On the Wall, Off the Wall
These frescoes have been on the wall and off the wall. Twelve artworks have come out of one but have gone through many processes on the way. It all started out with a wall painting and has ended up in an exhibition in Northumberland called ‘Without Walls’. So, how did...
QEST Strappo Course, Rome
I took part in a strappo course in Rome, thanks to my QEST Anthony and Elizabeth Mellows Charitable Settlement Scholarship. This, the final part, follows on from my study visit to Naples and Rome and my gold leaf course in Bosa, Sardinia. Strappo is Italian for tear...
QEST Study visit to Naples and Rome
I made a wonderful study visit to Rome and Naples, thanks to a QEST Anthony and Elizabeth Mellows Charitable Settlement Scholarship. Following on from my gold leaf course in Bosa, I took the boat from Sardinia to the mainland and trains to Naples, Pompeii,...
QEST Gold Leaf Course, Bosa, Sardinia
As part of my QEST scholarship (Anthony and Elizabeth Mellows Charitable Settlement Trust), I spent a week in Bosa Art School, Sardinia with Carey Mortimer. She showed me how to use gold leaf on fresco panels.I started by dissolving beeswax in turpentine and mastic...
Improvised Fictions at the Scottish Arts Club
In February 2023 I had a solo exhibition, Improvised Fictions at the Scottish Arts Club in Edinburgh. The Scottish Arts Club is a cosy exhibition space in the heart of Edinburgh. I showed large and small oil paintings on the theme of day dreaming and invention, with...
Stephen Palmer Travel Award Bursary, Engage Scotland
In September 2022 I spent a week looking at frescoes in England thanks to a Stephen Palmer Travel Award Bursary awarded by Engage Scotland/ Creative Scotland. I would like to thank them for giving me this wonderful opportunity.I visited the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford...
QEST, L’Art de la Fresque, Brittany
Continuing with my QEST Scholarship, I attended a week long fresco course, l’Art de la Fresque, at the beautiful Abbaye Saint Jacut de la Mer in Brittany, France. This was run by Isabelle Bonzom and Valerie Letombe and hosted by VMSF. There were thirteen participants...
QEST Scholarship, Merz fresco
In 2022, I received a QEST Anthony and Elizabeth Mellows Charitable Settlement Trust Award to gain further training in fresco painting. The first part of this, in June, involved working on a wall. I was keen to get practice in this as I had previously mainly worked on...
Cill Rialaig Residency
In March 2022, I spent eleven days on a residency in Cill Rialaig, County Kerry, Ireland. I had broken my hip the month before, so arrived with a crutch and the help of my wonderful artist friend, Hazel Walker, who drove me from Shannon airport and helped me get...
Familial Places
Earlier this year, I received a Creative Scotland Open Fund Bursary to research and develop ideas based on my family. I spent time gathering information in the places I was brought up - Kilmarnock, Cults, Aberdeen and Banff - and in my mother’s current house in...