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Rannoch Moor | Scottish Landscape Art - Scottish Landscape Paintings - Part 2

Posts Tagged ‘Rannoch Moor’

A snowy day in the hills and some computer blues

''In the Luss Hills''

”In the Luss Hills”

Well then we finally got out for a hill walk on Thursday ….the first one since our trip to Rannoch Moor at the end of November.  Since then the weather seems to have been so bad with just one gale after another.  What days were fine seemed to coincide with either Nita or I having to work.  Anyway, on Monday we checked the mountain forecast and it seemed like Thursday would be the best of a bad bunch …so we booked it!  We also decided to ask our friend Guy if he’d like to join us as we hadn’t seen him for ages.  Interestingly he’d been planning to go to the same place …the Luss Hills, today, (Saturday) but quickly changed his plans in order to join us.

By the time Thursday arrived, the forecast had deteriorated somewhat with heavy rain and higher up, snow showers predicted for the morning and afternoon. ….and it didn’t disappoint!  We decided to go early to avoid the traffic jams on the Erskine Bridge and we arrived at Luss at just after half past seven in the morning.  Of course it was still almost completely dark but we were reckoning on the small cafe shop opening at 8 o’clock so that we could buy ourselves a coffee and sandwich while waiting for it get light.  Alas, the wee shop was closed for a refit and we wandered back to our car dejected and devoid of nourishment!

By the time we started walking it was just light but heavy clouds hung quite low everywhere and it was raining hard.  Everywhere was awash and the steep first section of the path leading up Beinn Dubh was more like a stream than a path.  Even so, as soon as we got above the trees the views in gloom out over Loch Lomond were great ….and very atmospheric ….most of it falling on us I think.  There was cause however for optimism as every now and again breaks appeared in the clouds and we could see patches of blue sky and brightness.  After reaching about 300 m the rain quickly turned to snow and the steeper sections of the hill ahead of us were white….looking good against the dark skies.

''In the Luss Hills''

”In the Luss Hills”

Suffice to say that none of us were feeling particularly fit having done little or no walking for almost two months.  We moved very slowly up the hill but the regular stops allowed us to enjoy the increasingly fine views in increasingly bright and sunny conditions ….it really was a joy to see.  We stopped somewhat short of the summit of Beinn Dubh but at one of the finest view points on the hill at I think, a little under 600m.  The wind here was very strong and the snow freezing at this level, the wind chill was quite pronounced ….when I took my mitts off for a few minutes to take photos my fingers quickly became numb!  We braved the wind and stopped and enjoyed the fine views across the loch to Ben Lomond ….while sipping hot coffee ….then headed back down.  As we went we were enveloped in a big snow shower that swept in over the hill from the west.  It was very impressive and I’m thinking of trying to do a painting about it soon. Must admit the walk did me a lot of good and I’m looking forward to getting out again hopefully one day next week.

''In the Luss Hills''

”In the Luss Hills”

Back to normality yesterday and the joys of computers.  I’ve just changed my screen magnifier / screen reader software to Zoom text 10 as my previous software was causing so many problems.  However I really also needed to upgrade my main computer.  It had been using XP but this was getting a little out of date and so I thought I might as well go the whole hog and get it changed over to Windows 7.  I collected the machine from the shop where the new software had been added and all seemed fine ….until I tried to get onto the Internet.  Then it just kept saying ‘no Internet connection available’!  Nita spent ages trying to work out what was wrong but at the moment I still can’t get onto the Internet on that machine and so I’m using Nita’s laptop to write this.  I haven’t used it for ages so I’m struggling to find my way around it.  Could be you’ll never get this blog!

‘From Ghlas Beinn, Rannoch moor’

29 'From Ghlas Beinn, Rannoch moor', Acrylic & Pastel, 76 x 23 cm

‘From Ghlas Beinn, Rannoch moor’

‘From Ghlas Beinn, Rannoch moor’, Acrylic & Pastel, 76 x 23 cm

I thought I’d use this painting as my Artwork of the week owing to fact that we were back walking on this hill just last Sunday, (See my latest blog for details and photos).

This painting which is currently in my studio was created after our first visit to the hill a few years ago.  I used quite bold colours in this piece and have always liked it.  Ghlas Bheinn is the high point at the end of a small undulating escarpment that rises on the edge of Rannoch Moor.  Being less than 600 metres high it makes the perfect view point overlooking the moor and surrounded by bigger hills and mountains too.  Its close proximity to the A82 however does mean that despite the wonderful wild situation, you do tend to hear the sound of traffic drifting up to you from the road below.  This shouldn’t put you off though as this really is a little gem of a walk …especially in the winter.

Annual visit to Ghlas Bheinn – a colourful palette

You might well think that in a former life I was a gold-fish!  But it’s not that I go back to Ghlas Bheinn every year because I forget what it’s like ….it’s the exact opposite; I go back there each year because I remember how good the views are from its low undulating ridge.

As I’ve said in the past, it makes a wonderful short winter walk and with the daylight hours being so short at this time of year, it’s especially good for me.  On our past three visits we’ve gone there in December and have seen it under similar but still different conditions.  Indeed, the first time we went there it had been especially cold over the previous two weeks and although there was no snow at lower levels, all the lochs on Rannoch Moor were frozen.   Last year I think the snow level was down onto Ghlas Bheinn and with little sun that day it made for a very cold little walk.  I remember Nita pointing out the tracks of small animals in the covering of fresh snow.

This years visit wasn’t as cold and the snow that had been covering the ground on Ghlas Bheinn a few days earlier had mostly thawed leaving just very small patches lying in the grass and heather.  Patches of solid and partially melted ice were everywhere too and it all made for interesting patterns and colours.

Above Loch Tulla, a grey November morning

Above Loch Tulla, a grey November morning

It was the intense colours at the end of the day that really marked this walk out, but when we started a few hours earlier it was under very grey skies.   The cloud though was above all but the highest summits and with the snow level being around 700 metres everything was looking very good.  Loch Tulla was incredibly calm and as we made our way up the lower slopes of the hill overlooking the loch, we could at times see the mountains reflected in its glassy surface.

First brightness over Rannoch Moor

First brightness over Rannoch Moor

There were a few breaks in the cloud though and when we caught one of these the colours in the bright sun were very strong …..a short glimpse of things to come.  By the time we were sat eating our lunch at the summit a couple of hours later, there was increasingly large amounts of clear sky moving down from the north west and in the clear air and bright sun, Rannoch Moor looked very big and incredibly beautiful.  Being November rather than December, the colours of the grasses were different.  They had not yet turned to the straw colour of later in the winter and were, instead a mixture of bright ochre’s, oranges and yellows.  As the sun got lower it accentuated this, creating stunningly colourful scenes against the snow topped hills and the deep blue of the sky.

From the summit of Ghlas Bheinn

From the summit of Ghlas Bheinn

One of the problems about walking with such limited sight is that I have to walk along staring at the ground just in front of me.  On grey days this can get tedious but on Sunday afternoon in the bright sun I could simply enjoy these amazing colours and patterns made by the grass around my feet.

Towards the hills of the Blackmount

Towards the hills of the Blackmount

In the past, after each of our previous visits to Ghlas Bheinn I’ve created at least one painting based on my experiences there.  This year I think there will also be a painting or two coming from this latest walk.  As you know, I’ve been working on several more abstract 80 x 80 cm oil paintings.  I think I may well try and create a couple more using the bright colours we saw on Sunday.  I’ve been wanting to create a larger painting for some time now too and a couple of weeks ago bought a 120 x 120 cm canvas…..it could be perfect for creating a painting about the big bright colourful views we experienced.  Watch this space!

Rich afternoon colours

Rich afternoon colours

 

November landscape, Blackmount

November landscape, Blackmount

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‘Sun and snow, in the Blackmount’

'Sun and snow, in the Blackmount', Acrylic & Pastel, 2013, 30 x 30 cm

‘Sun and snow, in the Blackmount’

‘Sun and snow, in the Blackmount’, Acrylic & Pastel, 2013, 30 x 30 cm

In early December each of the last couple of years, Nita and I have taken a trip up to Rannoch Moor to walk the low heather and grass covered little ridge leading to Ghlas Beinn.  It’s not a big walk and the high point is less than 600m ….but as I’ve said before, it is a spectacular view point.

I created this painting following last years visit to Ghlas Beinn when the mountains of the Blackmount were looking especially fine, the upper slopes being covered in snow and the whole scene patched by areas of bright sun.

We’re planning to go back again shortly as this walk on a fine December day, is a real little gem.  As the distance is short it allows plenty of time to just wander along, gawping stupidly at the incredible 360 degree views.  With plenty of hats and gloves and a piece of foam mat, there’s also time enough to just sit down and enjoy …perhaps even get the sketch book out!

Anyway, this little painting is currently in my studio along with another 20 or so works ….so ….if you live close, why not call in and have a look?  To make sure that I’ll not be on Ghlas Beinn when you visit …best call me first on 07742 437425.  Other examples of my work can also currently be seen at The Framework Gallery in Troon and ‘the gallery on the corner’ in Edinburgh.  For details of these, follow the links at the side of this page.

Finally, over the last couple of months I’ve been working with a couple of Scottish companies who are producing quality reproductions of several of my paintings.  Full details to follow shortly.

A busy little week…

From above the Devils Staircase

From above the Devils Staircase

This time last week, (Saturday 14 at 13.17), Nita and I were sat with some friends Stewart and Evelyn on a rocky little top overlooking Glencoe.  We’d not walked far, just followed the West Highland Way up to the high point of the Devil’s Staircase and headed north up the grass and heather slopes to the first little summit at around 800m.  It was however a wonderful view point and we’d been very lucky with the weather.  It was I guess the perfect Glencoe weather …a mix of bright sun and dark heavy shower clouds that rolled in filling the glen with mist and rain before passing on over Rannoch Moor.  Stewart, an Irvine man, has been living in Germany with his wife Evelyn for many years and so I think he particularly enjoyed seeing this very special bit of Scotland in very special Scottish conditions.

City of Adelaide ....heading south

City of Adelaide ….heading south

The rest of my week was spent either at my studio or standing on the harbour side waiting to see if the grand old clipper, City of Adelaide would finally start her journey by barge down to London.  Getting this vast wooden ship on a barge out of the River Irvine needed a lot of skill, two tugs and some reasonably fine weather.  The latter was the problem for the first part of the week, with constant gales or at least high winds.  All looked good on Thursday morning and a big crowd once again gathered at the mouth of the River Irvine to witness this historical event but at the last minute with the wind picking up, the wise decision was made to once again call it off.  Finally, on Friday lunchtime, with the crowds once again lining the harbour side, the City of Adelaide was towed out to sea to start its trip down to London.  As I write, it’s now well into the Irish Sea apparently ….so good luck to all on board.  I’m not sure of the exact time table but it will be heading to Greenwich for a short while before being lifted onto a really big container ship for the long voyage down to Adelaide.  If you are interested and haven’t already found it, www.cityofadelaide.org.au is a great website and has masses of information and photos.

Art wise, it’s been a good week too.  I’ve had a week of working on an 80 x 80 cm oil painting.  It is as you can see, a more abstract piece created using a large house painting brush and lots of thick oil paint.  I’ve been enjoying working like this after several weeks of doing finer, tighter acrylic and pastel pieces.  Not sure what to make of it though ….so will have to wait and see.

Work in progress, oil on canvas 80 x 80 cm

Work in progress, oil on canvas 80 x 80 cm

Finally, yesterday I also had a visit from a couple from Edinburgh.  They’ve been following my work on-line for a good while now and decided to call into the studio on their way back from a short holiday on the Isle of Arran.  They left my studio an hour later with two of my paintings …..including one of the new Harris pieces.  So then …a very big thanks to them and I hope they get much pleasure from the paintings once they are up on their wall.

I’m spending today trying to get the press release and photos together to send to the local papers and radio stations in order to promote our Open Studios Weekend on Saturday 5th / Sunday 6th October.  The event posters and flyers have been printed and are starting to get displayed …if you live in the region you may see one soon.  I’ll be sending out flyers and email invitations to all who have left their names in my visitors book, but remember, the event is open to all and is free ….so mark it in your diary and come along and enjoy seeing a great selection of work produced by some of Ayrshire’s leading artists, including; painting, drawing, prints, ceramics, stained glass, hand book-binding, photography and jewellery….one of the artists, Alison Thomas, will even be running some drop-in workshops for children too.  Hope to see you at the studios on Saturday 5th October (11am – 5pm), or Sunday 6th October (12 noon – 5pm).

Invitation 2013

Invitation 2013

‘Sun and snow, in the Blackmount’

'Sun and snow, in the Blackmount', Acrylic & Pastel, 2013, 30 x 30 cm

‘Sun and snow, in the Blackmount’

‘Sun and snow, in the Blackmount’, Acrylic & Pastel, 2013, 30 x 30 cm

This is one of the four paintings I currently have displayed at The Framework Gallery in Troon in Ayrshire.  If you live in the area and have a chance why not pop in to see it for real ….along with the other three pieces and work by many other artists.  It’s a great little gallery and you’ll always get a warm welcome.

The painting is one of several I did after we’d done what is now becoming an almost annual visit to the wee hill Ghlas Beinn, situated on the edge of Rannoch Moor.  The view across to the bigger hills of the Blackmount is very impressive and with the constant changes of light and atmosphere it always draws my attention.

I guess we’ll be heading back there again this coming December as it makes such a good short winter walk.  With very little ascent and descent it none the less gives you a real feeling of being in the wild.  I suppose we ought to go there in the summer some time and see it under different conditions …..it would certainly be interesting seeing this landscape in summer colours.

Seven drawings

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‘Early morning, Rannoch Moor’

Earlier this week I took the seven new graphite drawings down to my framer in Prestwick. I’ve asked them to mount the drawings only as there won’t be enough space in the gallery to hang them. The drawings though will be on display in a stand and will be available for sale should anyone take a fancy to any of them.

It’s now about 07.15 and I’m rushing to get things completed on this computer as I have to get down to the studio quite early today. Over the last few weeks or so I’ve been posting odd photos of some of the drawings but I thought I’d take this opportunity to show them all together. Of course this has the advantage that I don’t have to write much this morning ….it’s one of those ‘picture blogs’ this week! Anyway, I hope you find them of interest.

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‘East over Rannoch Moor, early morning’

They’re all done on thick off white paper …I think it was 220 g paper and I’ve used soft graphite pencils scribbled down in over lapping layers. I’ve also cut back through the dark areas using a soft rubber and have tried to control some of these marks by light applications of fixative at points throughout the drawing process. They are all A2 size, so not huge …but I think they may well deserve to be taken to a much larger scale.

This is just a thought at present but it would be nice to do something on the scale of the large drawing I did when I was in Speyer in the summer of 2010. That drawing was just over 4 m long by 1.5 m high! It would certainly mean using a lot of graphite sticks.

Anyway, here are the rest of the drawings ….if you can get along to see them for real they’ll be on display at ‘the gallery on the corner’, 34 Northumberland St, Edinburgh EH3 6LS throughout March. The gallery is open, Tues – Sat, 11.00 – 17.00. I must dash now…..

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‘East from Ba cottage, early morning’

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‘Fresh snow, the Ochils’

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‘Winter patterns, Beinn Dorain’

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‘Winter slopes, Blackmount’

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‘In the Luss hills’

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Preparations

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‘ One of the new paintings for the Edinburgh exhibition’

It would have been the perfect day to go walking today …its clear blue skies outside and a heavy frost. Alas, both Nita and I are working! Our friend Guy has gone out to have a wander around one of the two local wind farms …and I would have joined him if I hadn’t been so busy. This certainly would have been the day to do our long walk with him on Rannoch Moor but we’ll just have to wait for another opportunity.

Basically this last week has just been work. I’ve now got just over three weeks to get everything finished, framed and organised for my exhibition at ‘the gallery on the corner’ in Edinburgh. We deliver the work on the 26th ….but I’m getting there. The most important thing I guess is making sure I’ve got the paintings ready and this side of things has gone well this last week. I’ve completed the two new 76 x 23 cm paintings and so have enough new work for the show. We took these two paintings along with two new 30 x 30 pieces to the Waverley Gallery in Prestwick yesterday to get them framed and collected five other pieces that I took for framing a couple of weeks ago. I didn’t have time to look at these yesterday so am looking forward to getting down the studio in a couple of hours and unwrapping them. I always find it a bit nerve wracking seeing paintings in a frame for the first time …occasionally it can be the moment that you realise a piece is not finished! Hopefully I’ll be happy with these once I get them up on the wall.

I still have several more drawings to complete. I’m planning to take around half a dozen A2 sized graphite drawings to the exhibition. I’m not going to get them framed, just mounted and covered with a sheet of clear acetate. These will then be displayed in a separate stand in the gallery along with some new small prints I’m having done.

After returning from Prestwick yesterday we jumped on the train and headed through to Edinburgh. The gallery had recommended using their local printer to get the work done. We arrived in Edinburgh to be met by dark skies and a very cold wind (it had been sunny in Irvine when we left!) and we had a decidedly cool half hour walk over to the printers. Anyway, they were very helpful and I’ve ordered two copies of each of eight images to be printed on two types of paper … one smooth and white, the other off white and with a slight texture. I’m not really sure how these will come out but it’ll be interesting to see and give me a better idea whether I want to go down the prints ‘line’ in future.

It was then straight back on the train to Glasgow and after portion of fries and a rather tasteless cup of coffee on the station we rushed over to Millers, the big art supply store ….and spent an hour or so wandering around ….spending the tokens I’d won back in July in the North Ayrshire Open Exhibition. I wasn’t very sure whether I’d be able to spend them all ….but I shouldn’t have worried. In the end it was quite good as I found a selection of different types of sketch book, squares rather than rectangles and in a range of different papers. A few pastels and a large bottle of acrylic gloss medium / varnish and I’d used up my tokens …great stuff. Normally when I buy art materials I get just what I know I need …yesterday I felt free to try out a few different things. Thanks then rather belatedly, to Millers for sponsoring the prize at the North Ayrshire Open Exhibition and to the judges who awarded the 2012 Millers Prize to yours truly. That’s another good reason to get down the studio today ….I can’t wait to get everything I bought out of the bag. As I think I said in my last blog or Work of the Week, I’ve wanted to do more drawing again and so with all these great sketch books I’ve got no excuses not to!

So then, the preparations for my forth coming exhibition are well under way and with a bit of luck I should have everything done and ready in time. Next week I have to get invitation cards printed and a press release written …and go back over to Edinburgh to collect the prints…that’ll be interesting. If I’m happy with them it’ll then be another trip down to Prestwick to get them all mounted. I haven’t had an exhibition since October 2011 (at the Queens Gallery in Dundee and also at the Künstlerhaus in Speyer) and although it’s quite hectic, I’m really enjoying being back in the thick of it. I do hope some of you can get along to see the exhibition during March. Full details soon. If anyone wants an invitation to the preview please just let me know.

‘In the Blackmount, December’

'In the Blackmount, December'

‘In the Blackmount, December’

‘In the Blackmount, December’, Acrylic & Pastel, 2012, 76 x 23 cm

I did this painting at the end of December, shortly after we walked Ghlas Beinn on the edge of Rannoch Moor.  When we first did this walk back in December 2009, I did a similar piece.  Both the new painting and the earlier version are based on the view we had looking across to the big hills of the Blackmount.  On both occasions there was snow lying on these big hills making them look very dramatic against the dark skies.  This is one of the paintings I am hoping to show in my exhibition at ‘the gallery on the corner’ in Edinburgh in March.

We’re going back to Rannoch Moor on Tuesday with a bit of luck.  This time though we will be following the tracks east from the Kingshouse Hotel.  Apparently the forecast is for the cold conditions to stay until then …so with a bit of luck we’ll see the moor and its surrounding mountains with more snow.  I’ll hopefully get some ideas for new paintings on this flat winter walk.

Looking for paintings

Cononish Glen

Cononish Glen

It’s been a week of painting for the most part.  As I think I’ve said before, I’ve been invited to hold an exhibition of my work at ‘the gallery on the corner’ in Edinburgh during March.  The exhibition preview is on Friday March 1st and the show will run until the end of the month.  I’m looking at providing around 17 pieces of work for the exhibition including a good selection of the smaller acrylic & pastel paintings.  After three months of quite good sales in the lead up to Christmas, it’s meant that I’m a little short of the smaller paintings now and I’ve been working on some new pieces recently.  I’ve completed four 30 x 30 cm paintings and have several more on the go.  I’m also working on a couple new 76 x 23 cm paintings too.  All of these are based on our most recent walks, to Rannoch Moor, The Ochil’s and I’m hoping, from the walk we did in Cononish Glen yesterday.  On each of these walks we’ve had superb conditions creating beautiful colours, patterns and contrasts.  Each day was different but very atmospheric in its own right.  The latest small piece to be completed is based on the view we had looking across from the Ghlas Beinn ridge towards Achaladair a few weeks ago.  Needless to say, it was cold and as we wandered along the broad grassy ridge a line of low cloud crept along the glen below us.  This painting is my current ‘Work of the week’, ….just click on the ‘Home’ link to see it.

Cloud breaking around the base of Ben Lui

Cloud breaking around the base of Ben Lui

Our walk yesterday had similar conditions, except that we were down in the base of the glen, (Cononish Glen) and the banks of cloud and mist were drifting along at different levels, some at ground level, some higher, skirting around the hillsides like a tide-line.  It made for strange and interesting scenes.

Below Ben Oss

Below Ben Oss

I had actually planned this easy walk for quite a time, hoping to see the main big corrie on Ben Lui close up and under snow.  But of course, the best made plans and all that!  Instead of snow covered mountains as I’d hoped for in early January, we found almost no snow.  The exceptionally mild conditions since New Years Day had meant a rapid and almost complete thaw, leaving just a few obstinate patches high up on most of the bigger hills and none whatsoever on the smaller ones.  This said however, Ben Lui is one of the bigger mountains and rises to around 1100 m and its huge and magnificent corrie does face east …or north east ..I’ll have to check the map!  But whatever the exact direction, it does mean that the corrie and the big gullies leading up from it, do tend to hold on to their snow a good deal longer than elsewhere.  This was the case yesterday and although there wasn’t much snow, the big gullies leading up from the corrie into cloud and towards the summit, were still full and created a marvellous pattern against the dark rock of the upper mountain.

Below Ben Lui

Below Ben Lui

Our walk yesterday was really just one for looking, taking a few photos and trying to come up with ideas for new work.  It normally takes us just under two hours to walk from Tyndrum up Cononish Glen to the end of the estate track directly below the bulk of Ben Lui …the point where normally we’d ford the stream and start heading up.  Yesterday though, we took nearer three hours!  There was no rush and we could just wander along taking in the wonderful changing scene before us as the banks of mist and cloud came and went, sometimes dark and threatening, at other times,  light, wispy and translucent as it moved across the hillside caught in a brief shaft of sunlight.  Strangely, although I was hoping to get ideas for new paintings, I actually came away with ideas for some new graphite drawings!  Not quite what was planned, but if there’s one thing I’ve learnt over the years, it’s that you have to be flexible!  After a great little walk, now all I have to do, is the work.

Looking east from Cononish

Looking east from Cononish

Beinn Chuirn

Beinn Chuirn

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