Kirkcaldy Galleries

Kirkcaldy Galleries stands in the centre of Kirkcaldy, a town on the Fife coast. The building occupies the site of Balsusney House, once home to John Maxton. John Nairn donated the land in memory of his grandfather, the linoleum manufacturer Michael Nairn. The galleries opened in 1925 under the first chairman John Blyth. A major refurbishment in 2012 returned the building to public use in 2013. The galleries house a museum, library, children’s library and café. They hold the largest collection of paintings by William McTaggart outside the National Galleries of Scotland. Samuel Peploe and the Glasgow Boys are also represented. A permanent exhibition on the town’s industrial past won an award. The café displays Wemyss Ware pottery made locally from the 1890s to the 1930s. Visitors find gallery spaces, meeting rooms and a PC suite. The art gallery displays works by Diane Arbus, the first in Fife to do so. The Great Tapestry of Scotland once hung here, though one panel was stolen in 2015. A replacement panel was completed two years later. The building remains a focus for exhibitions, learning and community events in Kirkcaldy.