Creative cats take over Kirkcaldy – The WemyssWare® Cat Trail Is Launched

The WemyssWare® Cat Trail is the largest outdoor art event in the town’s history, showcasing an impressively diverse collection of cat designs. Elaborately designed and vibrantly colourful cats have transformed the streets of Kirkcaldy and the surrounding areas.

The trail runs from Saturday 25 April until Sunday 6 September, with 16 fixed cat locations

and one mystery cat whose position will change periodically. This gives visitors plenty of

time to enjoy the trail during the summer months - a perfect way to spend some of the

summer holidays.

The Trail Launch Event

The trail was officially launched on 25 April at the Adam Smith Theatre, where maps were

distributed to the public. Attendees were also treated to free workshops by many of the

artists, giving people of all ages a chance to get creative and experience the design process

behind the cats.

At the launch of the trail, Gordon Povey of the Kirkcaldy Lottery and the Adam Smith Global

Foundation, who are the primary organisers, delivered some remarks on the importance of

the trail for the local area: “People are really positive about this. It creates a lot of interest in the town and it is actually putting investment back into the local economy.”

“This is the biggest Kirkcaldy Lottery project ever with a budget approaching £60,000, which

is surprisingly low considering what we have actually been doing.

The event was attended by local MP Melanie Ward who commented on the enthusiasm she

has seen in the local area in anticipation of the trail: “It has been brilliant to see the excitement build around town as the cats have started to pop up in different places.”

Artists

At the event, there were two cats present. There was ‘Sweetie’ by Robert Mach which uses a

striking Tunnocks tea cakes design, and ‘The Asparagus Misfit the Theatre Cat’ by Susan

Warner, who utilises a diverse range of colours and shapes.

Other artists involved in the WemyssWare Cat Trail include: Hazel Terry, Abigail Cooper,

Dorothy Black, Elaine Syme, Donna Forester, Rachel Devine, Lisa Graef, Susan Warner, Griselda Hill, Susan McGill, Yolande Kenny, Vanessa Gibson, Lauren Morsley, Paul McGinty, Joanna Scott, Roseanne Hoy and Robert Mach.

Information about all of the artists, their designs, and where to find them can be found on the

website at ww.cattrail.uk.

Community Response

The initial response from the community has been one of engagement. Lots of locals and

visitors alike have posted pictures and videos of themselves visiting the different cats, this

has been boosted by positive coverage by media organisations such as The Fife Free Press,

STV News, and the Kirkcaldy Community Radio at K107 FM.

There are many individuals and organisations coming together to help make this happen

with Stagecoach sponsoring the free cat trail maps which will help you find the different cats.

Kirkcaldy Lottery website for details.

Maps for the Cat Trail can be collected at the Adam Smith Heritage Centre, the Adam Smith

Theatre, and Kirkcaldy Galleries, amongst other places as well as on the website.

Griselda Hill Pottery are the custodians of the historic Wemyss Ware® brand. For more than

30 years, the pottery has hand-crafted Wemyss Ware® in the traditional style, helping to

keep the famous name alive.

Wemyss Ware® is a registered trademark owned by Griselda Hill Pottery.

Pictures by wonderful Cath Ruane-thank you!