert Drive, through a little green door there hides the wonderfully beautiful New Victoria Gardens where on Saturday 25 August you can visit for £1 and see all the lovely plants, flowers and vegetables grown by local residents. Their home baking is pretty amazing too.

The New Victoria Allotments were built in the 1870's on land owned by the Stiling Maxwell estate (They are the family that lived in Pollokhouse) and apparently is the oldest allotment in Scotland. There are trophies given for the best flowers & produce and these themselves date as far back to 1922.

Now run by Glasgow City Council, the gardeners working away there are a great mix of local residents, from young families to pensioners. There is a really good atmosphere on the open days and with the weather looking to hold out (fingers crossed) everything should be looking in fine bloom.

You can get a little sneak into what to expect from the below video by local resident Droomvoodoo.

FURTHER READING
History - Glasgow Allotments Heritage project
(They are looking for help in collating the history of Glasgow's Allotments so if you have memories drop them an email or visit their Facebook page.)

History - Pollokshields Heritage

Albert Drive Studios

At the start of 2010 a new and exciting venue opened on Albert Drive. The Albert Drive Studios is the brain child of Hilary, an environmental artist who is in the process of converting the beautiful original detached Victorian villa into a three story home for creative extravaganzas.

Eventually the building will house artist studios on the ground floor, exhibition spaces on the first floor and a workshop and meeting space in the attic. There's a lot of building work going on in the ground floor at the moment as the studios are readied for a series of interesting tenants but the upstairs and the attic have been renovated and are bright, airy and ready for creativity. Tenants will include Bean and Mouse (textile artists), Sans Facon (an art and architecture duo), a hat maker and a clarinetist. The idea of them all working in the one house sounds like the setup for an arty based sitcom. There is also a huge list of different workshops and classes taking place at the studios which are open to the public, including hat making, screen printing, interior design and silk painting. Advanced screenwriting begins on Mondays and Life drawing will be starting soon on Tuesdays. As these are confirmed we'll try to update our calender to include them but if these sound interesting then email info@albertdrivestudios.com for more info.

There will also be events happening soon too, with various art exhibitions planned for the gallery spaces, a music event taking place in the attic, gourmet dinner parties and an open studio and music concert in the extensive gardens. When we find out more we'll add some more posts.
It was really interesting to get a tour of the old building and very exciting to hear all the plans that Hillary has for the studios. I loved all the little nooks and crannies of the building and the little snippets of history that await discovery - for example while being given a tour of the gardens we found what looked like a medium sized stone lion on its back half hidden by leaves. Its definitely a house where you can imagine stories taking place and a new life as the home to creativity seems entirely fitting.

www.albertdrivestudios.com
info@albertdrivestudios.com
07805 346 314

Scottish Ballet Headquarters - Pollokshaws Road

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

It was such a nice day today, I went for a walk down to the Tramway and took some photographs of the Scottish Ballet HQ building on Pollokshaws Road. The building was officially opened in September 2009 and was designed by Edinburgh based Malcolm Fraser Architects. Unfortunately the building is not open to the public, so if you want to have a look inside you'll have to wait until doors open day or click here for some internal photographs.

I have been passing the building regularly over the last few months, and I've become aware of how visible the building is from the surrounding area. Over night it's turned into a reference point or landmark for this part of the Southside. I wonder if it will be come an iconic image of the Southside. [Post on this topic to follow shortly]

Hidden Gardens - Polloksheilds

One of my favourite places in the Southside is the Hidden Gardens, at the Tramway in Polloksheilds. The gardens opened about four years ago and are slowly being expanded. It's free to get in and it's open from dawn to dusk [closed on Mondays]. It's a great place to go and sit in the sun, read your book, or listen to a band. The cafe in the Tramway is also well worth a visit for lunch or just some coffee and cake.

To get to the Hidden Gardens take a Train from Central Station to Polloksheilds Train Station or get on a bus from the city centre 38, 45, 48, 57, will all stop at the end of Albert Drive.

View Albert Drive in a larger map

Link: www.thehiddengardens.org.uk