SEALLADH BHON UINNEIG AGAM (View from my window) - watercolour sketch of Loch a Tuath on 2nd February 2024
I was born and brought up on the Island of Lewis and like many young people left the island as a teenager. At Glasgow School of Art in the mid seventies I was fortunate to be a student in the newly established, innovative Mixed Media department of the Fine Art faculty. After graduating and gaining a certificate in teaching I worked for several years as an Art teacher but taking a break for a year to teach English in Italy revived my interest in languages. Back in Glasgow where I found work as a Gaelic lecturer it was a revelation to discover that the language and culture of my Gaelic heritage was enjoying a huge revival in the city. The influence of my Gaelic roots has grown over time and relocating to the island to devote more time to creative work has been incredibly rewarding.
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DEVELOPMENTS 2023 - 24
It was an honour to be chosen as judge for the Highland Art Prize awarded during Royal National Mod week in 2023 to David Greenhall a painter whose exquisite work is an inspiration to artists and art lovers across the Highlands and Islands and beyond. The event took place at the Briggait in Glasgow and was accepted in David's absence by Alex Ogilvie, a trustee of the London Gaelic Society and organiser of this now annual event. I have very fond memories of my old studio at the Briggait, the headquarters of WASPs, where I was regularly able to meet other artists in the city, but finally realised a long held ambition last year to have my own studio here on the island. The studio looks out onto the garden, an equal source of pleasure and frustration much like my painting!
It was an honour to be chosen as judge for the Highland Art Prize awarded during Royal National Mod week in 2023 to David Greenhall a painter whose exquisite work is an inspiration to artists and art lovers across the Highlands and Islands and beyond. The event took place at the Briggait in Glasgow and was accepted in David's absence by Alex Ogilvie, a trustee of the London Gaelic Society and organiser of this now annual event. I have very fond memories of my old studio at the Briggait, the headquarters of WASPs, where I was regularly able to meet other artists in the city, but finally realised a long held ambition last year to have my own studio here on the island. The studio looks out onto the garden, an equal source of pleasure and frustration much like my painting!
GREEK DIARY
July 2023 - A sketchbook from the Greek island of Andros
July 2023 - A sketchbook from the Greek island of Andros
WATERCOLOUR DIARY
December 2023 - Some miniature watercolour illustrations of our village on A6 handmade paper
December 2023 - Some miniature watercolour illustrations of our village on A6 handmade paper
WORKS IN PROGRESS
Mugdock Country Park in Milngavie on the outskirts of Glasgow is an oasis for city dwellers who need to get away from the hustle and bustle around them and enjoy the beauty of this place and be inspired by the numerous interesting historical sites located here. The park is where walkers begin their 96 mile trek to Fort William along the famous West Highland Way and the Mugdock reservoir, a Victorian feat of engineering, supplies the city of Glasgow with its water. Having completed a large scale oil painting (1 metre square) on this subject several years ago and feeling nostalgic for the magic of the summer walks there I've started a new painting on the same subject which is finally coming close to getting to where I want it to be.
Mugdock Country Park in Milngavie on the outskirts of Glasgow is an oasis for city dwellers who need to get away from the hustle and bustle around them and enjoy the beauty of this place and be inspired by the numerous interesting historical sites located here. The park is where walkers begin their 96 mile trek to Fort William along the famous West Highland Way and the Mugdock reservoir, a Victorian feat of engineering, supplies the city of Glasgow with its water. Having completed a large scale oil painting (1 metre square) on this subject several years ago and feeling nostalgic for the magic of the summer walks there I've started a new painting on the same subject which is finally coming close to getting to where I want it to be.
