The art of summer

Hello everyone, the annual flurry of art fairs (Borders, Dalkeith, Glasgow) is over for me, summer is in full flow and the garden has burst into life at our new house in Juniper Green, Edinburgh. My next Art Fair will be in Aberdeen on 1st, 2nd and 3rd of September so I have a bit of time in the studio to concentrate on my latest series.

Alchemy Series

My Alchemy works have a new Gallery here , where all the pieces have been collected together for you to view in one place.

The inspiration for the series evolved from using materials during the recent pandemic that had healing properties: The Breath Series. I loved that I was mixing elemental and meaningful ingredients to make work that was more than the sum of its parts, like turning lead into gold!

My research into the alchemists has been very interesting, for example, the earliest mention of alchemy was ancient Greece in the first century (two thousand years ago!) and the text was about a woman alchemist called ‘Mary The Jewess’, a healer. Early alchemists were not only interested in creating gold but were trying to create “The Philosopher’s Stone” which they believed would enable them to communicate with angels.

It also turns out that the guilds for artist’s were also the guilds for chemist’s. Both used similar equipment and materials, the artists to create pigments and paints and the (al)chemists creating their potions.

There are also the links with witchcraft and healing and the wealth of symbols that are found in alchemy with many esoteric meanings throughout multiple cultures. It is a rich seam of inspiration.

I also wanted to remind you about my Available Work. This ranges from oil paintings to mixed-media drawings, most of which are framed and ready to hang.

In addition, many limited-edition prints can be viewed and purchased from the Prints page.