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Previous Events
Grinneabhat is a place to come together, to connect, to share experiences, to learn and to inspire. We host a number of events throughout the year, ranging from arts and crafts activities to workshops and curry nights. Everyone is welcome to come and take part in our activities. Have a look at the different events and activities that we have done.
On Sonorous Seas - Open Studios with Mhairi Killin
Firday 25th August 5pm-7pm



Conversations Through a Whale - with Mhairi Killin
18th & 25th of August 2023
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2022 was a year of bringing to fruition On Sonorous Seas, a multi-disciplinary, collaborative project which began in 2018 when a whale carcass washed ashore on the Isle of Iona, where Mhairi lives. The project interrogates the power of, and reliance on, sound as a survival tool for whales and the military, and the complex relationship between the militarisation of Scotland’s seas and their existing ecosystems. On Sonorous Seas represents a development of focus within my practice around the question of extraction in the Hebrides as a consequence of the presence of the military, and whether this particular presence has resulted in a psychological disarticulation between a specific culture and its immediate environment.
On Sonorous Seas has created an enquiring energy around this question and wider topics such as our relationship to the non human worlds around us, in this Anthropocene age. Mhairi's hope is that the project will continue in further iterations, inspiring and informing itself by creating space for conversations and thinking about the issues raised by the work.
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We hope that its presence might hold a space at Grinneabhat, reflecting the ethos of the centre by welcoming people in to share conversation and stories around the whale, about the whale, of the whale. As an artist, being in residence with the whale, the centre, and its visitors, gives Mhairi a chance to extend the On Sonorous Seas project outwards, whilst reflecting inwards on further work. In this way the space becomes studio, exhibit, and salon as she open her practice up and out; drawing, thinking, reading, sharing and inviting a curiosity about what connects an artist to place, to an idea, to a feeling, to a purpose.
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Mhairi will bring the whale's story back home and hopes to recieve others. Come along to the events to learn and to share stories on whales and whaling.
Àite-Cèilidh Cafe Pop-up Restaurant Classical Night
Saturday 26th August - 5.45-7.45pm
Thigibh còmhla rinn oidhche Shathairne! Join us for our pop-up 'classical' night, everyone is welcome! Pre-order is essential. To book or for more information contact us at 01851 710210 or email info@bragararnol.org
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Click below to view menu and prices.
Open Studios Hebrides
27th-29th July & 3rd-5th August 2023

Cuairt le CnaG -
A Walk with CnaG
26mh den Iuchar 2023 -
26th of July 2023
Abair latha còmhla ri Comunn na Gàidhlig aig Grinneabhat! Thòisich Ceitidh, Sarah agus na sianar chloinne an latha le cuairt timcheall machair Bhràdhagair is an tràigh. B` e Gèillean na Muice-mara a’ chiad àite far an do stad iad, agus bha a’ chlann a’ smaoineachadh mu cia mheud aca a dh’fheumadh seasamh air muin a cheile gus a’ mhulach a’ ruighinn. Às dèidh beagan deasbaid, cho-dhùn iad gum feumadh iad coignear.
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What a wonderful visit from Commun na Gàidhlig here at Grinneabhat! Ceitidh, Sarah, and the six kids set out for the day with a coastal walk around the machair. Starting the trip off at the Whalebone Arch, they tried working out how many of them it would take to reach the top! It was settled on five.
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Ma tha an gèillean cho mòr ri seo, dè cho mòr `s a tha muc-mhara?
If the jaw bone is this big, can you imagine how big a whole whale would be?

Leis gun robh an latha cho math, b` e amas na cloinne dealbhan a thogail de na rudan a chunnac iad – gu sònraichte dealbhan de bheathaichean agus lusan. B’ e crùbagan an rud a bha iad bu mhotha ag iarraidh fhaicinn. Ged a bha an latha grianach, cha robh crùbagan ri lorg. Bha dìreach sligean ri fhaicinn agus crùbagan beaga bìdeach. Ach co-dhiù, bha iad toilichte leis na sligean mòra bho na crùbagan.
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With the lovely weather we had, the plan was to take pictures of what we saw on our walk - particularly any plants and animals. What the kids were most interested in finding was crabs! While it was a lovely sunny day, it seems all the crabs we could find were either too small or empty shells. However, they happily posed with the big crab claws they found!

Às dèidh bhith ruith timcheall an tràigh, thill a h-uile duine air ais gu Grinneabhat `son milkshakes a-miugh sa ghrèin! An uairsin, chaidh iad dhan rùm choimhearsnachd airson ealain a dhèanamh a’ cleachdadh dealbhan de na rudan a lorg iad air an cuairt, agus dh’ionnsaich iad na faclan Gàidhlig eadar-dhealaichte airson na rudan sin!
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After a run around on the beach, everyone headed back to Grinneabhat for some milkshakes outside in the sun. Next, everyone got together in the workshop to make some art out of what they found and learnt the different Gaelic words for them!

Darns & Yarns
Thursday 27th of July
Have a look at the spinning wheel Mac brought to today’s Darns & Yarns session! Darns & Yarns takes place every second Thursday. Come along! Everyone, at any knitting level welcome.
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Next Darns & Yarns session is the 10th of August.
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'String / Lines' with Caroline Dear
Unravelling the story of string: people, plants and place.
Tuesday 18th July

Bha latha inntinneach againn an seo aig Grinneabhat Dimàirt.
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Còmhla rinn fad an latha bha an tè ealain Caroline Dear. Tha Caroline stèidhte san Eilean Sgitheanach, agus `s e neach-ealain a th’ innte, a tha ag obair le nàdar, a’ dèanamh snàithleanan agus ròpannan iongantach à lusan dùthchasach. Às dèidh dhith bhith ag innse dhuinn mu a h-obair aig Cofaidh na Maidne, chaidh Caroline agus buidheann de mhuinntir an àite a-mach cuairt air machair Bhràdhagair a’ coimhead ri lusan agus a’ bruidhinn mu dheidhinn traidiseanan an Taobh Siar a thaobh dèanamh ròpa.
Bha bùth-obrach ann an uairsin aig Grinneabhat. Thuirt Elspeth Murphy a bh’ aig a’ bhùth-obrach, “`S e bùth-obrach fìor mhath a’ bh’ ann a’ dèanamh ròpa bho chuilc is lusan eile, às dèidh cuairt shocair tro fhlùraichean na machrach! Dh’ionnsaich mi tòrr fiosrachaidh ùr mu na lusan agus na cleachdaidhean. An uairsin air ais gu Grinneabhat airson cofaidh is cèic. Chòrd e rium!”
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We had a brilliant, interesting day here at Grinneabhat on Tuesday.
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With us all day was artist in residence Caroline Dear. Caroline is a Skye based artist who works with nature, making amazing threads and ropes from native plants. After introducing her work at the coffee morning, Caroline and a group of local people visited Bragar machair and explored the plants and Westside traditions of rope making.
This was followed by a workshop at Grinneabhat. Elspeth Murphy who was at the workshop said, “Really lovely workshop making rope from reeds and other plants, after a relaxing walk through the machair flowers! I learnt lots of new information about the plants and uses. Then back to Grinneabhat for coffee and cake. Loved it!”

Bha sinn fortannach gun robh Iona Davidson còmhla rinn às dèidh bhith a’ seinn aig Heb Celt. Sheinn i òrain àlainn thradiseanta dhuinn. `S ann à Barabhas a tha Iona ach tha ceanglaichean làidir aice ri Bràdhagair.
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We were very fortunate to have Iona Davidson with us, fresh from her debut at Heb Celt, singing beautiful traditional Gaelic song for us. Iona is from Barvas but has strong links to Bragar.
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Bu mhath le Grinneabhat taing a thoirt do Jon MacLeòid a chur an tachartas inntinneach seo air dòigh agus a thug cuireadh do Charoline a Ghrinneabhat airson a’ choimhearsnachd a choinneachadh.
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Gheibh sibh barrachd fiosrachaidh mu Caroline is a h-obair an seo: https://www.carolinedear.co.uk/info
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Grinneabhat would like to thank Jon Macleod who co-ordinated this interesting event and introduced Caroline to Grinneabhat and the community.
Please see Caroline’s website for more information on her work: https://www.carolinedear.co.uk/info
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Chippy Saturday
Saturday 22nd July - 12 to 3pm
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Amazing Whales Creative Workshops
Friday 7th July 11.30am - 3pm
As part of the Outer Hebrides Wildlife Festival, children age 8-12 can explore the ocean depths and learn about whales through music, movement and making with An Lanntair's arts workers. Bring a packed lunch.
To book and for more information please visit: https://lanntair.com/events/event/amazing-whales-creative-workshops/

A Taste of Asia
Indian and Thai Themed Curry Night
Saturday 1st of July 2023 - 5.45pm to 7.45pm
Thigibh còmhla rinn oidhche Disathairne! Join us on for our pop-up curry night, everyone is welcome! Pre-order is essential. To book or for more information contact us at 01851 710210 or e-mail at tina.macphail@bragararnol.org
Click below to view menu and prices.
Island Paintings Exhibition Opening
By Jonathan Smith
Saturday 24th June 5-7pm
An exhibition of recent paintings by artist Jonathan Smith, reflecting the weather, light and particular nature of the Lewis landscape.


Calum Alex Macmillan with Ross Martin
Friday 23rd of June 7.30pm

Gaelic singer and piper Calum Alex Macmillan is joined by Ross Martin (Dàimh) for an evening of traditional gaelic song and music.
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Tickets are £10 and £7 for members. To book tickets, please phone us at 01851 710210 or visit us here at Grinneabhat. BYOB.
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For more information about Calum Alex Macmillan, visit his website at www.calumalexmacmillan.co.uk
Friday 23rd of June - 7.30pm
Là Bogaidh Gàidhlig - Gaelic Immersion Day
Disathairne 10 Ògmhios - Saturday 10th June

Là Bogaidh airson daoine a tha air tòiseachadh Gàidhlig ionnsachadh. Tha seo freagarrach dhuibh ma tha sibh air a bhith ag ionnsachadh na Gàidhlig airson bliadhna, no air crioch a chur air Speak Gàidhlig A1. Gheibh sibh cothrom an canan a dh'ionsaich sibh a chleachdadh tro ghnìomhan m.e. geamanan bùird, cuairt san sgìre, òrain agus sgeulachdan.
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Bidh sinn a' cleachdadh canain mu ar beatha làitheil agus a ' cleachdadh tòrr ghnìomhairean agus Riochdairean Roimhearach. Gabhaidh sinn bracaist agus lòn còmhla mar phàirt dhan an là.
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Our immersion day will be suitable for students who have been studying Gaelic for a year and/or have completed Speak Gaelic A1.You will have the opportunity to use the language you have learnt through various activities e.g. board games, a walk, songs and stories.
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We will be using language about everyday matters and using lots of verbs and prepositional pronouns. A chance for you to speak Gaelic to one another. Breakfast and lunch will also be provided on the day.
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Cosgais: £40
Uair: 8.30-3f
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Ma tha sibh airson pàirt a ghabhail no ma tha sibh ag iarriadh barrachd fiosreachaidh, nach cuir thugainn fios agus bidh sinn toilichte ur cuideachadh.
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fòn: 01851 710210
post-d: info@bragararnol.org
Instagram: @grinneabhat_
Twitter: @BragarArnol
facebook.com/bragararnol
Strandlines exhibition opening
Friday 10th March 5pm

Sian Islands Tour 2022
Tuesday 26th April 2022 7pm

Friday 23rd of June - 7.30pm
Luach Festival opening cèlidh including Sgeulachdan Siarach
Thursday 7th April 2022 6.30pm
The event will include a presentation by local primary school children retelling stories and myths associated with the west side of Lewis, as part of Scotland's Year of Stories 2022.
During the winter months the children accompanied volunteers from Comann Eachdraidh an Taobh Siar (the local history society) on environmental walks to three local sites and heard about the rich cultural and linguistic heritage associated with these special places. The children then created imaginative responses to the stories they heard during creative workshops, reinforcing their grasp of the stories and developing their own artworks.
For more information please contact info@bragararnol.org.
Sgeulachdan Siarach has been supported by the Year of Stories 2022 Community Stories Fund. This fund is being delivered in partnership between VisitScotland and Museums Galleries Scotland with support from National Lottery Heritage Fund thanks to National Lottery players.

First Residency at Grinneabhat - Ruta Vitkauskaite
Every Tuesday 11am

Our first residency starts this week with the arrival of Glasgow based Lithuanian composer and researcher Ruta Vitkauskaite.
Ruta’s work spans from ensemble and orchestral, to collaborative opera in the dark, to experimental projects for one listener. Her interest in community projects resulted in Walking Opera and currently she is running CoMA – Contemporary Music for All, Glasgow branch. She has recently received a PhD in Composition at the Royal Academy of Music in London.
The two-week residency is hosted by Grinneabhat and run by An Lanntair. Ruta will be working collaboratively with Shawbost-based musicians and composers James and Katie Mackenzie as well as hoping to learn more about Gaelic culture and traditions. James is a graduate of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland's Piping Degree Course. In 2019, James won the Silver Medal for Piobaireachd at the Northern Meeting Piping Competition. A former member of folk band ‘Breabach’, James is also a member of ‘Tryst’. He has produced three solo albums. His latest album ‘Fìbhig’ was released in December.

Katie is a Gaelic singer and harpist. She studied at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, specialising in Gaelic Song with Kenna Campbell. Katie has released one album to date, The Lassies Reply, which was nominated for Album of the Year at the Scots Trad Awards.

The residency will culminate in a concert featuring Ruta, Katie and James at Grinneabhat on 5th February. For more details please contact jon@lanntair.com.
Scotland's Memory Walk 2021
Saturday 18 September 2021
A group of Bragar and Arnol residents and friends came together on Saturday 18 September 2021 to take part in Scotland’s Memory Walk around Bragar, raising £187 for Alzheimer Scotland Western Isles. Participants enjoyed complimentary tea and coffee afterwards in the Grinneabhat Community Room. Thanks to all who took part in support of the event.

Scottish Opera comes to Grinneabhat
July 2021

Scottish Opera came to Lewis in July, and performed two fabulous shows at Grinneabhat.
'S iomadh rud a chì duine a tha fada beò!
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