Crawick Multiverse and OU hosting solstice celebrations

Crawick Multiverse, the spectacular artland and visitor attraction inspired by the science and mysteries of the cosmos, will host a week of family-friendly summer solstice celebrations. 

This year the Crawick Multiverse, near Sanquhar on the Dumfries and Galloway and Ayrshire border, is partnering with The Open University (OU) in Scotland for a series of inspirational, educational and entertaining events and activities between 18-24 June. 

On the longest day itself, Wednesday 21 June, the beautiful 40-acre site will open at 4.00am for visitors to gather and welcome the dawn. There will be a Sunrise Ceremony, led by Open University professor of religious studies, Graham Harvey and professional storyteller, Gordon MacLellan.  

Gordon (pictured right) said: “Our Solstice Sunrise Ceremony will draw upon midsummer traditions from around the northern hemisphere, bringing together ancient British poetry with Scandinavian stories and more. Spiritual without being religious, this event will encourage visitors to pause and reflect upon their relationship with the world around them and appreciate this morning, this sunrise, one of the turning points of the year.” 

During the longest day visitors will be able to enjoy self-guided sensory tours, guided tours, yoga sessions and Tai Chi demonstrations, plus entertainment from locally-based musicians and performers. The day culminates with a Tilt Ceremony to mark the moment, at 3.57pm, when the sun reaches its highest point of the year in the sky. 

Events begin on Sunday, 18 June with a family-friendly open day at Crawick Multiverse. The evening will see the launch of Solstice Seminars; talks from leading specialists in space science from The Open University, including professors Monica Grady CBE, Stephen Peake and Mahesh Anand, in Sanquhar Town Hall.  

The Summer Solstice Week will come to a close on the Saturday with a Midsummer’s Day Family Picnic complete with more entertainment from music and performers and a pop-up exhibition. The entire week offers a superb chance to explore Crawick Multiverse (designed by the late Charles Jencks) with its giant conical grass mounds representing colliding galaxies, long avenue of standing stones and other spectacular features inspired by the sun, stars, and other wonders of the cosmos.  

Cathy Agnew, Trustee, The Crawick Multiverse Trust said: “We’re thrilled to be inviting visitors and locals to mark the Summer Solstice in such spectacular surroundings. And it’s a huge pleasure to be working in partnership with The Open University in Scotland to offer a programme of events that will be fun and informative.” 

Derek Goldman, Senior Knowledge Exchange Manager at The Open University in Scotland added: “We are delighted to be co-hosting the Solstice Week celebrations at Crawick this year. It is a stunning and unique site which brings together the wonders of art and science. 

“With students across the whole of Scotland – including 2,900 in South Scotland – The Open University is pleased to be delivering talks and workshops in the programme with some of our leading experts in space science and the arts, as part of our cultural and community engagement work across Scotland.”  

For tickets and information visit the Crawick Multiverse website.

10 May 2023