Green Well of Scotland Exhibition

Knockengorroch - Green Well Project
Knockengorroch - Green Well Project

This outdoor photographic portrait exhibition took place in the summer of 2021.  It features the villagers of Carsphairn parish in Dumfries and Galloway, captured by Award winning photographer Alicia Bruce at the mysterious Green Well of Scotland.

The Green Well of Scotland sits next to the Water of Deugh (Dee) at the foot of the mighty corbett Cairnsmore of Carsphairn on Dumfries & Galloway core path 487. It comprises a 30 foot diameter pool, said to be bottomless. Historical sources suggest it was visited regularly in times gone by as it was believed its water had healing properties – and locals believe it is one of the Fons Scotiae mentioned in Saint Columba’s biography.

All 180 odd members of the local community were invited to step forward and be photographed at this site of historic and cultural significance. The exhibition captured a community outdoors as they emerged from lockdown, in a project which re-animated routes once trod, making the Well a focal point for community as it may have been in times past.

The Green Well of Scotland is situated just up the river from Knockengorroch, where the world-renowned greenfield festival takes place each year. The exhibition opened outside the Carsphairn Heritage Centre and at the Green Well of Scotland on Sunday 27th June 2021, free for the public to visit until the end of September 2021.

If you missed the exhibition you can still visit this beautiful place, and perhaps cure yourself of some ills. But be careful! The well is deep.

For more information check out project instigator Katch Holmes’ Lost Wells podcast, episode 4 of which is dedicated to the Green Well of Scotland.

The photographs from the exhibition can be viewed in the slideshow below.

“We made pictures in all weather conditions from high winds to hot sun to heavy rain and enjoyed the everchanging light and landscape in this magical spot. I enjoyed hearing about folks connections to the well. At some points it got quite spiritual and uncanny and often brought out the romantic bond in couples. I loved seeing the gestures and responses unfold as I made the portraits with them all.”

Alicia Bruce, photographer

“The water of it was believed to cure many illnesses. This well is in the middle of a solid rock and is about 30 feet in circumference. It has no outlet, and though much rubbish has been thrown into it at different times, it is still about 20 feet deep. Some people continue to wash their bodies with its waters as a remedy for scorbutic diseases.”

Rev. W Mackenzie, A History of Galloway: 1841

“There are few wells that can boast a richer folklore than the Green Well of Scotland. Tucked away in a remote part of Galloway, the well is seemingly ageless and bottomless. Here you will find healing lore, devil lore, stories of witches and avian guardians, lairds, Covenanters and a fugitive ‘alchemist’. Above all the Green Well is a place of beauty, a place where the regions’ cultural memory is stored like a battery.”

Dr Peter Hewitt, Dumfries and Galloway Museums, 2021

Supported by Dumfries and Galloway Regional Arts Fund and Event Scotland through Scotland’s Events Recovery Fund.

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🌍✨ 𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝗟𝗮𝗻𝗴𝘂𝗮𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗪𝗲𝗲𝗸 𝗦𝗰𝗼𝘁𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱! 🎶🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿At Knockengorroch, we celebrate the richness of language and culture through music, song, and storytelling from Scotland and beyond. 🗣️🎻 We’re proud to support Scotland’s diverse linguistic heritage, from Scots and Gaelic to the many languages spoken by our artists, audiences, and wider festival family. 🎤✨ Our Languages Policy reflects this commitment—helping us ensure that Knockengorroch remains an inclusive space where different languages and cultures thrive. 🌿🌎Find out more here: www.knockengorroch.org.uk/about/our-values/plana-leasachaidh-chanain-languages-plan/🌍✨ '𝙎 𝙚 𝙨𝙚𝙖𝙘𝙝𝙙𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙘𝙝𝙖̀𝙣𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙣𝙖 𝙝-𝘼𝙡𝙗𝙖 𝙖 𝙩𝙝'𝙖𝙣𝙣! 🎶🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 𝘈𝘪𝘨 𝘊𝘯𝘰𝘤 𝘢𝘯 𝘎𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘩, 𝘵𝘩𝘢 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘯 𝘢' 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘥𝘩 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘢̀𝘯𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘮 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘯 𝘤𝘦𝘰̀𝘭, 𝘰̀𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘨𝘦𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘥𝘢𝘯 𝘯𝘢 𝘩-𝘈𝘭𝘣𝘢 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘢𝘰𝘣𝘩 𝘢-𝘮𝘶𝘪𝘨𝘩. 🗣️🎻 𝘛𝘩𝘢 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘯 𝘮𝘰𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘪𝘭 𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘤 𝘢 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘪𝘳𝘵 𝘳𝘪 𝘢𝘳 𝘥𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘤𝘩𝘢̀𝘯𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘢𝘳-𝘮𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘨𝘵𝘦, 𝘭𝘦 𝘈𝘭𝘣𝘢𝘪𝘴, 𝘎𝘢̀𝘪𝘥𝘩𝘭𝘪𝘨 𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘩-𝘤𝘩𝘢̀𝘯𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘵𝘩𝘢 𝘢𝘪𝘳 𝘢𝘮 𝘣𝘳𝘶𝘪𝘥𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘯 𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘳 𝘭𝘶𝘤𝘩𝘥-𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘯, 𝘭𝘶𝘤𝘩𝘥-𝘦̀𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘥, 𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘪𝘮𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴𝘯𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘥 𝘯𝘢 𝘧𝘦̀𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘢𝘪𝘳 𝘧𝘢𝘥. 🎤✨ 𝘛𝘩𝘢 𝘢𝘮 𝘱𝘰𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥𝘩 𝘤𝘢̀𝘯𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘯 𝘯𝘢 𝘴𝘨𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘪𝘳 𝘢𝘳 𝘨𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘥𝘩 𝘥𝘰 𝘤𝘩𝘢̀𝘯𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘩𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘢𝘳, 𝘪𝘴 𝘨𝘢𝘳 𝘤𝘶𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘥𝘩 𝘨𝘶𝘴 𝘧𝘦̀𝘪𝘴 𝘊𝘯𝘰𝘤 𝘢𝘯 𝘎𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘢 𝘤𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘭 𝘢 𝘣𝘩𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘯𝘢 𝘩-𝘢̀𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘯𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘥𝘩 𝘳𝘪 𝘤𝘩𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘢𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘴𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘵𝘦 𝘢 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘩. 🌿🌎 𝘍𝘢𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘵𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘩 𝘧𝘪𝘰𝘴𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘪𝘥𝘩 𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘦𝘰: www.knockengorroch.org.uk/about/our-values/plana-leasachaidh-chanain-languages-plan/📷 ReCompose#LanguagesWeekScotland #Knockengorroch #CelebratingLanguages #ScottishCulture ... See MoreSee Less
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