F lowers have been a constant theme in Michael G Clark’s work. In the ear ly days he found inspiration in L ondon: “My painting of flowers really started when I saw Paula Pr yke’s flower shop in Islington – walls of flowers of one colour, rather than the generic ‘ garage ’ flowers that were on sale elsewhere. Her styling really got me wanting to paint them. F lower arranging is an art form, and I also enjoyed the beautifully curated flower stalls in South Kensington, where you could choose flowers and foliage and watch them being hand tied; or you could drink in the f ragrant flowers in the foyer of e Conran Shop. ey were a visual feast.”
In 1997, he had a solo exhibition at Chelsea F lower Show. A visit to the Jardin Majorelle in Morocco owned by Yves St Lauren followed, and provided further excitement, alongside visits to many glorious gardens in England.
Clark’s move back to Scotland in 1999 led to floral inspiration c loser to home in his walled garden. In “ Yellow Lilies, the Artist ’ s Garden in Summer ” , the daylilies bloom in late spring, each individual blossom lasting a single day. e painting captures their vibrant colour and form. e other works feature garden flowers in favourite jugs, conveying their essence in the same way that he creates the atmosphere of a French market, an Italian piazza, or a café.
Working f rom a studio at the top of his home in Ay rshire, Michael Clark continues to build upon a growing following for his work through solo and group exhibitions throughout the UK.
Based in Port Seton, Esther ’ s work is primarily focused on gardens, a colourful cultivation of rich and sometimes exotic plant patterns, ver y much in vogue in contemporar y interiors.
“My work is based on tr ying to reflect the brevity of life, beauty, toil, energ y, death and rebir th that is obser ved in the c yc le of life within the garden. In practice, I enjoy layering paint, building up rich and varied colours, striving to capture the light and character of the familiar and unfamiliar places I visit.”
Esther is a Scottish artist who, since graduating f rom Edinburgh College of Art in 1993, has exhibited and sold work regular ly in galleries across Britain, inc luding the Royal Scottish Academy, Society of Scottish Artists, RSW, the RBA, Mall Galleries and the Royal Academy summer exhibition 2019, where her work was selected to be in the Academicians’ favourites list. Her work was also selected by the Royal Academy and Celebrities for the ING Discerning Eye exhibition in 2020. In 2019, she was elected as a professional member of SSA. She was awarded the ‘House for an Art L over Award ’ in the RSW at the RSA in 2018 and has received a VACM Award f rom East L othian Council in 2020.
S arah gre w up on the nor th Nor folk coast and is drawn to the wild coastal paths at Tentsmuir, Ullapool and along the East Neuk. Sarah’s paintings reflect the changing nuances of c loud, the effect of sun on water and of mists rolling in. ese paintings are part-remembered places with hints of human presence.
In her studio, Sarah’s process begins with the gentle application of pigment on textured watercolour paper, gesso or canvas. e first coats of pigment react with this ground, creating fluid pools of colour. Rather than working against these abstract forms, Sarah uses them to allow landscape to emerge through subsequent layers. Her painting and prints occupy a realm between an obser ved encounter and memor y of place.
Sarah trained in Fine Art and English at University of Exeter and gained postgrad Distinction at the University of L ondon, winning a travel scholarship to R ussia. Following a teaching post in Buc kinghamshire, S arah has lived and worked in Edinburgh for over 30 years. She has exhibited widely and her work is represented in many pr ivate and public collections. In 2022, she was honoured to be one of a select group of ar tists representing S cotland at the international Fabriano in Aquarello watercolour exhibition and convention in Bologna and has been selected again in 2023.
S te ven Lindsay studied painting at Glasgow S chool of Ar t in the 80s. On leaving, he embarked on a successful career as a recording artist in the music industr y, returning to his first love painting in 2011.
He is ver y much an ar tist in ascendance, who although obviousl y f rom the European figurative tradition, br ings an exciting take on that genre. e drawing and br ushwork is c lassic al yet used in an utter l y modern context, sometimes demanding, sometimes humorous and always thought provoking. His work is now held pr ivatel y and public all y in collections across the UK, Europe, North America and the Far East.
Estelle L ovatt, the ar t cr itic featured on the ne w BBC R adio 2 Ar ts S how, described his work as: “…like revisiting Vermeer in the D utch Golden Age of painter l y skill against the Colour Field of Rothko, all inter twined with an aesthetic twist of contemporar y, complex-simplicit y. Lindsay using his paintbrush eloquently, capturing painterly conversations between the art histor y giants of a bygone age and a bygone art.”
Christian Moore is a self-taught contemporar y artist known for creating works that incor porate bronz e and organic mater ials on hessian. He worked as a fashion illustrator in L ondon for over a decade for premium fashion brands and magazines such as Chanel and Tatler.
Af ter leaving L ondon and moving to Scotland to raise his family, Christian's surroundings and focus changed. His enchantment with the natural wor ld now provides the inspiration for his paintings. As with his ear lier illustrative work, his current pieces remain true to his overall 'less is more ' approach.
Christian spent many years developing a his technique of ‘sculpting' cold cast bronz e directl y onto the sur face of his works. e 'cold c ast' is made in his studio using a fine bronze metal powder and a type of resin. Once cured, the metal is aged to suit the composition. He deliberately cracks the backgrounds of his work before bonding them to a flat bac king sur face. e foreground texture is added using a mixture of ingredients including sand, paint and plaster. is texture is of ten a c lean crisp white, which makes the painting feel f resh and modern and acts as a complete counter balance to the bac kground. e shadow/s of the subject are painted onto the foreground before the work is sealed and protected. e creation of each piece is a laborious process but filled with love and passion for the art. e titles of his works are as much a part of each piece as the raw materials themselves and it all starts with the name.
e work embodies his overall sense of st y le and celebrates beaut y and imperfection.
