Stravaig: to wander or roam without aim or purpose
The Lure of Snow, watercolour, ink and pigment on paper, 55cm x 75cm
As I sat high on the hillside in early December a bitterly cold wind swept down the glen from the north. Flurries of snow left their feathery imprints in the wet pigment of the sky I had just painted and as the breeze freshened and sun passed behind a cloud the temperature plummeted, instantly freezing the damp paper in a craze of fragmenting ice crystals. It is a painting born of the experience, of being there in that moment and place. To Stravaig opens up the possibilities for these moments to occur, a freedom in the unknown and in chance. Growing up on Skye it was just what we did as children, to go and play on the hill or shore, allowed the freedom to roam where we wanted, it’s a freedom in which I still take great delight.
Stargazing ii, watercolour and ink on paper, 54cm x 36cm
They may not be the easiest conditions to work in when the wind tugs at every piece of kit, water freezes on the brush, fingers lose sensation and knees stiffen on cold ground. But there is an exhilaration to be found in these moments, places observed in solitude and landscapes that become like old friends. It often compels me to remain outside working until the sun vanishes beyond the horizon, sometimes until the stars appear and work progresses by torchlight, best of all are the nights in a tent or bothy where nature feels so much closer.
Drifting, collagraph and etching, 14cm x 28cm
As often or not it is the wildlife and search for solitude that leads me roaming away from path or track. A glimpse of black throated divers might lead me to follow along the shore as they forge a way through the surf. Or to lie in a tent just above the tideline and listen to the world awakening.
Tranquility, watercolour and pastel on paper, 19cm x 60cm
There is much to see in the natural world, a world that doesn’t care about lists, priorities, objectives or plans. So to go into it with an open and willing mind, to follow a whim and see where it will lead seems to me to be the best way to be among nature. To stravaig.