To mark 40 years of Monikie Country Park, ANGUSalive is launching a photography competition for local people and visitors to celebrate the beauty and enjoyment the park brings.
Monikie Country Park was opened to the public on 27 August 1981, two years after being taken out of commission as the main reservoir serving Dundee and the surrounding area with 13.5 million litres of clean water per day for over 100 years.
The park was officially opened by Dr Jean Balfour CBE, who has held many public appointments such as Chairman of the Countryside Commission of Scotland, President of The Royal Scottish Forestry Society and Vice-Chairman of the Scottish Wildlife Trust. She was awarded Commander of the British Empire in the same year as the opening of the park. The late Bruce Mackie OBE, received an Order of the British Empire in 1995 and was a local Councillor and Convener of Recreation and Tourism at the time, opened the park alongside Dr Balfour in 1981.
In the last 40 years Monikie Country Park has developed to become a hub for recreational activities including watersports, team building, outdoor concerts and seasonal activities for children.
It has also held significant importance to local people over the past 17 months having been a sanctuary for many looking to enjoy outdoor space during the pandemic.
To mark this special anniversary, ANGUSalive has launched a photography competition where 12 winning entrants and 12 runners up will each receive a free copy of a 2022 calendar featuring their photograph alongside a credit to them. The calendar will also be available to purchase at Monikie Country Park, museums and libraries in Angus.
Gill Ross, Visual Arts Lead with ANGUSalive who will be helping to judge the competition said: “As this competition is open to photographs taken over the last 40 years, we’re looking forward to seeing the variety of photographs submitted. Monikie Country Park can look so different season to season and we hope that this competition can capture the many moods and activities that Monikie provides. As judges we will be looking for photographs that capture the essence of Monikie Park rather than the photographers technical ability.”
ANGUSalive is delighted to also have local Carnoustie-based artist, Jim Dunbar, on board to judge the competition. Jim’s work concentrates on places, objects and people that he feels a strong connection with. His paintings can understandably be misunderstood as a photograph from a distance given Jim’s representational style. Jim says: “I’m delighted to have been asked to help judge the competition and although I am not an expert photographer, I look forward to being able to add something to the discussion about content and composition.”
The competition is open to all photographs taken at Monikie Country Park over the last 40 years. ANGUSalive is looking for stunning photographs of Monikie Country Park’s landscape, its wildlife, people or various recreational activities. If a photograph was taken with an analogue camera, this may be scanned and sent digitally.
The competition is now open and people can submit their photographs up until 10am on Friday 3 September 2021. Submit entries online at https://www.angusalive.scot/.
ANGUSalive
ANGUSalive (SC046133) is the culture, sport and leisure trust for the county of Angus and has been operating since December 2015.
