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Information Updates | Scottish Landscape Art - Scottish Landscape Paintings - Part 10

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Behind the paint

Posted by admin on September 24th, 2011
'From the studio, Irvine harbour side'

'From the studio, Irvine harbour side'

The last week has been a fairly typical week recently ….lots of painting.  But behind every finished and exhibited painting there’s a safe full of other tasks.

I’m now on the final run up to the Wasps Studios Open Weekend, my exhibitions in Speyer and Dundee and ….the Battersea Affordable Arts Fair.  I have I think now completed the minimum amount of work needed for these shows but am still trying to complete another two 80 x 80 cm paintings and another one 76 x 23 cm piece.  Whether I will get these three pieces completed is debatable as from now on the back room tasks start to take precedence.   Thankfully many of these have already been taken on by my partner Anita (who reckons the pay rate for artists assistant is ****!).   While I’ve been wielding the paint brushes she has spent many hours doing this less romantic side of the job for me.

I’ll not only be shipping work out to Germany for my exhibition but am also finally in the process of setting up Papal on this website so that it will make it easier for customers to purchase paintings.  Before I can do this though I’ve needed to think carefully about how I ship work ….in other words I’ve needed to find out about and order boxes.  This doesn’t seem a great deal of effort but with there being a number of different sized paintings with several different framing options, it’s been vitally important that we’ve found the very best box ‘solutions’.  Part of the problem is storage space….or the lack of it!  As anyone who has visited my studio will know …there aint a lot of space there ….and as I said last week …the house is rather chock a’ block too.  The boxes I’m getting have a minimum order of 25 …so they’ll take up quite a lot of space…. hence the need to work out the very minimum number of different size boxes.  It’s all taken a lot of time especially as we’ve needed to get samples sent out and each of the different boxes tested out …but we’re getting there and Nita has just  placed the first order for me.

Other back room jobs this week have included sending out around 50 invitations to the Open Studios Weekend, delivering the last five paintings to the Waverley Gallery in Prestwick for framing …and collecting the one large painting (122 cm x 61cm).  I also spent an entire morning putting together a press release for our local paper the Irvine Times…..this to try and get some coverage for the Open Studios event next weekend.  The local papers have always been very helpful in the past and I received an email from the Irvine Times saying they’d put something in next week’s edition …perfect..it makes the time I spent on the press release worth while.  Hopefully it’ll bring a few extra folk through the doors and perhaps a sale or two for some of the artists taking part.

I’m leaving the actual organisation of the studio right to the last minute …well I’ll start tidying and cleaning on Thursday morning after we’ve been down to pick up the work from the Waverley  in Prestwick.   The tidying is the biggest job but I should have that done and the couple of walls painted by the time I go home on Thursday evening …quite late in the evening I reckon especially as I’ll also have to transport  one of the work benches, all paints and a good number of paintings home for the weekend.  Friday will be a day of setting up …selecting and hanging the paintings, printing and fixing labels, putting out a selection of business cards and other postcards, fixing clear signs directing folk to my studios and arranging lighting.  There’s probably a load of other jobs that I’ve forgotten now but will no doubt come to me on the day …and cause PANIC!

On top of this there’s a statement I need to write and send for my Queens Gallery exhibition, a van to be hired for delivering the work there and to the Strathearn Gallery on the 10th, and after the Open Weekend on 1st and 2nd, we have to wrap and box all 19 or 20 paintings ready for shipping to Germany.  These all have to be very carefully measured and weighed before I contact the shipping company.  Oh well, it keeps me busy …and Nita too.  It’s amazing isn’t it …you think you’re just doing a nice bit of relaxing painting……!   I love it, though it might not be so good when Nita sends her bill in!.

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Not long to WASPS Open Studios Weekend – October 1st and 2nd

Posted by admin on September 9th, 2011
New business post card

New business post card

It’s that time of year again ….just three weeks until the annual WASPS Open Studios Weekend. It’s always a good opportunity to promote your work to a wider audience and to make a sale or two if lucky. It’s also very enjoyable meeting the visitors …and a little tiring too. A normal exhibition preview lasts for perhaps two or three hours and that is quite hard work ….we’re going to be open 11 am – 5pm on Saturday and 12 noon – 5pm on the Sunday. By the end of each day my voice is usually fading and croaking!

I used to give myself most of the preceding week to prepare for the event but this year I’ll be working away on the last of the 80 x 80 cm paintings right up until Wednesday evening …so it’s going to be a mad rush on Thursday and Friday. To be honest, the Open Weekend is usually the one chance each year to have a complete tidy and sort out of the studios …I think the studio ‘Hoover’ has a bit of a shock each September as everyone seems to be fighting for it! I normally clear all my paints, pastels and other materials and equipment …stashing everything under my bench …everything is then covered with large white pieces of cloth to hide the gear and give the studio at least a slight appearance of tidiness. The walls are in pretty good shape thankfully seeing as the studio was refurbished just over a year ago …but two of them will need a lick of paint …I tend to splash acrylic on the wall behind and to one side of my easel.

As anyone who has been following my Face book page will know …the studio is pretty cluttered at present. I’m gradually getting all the work together for the show in Speyer (around 20 pieces) and the show at Queens Gallery in Dundee (around 18 pieces). I also have another six ready for The Strathearn Gallery who are taking them down to Battersea Affordable Art Fair. If I had the desire to do so …I could still, just about, swing the proverbial cat around …but not a big cat! So then before the Open Weekend I have to decide which work is going on the wall and all the rest will have to be taken home …not much room for swinging cats here either …but we should find space. The ‘cats’ in this case, being Anita’s parents who normally visit us for a few days at the start of October …and whom have been asked to give it a miss this year ….everywhere is slowly filling up with paintings, boxes and bubble wrap …absolutely no room for a spare bed this year I’m afraid. Hopefully I haven’t caused too much upset and I’m sure we’ll get to see them later in the year.

New business post card

New business post card

One job I have just got done is to get some new business post cards printed. I ran out of the last lot a good few months ago but realised I needed some new ones for the Open Weekend. I have a standard post card printed with two images of paintings or drawings …and then the contact details on the reverse. I’ve just had two different designs printed by Kestrel Press in Irvine …and I’m pleased to say that they look good. A great service too …I took the images to them on Monday and a chap arrived at the studio yesterday afternoon with a box containing the 1000 cards …brilliant. They make nice things for people to take away …I know many end up on kitchen walls or fridge doors …but you never quite know who will see them and with my website address etc on them …who knows what will come from someone taking a couple when visiting. It’s a very nice bit of advertising ….that works.

Right that’s me again for this week …must get back down to the studio again. For anyone interested, check out the new WASPS website [http://www.waspsstudios.org.uk.d8digital.com]. It should be up and running by later today. If it is, you should find full details of the WASPS Open Studios Weekend …it’s not just the Courtyard in Irvine that takes part …all the WASPS studios throughout Scotland are involved …if you live in Scotland there should be one that you can get to. I’ll post more details nearer the time.but put October 1st and 2nd in your diary …it’s a great opportunity to see a lot of different work.

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Gripe of the week…..!

Posted by admin on August 26th, 2011
Work in progress, 'Towards Beinn Toaig ..winter'

Work in progress - 'Towards Beinn Toaig ..winter'

No nice walks or interesting trips to report this week I’m afraid …it’s just been a week working away down at the studio. So I guess this is going to be a rather short blog.

Normally at this time of year there are quite a few visitors on the harbour side in Irvine and we normally expect a few of them to call into the Courtyard to have a look at what some of the artists are doing. This year though, it does seem to be quite quiet …partly due I’m sure to the rather damp summer we’ve been having. But along with this, few of them seem to be calling into the studios. Until last summer we used to have good signage on the studio building ….not just saying Courtyard Artists Studios …but also saying ‘visitors welcome’. Then, last summer we had the long waited ‘make-over’. The builders moved in (while I was away in Germany), and completely transformed much of the studio building … creating new studio space in the roof, adding much needed windows and therefore light and heating and water to all the spaces. On top of this new doors were fixed, the wee kitchen space and toilets re built and the structural problems fixed. Finally the building was completely painted to make it look so much better from the outside. When I returned from Speyer I was really impressed by what they’d done My studio space which had had a big problem with damp and rotting floor boards was now dry and with a new floor ….it was looking good for 2011.

With the addition of the new studio spaces we’d also had several new artists and craftspeople move in and this was very good. The one thing though that they’ve not bothered to do after all this good work ….is to replace the signage. Now then, this may seem a minor thing after spending £150,000 on building work …and perhaps a bit of a gripe on my part …but it’s been a year now and we still haven’t got any signs saying what we are …and, as importantly …that people are welcome to come in….and purchase work if they wish. Hence, this summer we’ve seen a drastic reduction in visitor numbers and with it …sales. Of course this could be put down to the general state of the economy …but even so, if folk passing don’t know what we are …they’re hardly likely to come in and buy a painting. It seems sad but interesting to note that one year on, four of the six new artists have already left ….finding it difficult to pay the rents …which are still very good value but are still difficult for young artists just starting out, to meet. During my time at the Courtyard I’ve always made sure that I invite people in and made them welcome. Through this I’ve always managed to sell a good number of works directly from the studio …at the same price as they are up in galleries. By doing this and giving a little of my time each week to show people what I’m doing, I have always managed to cover my studio rent each year. Of course I realise that to say there is a direct correlation between these artists leaving and the fact that we have no signage and visitors, is perhaps stretching it a bit …but I do think that after doing so much good work on the building, this final lapse has done much to undermine some of the very artists the building is supposed to help. I do realise there are planning regulations etc, but surely all we need is a new version of the old signs, no new snazzy designs …it surely can’t be that difficult. The summer of course is now nearly over …visitors will have gone by the end of October and so a whole season has been lost. We have our Studio Open Weekend coming up on 1st / 2nd October ….so any guesses as to whether we’ll have our signs up for then?!!

Right, that’s my gripe of the week over and done. As I said, I’ve been painting all this week. The first four of the thirteen new 80 x 80 cm paintings have just come back from the Waverley Gallery in Prestwick where they’ve been framed. Five more are currently being framed and I’m working on the last four right now. One of these, based on a smaller piece I did three or four years ago, is coming on quite well. I bought a special ‘thickener’ for acrylic paint the other week and have been using this recently. It gives the paint a nice sticky and slightly granular texture and when dragged down using a big brush, gives just the kind of marks I like. The painting still has some way to go …but I took this photo of it just before leaving the studio last evening.

Finally ….good news. My five paintings have arrived safely at the Green Drake Gallery and Arts Centre in Pennsylvania. I don’t know why I worry so much …but I always find it a little stressful when shipping work. Anyway, that’s that, …..just wait now until the exhibition opens in a few weeks. More details to come nearer the time.

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‘One small step’ – my first real venture into the United States of America

Posted by admin on August 14th, 2011
'Above the Rest and Be Thankful'

'Above the Rest and Be Thankful'

As I write this my partner Anita is kindly putting the finishing touches to wrapping and boxing the five paintings I’m sending to the Green Drake Gallery in Pennsylvania. These five pieces together with two others they already hold will be part of their ‘Taste of Scotland’ exhibition that takes place in September.

They’ve asked for a selection of sizes and so I’m sending:

One of the new large 80 x 80 cm paintings, (‘Winters afternoon, Beinn Dorain’).

'Winter afternoon, Beinn Dorain'

'Winter afternoon, Beinn Dorain'

Two of the 30 x 30 cm paintings, (‘Below Liathach, Torridon’ & ‘In Glen Rosa, Isle of Arran’)

'Below Liathach, Torridon'

'Below Liathach, Torridon'

'In Glen Rosa, Isle of Arran'

'In Glen Rosa, Isle of Arran'

Two of the small 12.5 x 12.5 cm paintings, (‘Approaching shower, the Fannichs’ & ‘Above The Rest and Be Thankful’)

'Approaching shower, the Fannichs'

'Approaching shower, the Fannichs'

The gallery already have two of the 76 x 23 cm paintings. I sent these a short while after the gallery opened back in the early summer.

As all the smaller pieces are normally framed with a mount behind glass it has been a little bit of a problem knowing how best to package and send them. In the end we decided the best way would be to remove the glass for the shipment ….the gallery will add new glass on arrival. As for packaging, Anita did some searching on the Internet and found a very useful company down in Yorkshire that produce made to measure cardboard boxes. For the purpose of this shipment I’ve just ordered a few sample boxes in order to test them out. These arrived very quickly and are perfect. Not only will they make it a far quicker wrapping process but they also look far more professional too. The first two boxes are now complete and they seem very secure and sturdy …..if it wasn’t for all the extra weight I’d be tempted to send them with the glass. Best not tempt fate though! As I now generally work in ‘standard’ sizes, I’ll be placing a proper order for the three different sizes of box …though the minimum order is 25 I think …so finding somewhere to store them is going to be interesting! Anyone who has visited my studio will know that it’s not exactly the largest of spaces. Oh well, I’ll worry about that one later.

I’m planning to arrange for the courier to collect the packages on Tuesday or Wednesday next week and so as it is a three day delivery service to the United States, they should have the paintings by next weekend.

It’ll be interesting to see what kind of response I get to the work over in the Green Drake Gallery. As I say, they’ve had two pieces for a couple of months now and although they haven’t sold they have I’ve been told had a few folk interested. It’s a big step taking on the cost of shipping work over to the United States, but I think it’s well worth investing some time and money into trying to get a toe in the door in the US market. Of course though, the economic news coming from that side of the Atlantic isn’t any brighter than here in Europe …so who knows? Well worth a try though and I guess this is just another thing that the Jolomo Award has allowed me to do. Full details of the ‘Taste of Scotland’ exhibition nearer the time.

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Ailsa Craig

Posted by admin on August 4th, 2011
Ailsa Craig

Ailsa Craig

One of the great things about having a studio on Irvine harbour side, (apart that is from the wonderful views, the sounds of the birds, the amazing colours, the fine food and beer at The Ship Inn …….) apart from all of those …is the fact that if the work isn’t going too well, you can simply down tools and walk the riverside to the sea. It’s only about a ten minute walk and when you get there you can either head for a tromp along the beach …all the way to Troon if you wish, or you can simply wander out to the end of the little man made spit and just take in the view and the sounds.

At the end of this spit or breakwater …or whatever it’s called, is one of these circular direction boards with arrows pointing off at all points of the compass indicating the direction and distance of places near and far. It’s a sobering thought that you’re sat on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean ….bar for the Isle of Arran, the narrow strip of Kintyre and a few small islands there isn’t anything else between you and the North American continent. I guess this is why we get a tad more rain than our neighbours over in Fyfe or Angus, but it really is what makes this west coast of Scotland so magnificent.

Ailsa

Ailsa

But I digress …the point of this ramble is that one of the places that has an arrow pointing to it is Ailsa Craig …the amazing plug of rock that rises abruptly from the sea a good few miles to the south of Irvine. When the Atlantic weather systems are in charge this distinctive island disappears into the mist and the sea, but on a clear day even I can see it with my monocular with a bit of searching. From the North Ayrshire coast it looks quite small but if you travel south it gradually gets bigger and once down as far as Girvan, it dominates the view west. I’m not sure of the exact height but I think it rises to just over 1000 ft (someone better correct me if I’m wrong) but anyway, it does this in style …the island appearing to be exceedingly steep on all sides and making a very fine silhouette against the sea and sky.

When I first moved into my studio at the Courtyard some six or seven years ago, I did a number of pastel drawings based on this island. I found one the other day and it got me thinking that I might do some new works based on it …using paint as well as pastel this time. I’ll probably need to go and sit on the spit at the end of the river and stare at it for a while through the monocular and then perhaps a snooze in the sun before a leisurely amble back to the studio …. I’ve said it before I know, but it’s a hard job being a landscape artist ….especially so in the West of Scotland!

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Sign of the times

Posted by admin on July 29th, 2011
Towards Blairmore from the ferry

Towards Blairmore from the ferry

Well then, that’s the exhibition at Blairmore Gallery finished. We had extended it for a week and yesterday we travelled up to collect the work. As the title of this blog implies, it wasn’t the most successful of shows sales wise, but it was I think a good show and selection of work and was seen by a lot of people …both local and visitors. I think that today’s economic situation is starting to take a toll and a lot of businesses catering for anything other than essentials, are probably starting to feel the pinch. Paintings are not I guess at the top end of most folks list when it comes to expenditure these days! That said, things are still ticking over and the important thing about exhibiting your work is that people see it. They may not be able to buy any of it at present but if they like it enough they may remember it when the economy starts to pick up. The exhibition at Blairmore has been an excellent way to promote and showcase my work to a large number of visitors to Scotland and as Blairmore usually displays several pieces of my work throughout the year, this may well pay dividends further down the line.

West, across the Firth of Clyde

West, across the Firth of Clyde

We’ve had superb weather in this part of Scotland over the last week, but yesterday when we got up it was dark and grey and as we drove north up the coast road towards Largs, the views out across the Firth of Clyde to the Isle of Arran were rather sombre to say the least. The fine sky-line of the Arran mountains was gone …their summits cut off by a thick layer of cloud.

A passing sea plane ...above the Firth of Clyde

A passing sea plane ...above the Firth of Clyde

From Ayrshire, you can get to Blairmore Gallery one of two ways. Either you can drive all the way … a lengthy drive that involves heading north up to Tarbet on the side of Loch Lomond and then heading up and over the Rest and Be Thankful (where we were walking on Beinn an Lochain the other week). On reaching Loch Fyne you then have to turn south and drive back along Loch Eck to the turn off for Blairmore village. It’s a beautiful drive in good weather but as I say, it’s a good way and takes around two hours. The alternative route and the way we generally go, is to drive north up the coast to Gourock and catch the Western Ferry over to Dunoon …a few miles to the south of Blairmore. This saves much driving and a little time …although you do have the cost of the ferry. This however is currently just £20 return for a car, driver and one passenger (if the ticket is purchased prior to getting on the ferry) and so with the cost of fuel these days, there’s very little in it …and this way you get a twenty minute break and a pleasant boat trip across the firth.

When you see the ferries arrive they really don’t look very big but it’s amazing just how many vehicles they fit on. When we arrived yesterday one ferry had not long left and another was arriving …just a few hundred metres off the shore. In the summer they seem to run three ferries at one time which means you don’t really have too long to wait if you just miss one. We were just second in the line and as such were right at the front of the ferry with views out across the firth towards Dunoon. In fine weather you can get out of the car and stand and enjoy the views of the firth and the hills on all sides. It’s a busy piece of water too and there’s always something to watch. On one occasion when I was travelling back on this ferry with a colleague, we briefly spotted a couple of porpoises and another time Nita spotted a submarine. Nothing quite so exciting yesterday though, just a single yacht making the most of the breeze and a small cruise ship heading south. The weather was though improving slightly and the cloud had risen off of some of the hills but there was virtually no colour anywhere.

A grey morning on the Firth of Clyde

A grey morning on the Firth of Clyde

The work is now back in my studio and I’m already sorting through it and reallocating it. We’re heading up to the Gallery on the Corner in Edinburgh next week to deliver several pieces and to collect several others that they’ve had since the spring. I’m also now working out the exact selection of paintings for the show in the Queens Gallery in Dundee in September and the Speyer exhibition in October ….so it’s all go still.

Blairmore Gallery have retained five paintings for their permanent selection and as I’ve said in the past …it does make a great little day out …especially if you drive up via Loch Lomond and return via the ferry…..and who knows, you may even see a porpoise en route!

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Paint, paint, walk!

Posted by admin on July 25th, 2011
Cruachan reservoir

Cruachan reservoir

Yes, I know, this blog is late!  No real excuses except I’m busy getting all the work together for the various exhibitions coming up this autumn ..and it’s already the end of the third week in July.  And of course, new paintings demand new information, new inspiration … in the way of me getting up and out into the hills.  So then, this week has once again been made up of painting with a day walk added for good measure.

The new paintings are coming on well I think and I now have 9 of the larger 80 x 80 cm pieces completed (or almost) ….but I’ve sold one of these at my Blairmore exhibition …so in practice I have eight.  I currently have two more pieces on the go and plans for another two following a very informative and beautiful walk on Saturday.  This would give me the ten large pieces for Speyer in October with a couple of others for the exhibition in Dundee in mid September.  But I would still like to get a couple more finished at this size too.  That I think means six more large pieces to complete before the end of September …and no doubt a few smaller pieces too.  It certainly means putting in the hours at the studio and so days like today where I’ll be bashing away at this computer are going to have to be cut back a little …. I’m afraid my next few blogs may be somewhat shorter and more thrown together than normal!!!

In the studio - Sunday

In the studio - Sunday

In the midst of all this rushing around I also have the Wasps Open Studios Weekend to prepare for ….this is being held on Saturday / Sunday 1st & 2nd October.  I’m not sure quite how many of the Courtyard Studios artists are taking part this year …but I think that the usual crowd of us will be there again this year …so as always, it’ll be a good and varied selection of work on display.  If you’re a local to Ayrshire then make a note in your diary.  If you want to be added to my mailing list for this and other events just drop me an email to; keith@keithsalmon.org or click on the red link at the bottom of the page to subscribe.

Loch Awe from the hydro road

Loch Awe from the hydro road

As I said though, the week ended with another fine walk.  Once again we were tracking the weather via the Mountain Weather Information Service and matching it with available days …not many this week with my partner Anita working more but shorter shifts for the next few weeks.  Saturday though looked good for both of us and indeed the weather was superb over in the west of Scotland and so a trip to the Ben Cruachan group of hills seemed like the place to go.  Over the last few years we’ve walked most of these large and rugged mountains but there is one hill we’ve never visited …Beinn a’ Bhuidh.  This slightly more modest hill rising to just below 900 m sits above the Cruachan Reservoir and just to the SE of Ben Cruachan.  It’s location as a view point both for the fine mountain scenery and the large expansive views west along Loch Awe and right out to the sea and the mountains over on the Isle of Mull …well, I doubt it can be beaten.

Towards Ben Cruachan

Towards Ben Cruachan

We decided to go for the short steep option ..but one that gave us the maximum view.   Parking at the side of the main road a kilometre to the west of Lochawe village we followed the hydro road up to the Cruachan reservoir dam.  It gains quite a bit of height and is a bit of a slog but the views out over Loch Awe and the Pass of Brander are superb and it makes a good and pleasant start to the walk.  From the dam though …well, it’s straight up with the deep blue of the reservoir looking stunning with the rocky Cruachan peaks all around.  Beinn a’ Bhuidh is quite rocky too and the higher sections are made up of numerous small broken crags and jumbles of boulders which need avoiding or clambering over.  The steepness doesn’t really let up until almost at the top but with all the rocky outcrops and the huge and ever expanding views as you gain height, it makes for an enjoyable haul.  We returned virtually the same way but the weather was so good that on both the ascent and descent, we spent much time just sitting and looking …and at one point …dozing.  It was so peaceful and so beautiful.  Interestingly, the rock formations of the main Cruachan hills were quite amazing.  As the afternoon progressed the shadows started picking out the various layers of the rock.  These seemed to change direction in different places and reminded me very much of some of the marks I make in my paintings.  As I sat looking at this wonder of nature I was already planning my next couple of paintings.

West from Beinn a' Bhuidh

West from Beinn a' Bhuidh

We got back to the car about 7pm and had a stunningly beautiful drive back through the southern highlands under a cloud free sky with the hills almost glowing in the low evening sun.

Sunday was to have been a trip up to Stirling to attend the preview of an exhibition by Lorraine Nicholson, but with everything building up, my blog and work of the week still not written and paintings urgently needing finishing …well, I just had to get back down to the studio.   It was worth it though as I did manage to finish one piece and had a couple of folk in to see the work.  No sales but they were enthusiastic and went away with some of my post cards …so who knows where those may end up.  It’s a good way to promote the paintings and of course each card has my website address included on the reverse.  Right then…back to the painting!

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A good week

Posted by admin on July 9th, 2011
Creag Mhor from Stob an Fhir Bhogha

Creag Mhor from Stob an Fhir Bhogha

It has been a busy but profitable week….alas, not financially, but I’ve certainly got a lot of painting done.

The week started well though with a very enjoyable day on the hill. With the forecast looking very good we’d decided to go back to Glen Lochy and once again head for Creag Mhor …the 1047m Munro that lies at the western end of the glen. As reported we’d been here back in the spring but on that occasion thoroughly messed up our navigation and failed to get to the top …so then, this was to be our second attempt. We hadn’t though appreciated quite how hot it was going to be ….and it’s a fairly long walk to the base of the hill. It really was baking as we headed along the glen and there was hardly a breath of wind to ease the heat.

From Beinn Heasgarnich

From Beinn Heasgarnich

After about an hour and a quarter we stopped for a drink and on realising we still had another kilometre or so to go in this oven we decided to change our plans and head straight up and climb the nearer of the two Munros – Beinn Heasgarnich….hoping that by gaining some height we might get into a breeze or some cooler air. This involved a steep haul up grass, picking our way between small crags until at around 800 m the angle eased and we reached a large and rather boggy flattish area. Beyond another steep and craggy section led to the top of Stob an Fhir Bhogha at 1029 m. It certainly became less hot but not because of height or finding the breeze. Instead, very rapidly, cloud appeared and by the time we were half way up there was virtually no blue sky visible and it was becoming very dark…..but thankfully cooler. To the south of us we could clearly see Ben More and as it is almost 100 m higher than the hill we were on, it gave a good indicator as to whether the cloud base was getting lower. Thankfully, this wasn’t the case, but apart from the occasional glimpse of the sun we were walking in quite gloomy light for the rest of the day.

Beinn Heasgarnich

Beinn Heasgarnich

From the top of Stob an Fhir Bhogha it’s just a very simple and gentle wander across almost level stony tops to reach the summit of Beinn Heasgarnich at 1078 m. Despite the now grey skies, the visibility was very good and we could make out many of the peaks …Ben Nevis stood out very clearly to the north.

Despite there being a number of cars parked at the end of the road when we set out, we only saw three other walkers all day …one of them who turned up at the summit just five minutes after our arrival. We returned by a slightly different route, one that was less steep but slightly wetter …but at least we got to see lots of tiny yellow frogs …some of them no bigger than a 5p piece! Needless to say I didn’t see as many as Nita.

Beinn Heasgarnich

Beinn Heasgarnich

 

The painting has as I said gone well this week. I’ve completed another of the new 80 x 80 cm pieces and have two more on the go and several more planned. Nita had been over to Kilmarnock to get some more board cut for me and so in between the real painting I’ve been madly priming these boards. I’m quite pleased with the way things are progressing and I feel that I am at long last starting to move these paintings on a bit …it’s quite exciting. I’m arranging for a photographer to visit the studio at the end of the month so should have some decent images to show you in a couple of weeks.

It’s the annual North Ayrshire Open Exhibition soon. Today is the hand in day today and I am entering a small piece and one of the new larger paintings. Nita put this big piece in a frame the other day and it is the first time I’ve seen one of these new larger pieces framed up …I’m very pleased with the way it’s looking. Mind you, as with all ‘open’ exhibitions …you can never be sure if your work will be selected. It’s a bit of a gamble, though it’s always a little depressing if your stuff is rejected, but that’s the nature of the beast I guess!!! Fingers crossed! The exhibition opens a week today and runs for two weeks. Most years it contains around a hundred or so paintings and a small selection of sculpture. Its well worth a visit so if you live in Ayrshire do call in to see it. I’ll be posting full details shortly.

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Jolomo Awards 2011

Posted by admin on July 1st, 2011

Last Friday, (24th June) I was invited along with my partner Anita, to the Jolomo Awards 2011 for Scottish Landscape Painting. The event was held in the very grand surroundings of Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum in Glasgow and as winner of this bi-annual award in 2009, I was asked to say a few words!

As in 2009, seven artists had been short-listed for the awards and, similarly, they had the nail biting wait through the evening (with a very fine dinner included) before the results were announced. In 2009 I hardly ate any of the meal and probably heard little of what was said by the various speakers. On Friday though, despite being quite nervous about having to stand up and speak myself, I enjoyed all the preliminaries to the final award announcements.

I had been asked several months ago if I would say a few words on the evening and had spent much time thinking about this in the run up to the event. About four weeks ago I sat down at my computer and spent several hours converting these thoughts into writing and then quite a while longer honing these down to something that would fit the five minute time limit I was given. Then of course I had to try and get it into my head ….my sight is far too poor to be able to use a script or even prompt cards. On the night I’d just have to stand up and speak.

The short speech I put together was all about what winning the Jolomo Award had meant to me, how I’d been using it, how it had benefited my work etc etc. Even though I say it myself, it seemed quite good and I spent a lot of time over the intervening weeks going through it in my head. Nothing worse than ‘drying up’ mid speech, especially when you’re stood in front of 100 or so people …many of them very influential in the Scottish arts scene.

So then, all was set ….I knew what I was going to say and I could still squeeze into my dinner suit …and then, as I reported last week, on Thursday, (the day before the Jolomo event) we went walking….and everything changed!

When we reached the top of Doune Hill we’d decided that we had enough time before heading back, to sit for half an hour and have a bite to eat and just enjoy the wonderful surroundings. I decided I might as well go through my speech one more time while sat there and as I did so, I suddenly realised that it would be much better if I spoke about the walk we were doing ..and then simply link it to my work and the Jolomo Award. The awards are after all, specifically about Scottish landscape painting and my regular trips into the Scottish hills are the primary source for my work. After all the time I spent on the speech, I decided just 24 hours before giving it ..that I’d say something completely different! What am I like?!!

In the end, it went well, and as it turned out my tale of our walk in the Luss Hills seemed to go down very well and it certainly reminded folk that the event was about artists and their relationship with the Scottish landscape. When I sat down after my five minutes I reached for my glass of wine …but couldn’t take a sip due to my hand shaking so much ….but my bit was over and I could just enjoy the rest of the evening.

The work of the seven short-listed artists looked great and I can believe the judges when they said that it was a very difficult decision. In the end the three awards went to (1st) Callum McClure, (2nd) Beth Robertson, (3rd) Kate Pope.

Congratulations.

I’m afraid there are no photos to go with the blog, but you can find out more about the awards by visiting: http://www.jolomofoundation.org/

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South ….and south again

Posted by admin on June 3rd, 2011
Loch Dungeon from Millfire

Loch Dungeon from Millfire

I often say to people that I think we live in the perfect location for hill walking despite the fact that it is probably the flattest part of the whole of west Scotland.  We have the idyllic Isle of Arran just an hour away across the water; the southern Highlands starting just an hour’s drive north and the southern uplands just an hour’s drive to the south.  This is all true, but to be honest the majority of our hill walking trips are either in the Highlands or over on Arran …..rarely do we venture into the Southern Uplands.  We’ve visited the Merrick on a few occasions along with the wonderfully named and prominent and craggy little hill of Curleywee.  I also joined Air na Creagan for a long rough walk up over and around Shalloch on Minnoch, (the highest point in Ayrshire I think) but apart from these we’ve only been to a handful of other places south of Irvine.

We had been hoping to get out for another walk last weekend but the forecasts for the west and eastern hills wasn’t great …gales and snow down to 700 – 900 m.  Looking ahead it seemed like Tuesday would be the best opportunity for some bright weather.  So then, on Sunday we decided instead to take a drive south to visit the Scottish Showcase Gallery in Kirkcudbright.  I was invited to show some work there a few months ago and had sent five paintings down …but I’ve been too busy recently to get down to see the gallery.  I spent a lot of time painting last week so taking a few hours off to visit Kirkcudbright seemed a good idea.  It’s about 70 miles from Irvine to Kirkcudbright but the journey takes you through some wonderful scenery.   The weather too was pretty fine …windy but with bright hot sunshine and just the occasional heavy shower ….why hadn’t we thought of checking out the forecast for the southern hills?

From Corserine

From Corserine

We found the gallery close to the harbour in Kirkcudbright and had a good look around.  It has a good selection of work and on this fine Sunday there were a number of folk doing the rounds.  My five paintings are on the wall at the head of the stairs …so if you visit, you can’t miss them.  I’ve never been to Kirkcudbright before and it looked like a busy little place.  There’s a number of galleries and studios along with a castle, harbour and I understand, beach.  We were also directed to a hotel where they served an excellent pint of beer.  So then, it makes for a very pleasant day out if you live within striking distance ….and as we found, the journey to and from it is very enjoyable in its own right with for us, views across to a whole number of different hills.

 

NW from Milldown

NW from Milldown

Perhaps because of this, when it came to deciding where to go for our Tuesday walk, Nita suggested we find somewhere in the southern hills for a change.  It seemed like a good idea and so in bright sunshine we found ourselves driving back down the same road we travelled the previous Sunday.  We turned off the A713 a short distance before St John’s Town of Dalry and headed along a single track road for a few miles to reach a car park near Forest Lodge.  This is probably the nearest point for a walk up Corserine …the highest point along the ridge known as the Rhinns of Kells.  As with many of the hills in this area, the lower slopes are blanketed with conifer forest and getting to the base of the hill involved walking for almost an hour and a half along a series of forestry tracks.  The way was signposted but it was still a relief when we eventually saw open hillside ahead of us and a convenient stile over the boundary fence.  The hillside rose steeply in front of us and in the bright sunshine the colours looked wonderful.  A minor path led away up the hill and picked its way up through a series of crags to reach easy angled slopes.  The views out over the forest grew as we gained height and soon became huge as we reached the large summit plateau of Corserine at just over 800m.  Although we’d had warm sun all the way up, once on the top we were in the strong and cold wind …no wonder they were forecasting snow on the bigger tops to the north.

Our route lay SSE along the undulating ridge, over the craggy little tops of Millfire and Milldown to Meikle Millyea before descending back to the forest via Meikle Lump.  This really was a beautiful and very peaceful walk.  The ridge as I say, was littered with minor rocky crags and a series of minor lochs and pools…..and the views .wow!  It was also exceedingly quiet.  We’d followed two chaps up to Corserine but they must have returned a different route to us and we saw no one for the rest  of the day.  The wildlife seemed to be enjoying the sun as well and Nita spotted numerous beasties including a lizard, and on Meikle Millyea, three wild goats.

Meikle Lump is as the name suggests …a bit of a lump, being steep and craggy just above the forest.  We managed to find what seemed to be the steepest possible route through the crags …requiring both of us to resort to sitting on our backsides and carefully lowering ourselves down some slippery rocks and heather.  Then, the difficulties started!

Our map showed the forest edge and various tracks.  When we looked down …the forest had changed somewhat since the map had been printed.  They had been harvesting areas of it, new tracks had been constructed and nothing matched the map!  Suffice to say, it took us an hour and a half  to find our way the two or so miles back to the car.  Thankfully we had the GPS and so got this out and we could monitor our position as we followed the new forestry tracks.  After what seemed a good time we reached one of the original tracks marked on the map and could then head for the car.  We got back to it at half past seven …just nine hours after setting out …and were promptly set on by a swarm of midges …summer had arrived!

Below are the five paintings currently exhibited at the Scottish Showcase Gallery in Kirkcudbright.  To find out more about this gallery visit their website: www.showcasegallery.co.uk

 

 

'From Ghlas Beinn, Rannoch moor'

'From Ghlas Beinn, Rannoch moor'

 

 

'Approaching weather, Glen Carron'

'Approaching weather, Glen Carron'

 

 

'Above Glen Shee, winter morning'

'Above Glen Shee, winter morning'

 

 

'On descending Ben Oss'

'On descending Ben Oss'

 

 

'Autumn hillside, above Crieff'

'Autumn hillside, above Crieff'

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