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30 November —– 23 December 2016
www.scottish-gallery.co.uk/francesmacdonald 16 Dundas Street, Edinburgh EH3 6HZ | tel 0131 558 1200 | email mail@scottish-gallery.co.uk | www.scottish-gallery.co.uk
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Frances Macdonald painting aboard the Sgarbh, July 2016
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BY SEA AND LAND
In the late summer I accompanied Frances Macdonald, her son Ross Ryan and six friends to explore Iona and Erraid, observe the artist at work, make our own efforts and cruise on the Ryan family boat Scarbh in the company of dolphins and perfect Hebridean days. Perhaps the highlight was a walk over Erraid past the quarry where the Stevenson family Engineering Company extracted the granite, to be shaped and then taken in barges out to the Torran Rocks to make the Dubh Artach lighthouse. Here the twenty-two-year-old Robert Louis Stephenson served his engineer’s apprenticeship but perhaps daydreamed in the long summer evenings looking forward to the life of the writer. From the observatory on the high point of the hill and then from atop a great, erratic boulder (from which a leap with a wish could be auspicious) we saw the boat make her way to Davy Balfour Bay to which we descended to partake in a lobster lunch. While we talked Frances painted, her palette knife moving instinctively, the deep bay, white beach and emerald sea taking shape before our eyes. There were other works made at the North End of Iona: Eilan Annraidh, and the view to Gribun Head and Loch na Keal on Mull; the distinctive rocks so cherished by Cadell and Peploe nearly a century before and the long White Strand facing across the Sound of Iona again inspired the artist. With her painting equipment transported by the tender and precious completed works carried carefully back to the village we were her support team while she remained remarkably free from stray oil paint and stress. This is her fifth show with The Scottish Gallery representing a remarkable decade of creative effort, always anchored at her favourite locations, at Crinan and Iona, full of originality and in deep tune with both the spirit and real experience of place. Guy Peploe, 2016
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1. Birthe Marie off the Burg, 2016, oil on canvas, 76 x 91.5 cms / 30 x 36 inches 6
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2. Towards Sandeels Bay, Iona, 2016, oil on canvas, 76 x 101.5 cms / 30 x 40 inches 8
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3. Fionnphort from Traig Mhor, 2016, oil on canvas, 15 x 20 cms / 6 x 8 inches 10
4. Ben Mhor, Late Afternoon from Iona, 2016, oil on canvas, 61 x 81 cms / 24 x 32 inches 11
5. Storm Clouds over Mull from the North End, Iona, 2016, oil on canvas, 61 x 81 cms / 24 x 32 inches 12
6. A Strong Tide – the Strait of the Storm, 2016, oil on canvas, 61 x 81 cms / 24 x 32 inches 13
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7. The White Strand of the Monks, 2016, oil on canvas, 91.5 x 137 cms / 36 x 54 inches
8. Machair and Azure Sea at the North End, 2016, oil on canvas, 40.5 x 45.5 cms / 16 x 18 inches 15
9. First Sighting of Erraid, Mull, 2016, oil on canvas, 40.5 x 45.5 cms / 16 x 18 inches 16
10. Towards the Torran Rocks, 2016, oil on canvas, 15 x 20 cms / 6 x 8 inches 17
11. Little Sandy Cove, Iona, 2016, oil on canvas, 15 x 20 cms / 6 x 8 inches 18
12. Pulpit Rock – Looking to Treshnish Point, 2016, oil on canvas, 122 x 122 cms / 48 x 48 inches
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13. The Paps of Jura from Seal Bay, 2016, oil on canvas, 40.5 x 45.5 cms / 16 x 18 inches 20
14. Waiting for the Ferry, Traig Mhor, 2016, oil on canvas, 20 x 15 cms / 8 x 6 inches 21
15. Low Tide near Mike and Katie’s House, Iona, 2016, oil on canvas, 40.5 x 45.5 cms / 16 x 18 inches 22
16. Amazing Light over Jura from Ronachan, 2016, oil on canvas, 30.5 x 30.5 cms / 12 x 12 inches 23
17. Corryvreckan from Crinan Harbour, Springtime, 2016, oil on canvas, 40.5 x 45.5 cms / 16 x 18 inches 24
18. Looking over Ronachan to Gigha, 2016, oil on canvas, 40.5 x 45.5 cms / 16 x 18 inches 25
19. Towards the Red Cliffs of Mull, 2016, oil on canvas, 30.5 x 30.5 cms / 12 x 12 inches 26
20. Sheltered Cove, Kintyre, 2016, oil on canvas, 40.5 x 45.5 cms / 16 x 18 inches 27
21. Big Red Rock, The White Strand, Iona, 2016, oil on canvas, 40.5 x 45.5 cms / 16 x 18 inches 28
22. Ronachan Kintyre, May, 2016, oil on canvas, 40.5 x 45.5 cms / 16 x 18 inches 29
23. A Break in the Clouds, Kilmory Knap, February, 2016, oil on canvas, 40.5 x 45.5 cms / 16 x 18 inches 30
24. Duntrune Castle, 2016, oil on canvas, 30.5 x 30.5 cms / 12 x 12 inches 31
25. Sea View and Linnett Cottages at Blossom Time, 2016, oil on canvas, 40.5 x 45.5 cms / 16 x 18 inches 32
26. The Isle of Man Boats at Crinan, Boys in the Pub, 2016, oil on canvas, 40.5 x 45.5 cms / 16 x 18 inches 33
27. Crinan and our Cottage in Summer, 2016, oil on canvas, 30.5 x 30.5 cms / 12 x 12 inches 34
28. Sgarbh and Duanach in the Sea Lock, Crinan, 2016, oil on canvas, 30.5 x 30.5 cms / 12 x 12 inches 35
29. Lock Keeper’s Bike and Lighthouse, Crinan, 2016, oil on canvas, 40.5 x 45.5 cms / 16 x 18 inches 36
30. Vic 32 at Crinan, 2016, oil on canvas, 25.5 x 20 cms / 10 x 8 inches 37
31. Sunlight through the Bluebell Wood, 2016, oil on canvas, 30.5 x 30.5 cms / 12 x 12 inches 38
32. Bluebell Wood and Bracken, Poltalloch, 2016, oil on canvas, 61 x 81 cms / 24 x 32 inches 39
33. The Sgarbh at Crinan Pier, 2016, oil on canvas, 45.5 x 40.5 cms / 18 x 16 inches 40
34. Deep Turquoise and Pale Aqua – Martyr’s Bay, Iona, 2016, oil on canvas, 40.5 x 45.5 cms / 16 x 18 inches 41
35. Balfour’s Bay I, 2016, oil on canvas, 61 x 81 cms / 24 x 32 inches 42
36. Balfour’s Bay II, 2016, oil on canvas, 61 x 81 cms / 24 x 32 inches 43
37. A Perfect Beach, Iona, 2016, oil on canvas, 91.5 x 137 cms / 36 x 54 inches 44
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38. Staffa from Cows Rock, Iona, 2016, oil on canvas, 91.5 x 137 cms / 36 x 54 inches
39. From the Slip Way, St Ronan’s Bay, 2016, oil on canvas, 40.5 x 45.5 cms / 16 x 18 inches 47
40. Emerald Breaker – Westport, Kintyre, 2016, oil on canvas, 51 x 61 cms / 20 x 24 inches 48
41. Daisies in the Sand, the Gauldrons – Kintyre, 2016, oil on canvas, 61 x 51 cms / 24 x 20 inches 49
42. Lichen in Sea Pinks, 2016, oil on canvas, 15 x 20 cms / 6 x 8 inches 50
43. Mackerel Sky over the Paps of Jura from Ronachan Kintyre, 2016, oil on canvas, / 54 x 60 inches
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44. Duntrune Castle on a Breezy Day, October, 2016, oil on canvas, 61 x 81 cms / 24 x 32 inches 52
45. Fionnphort, Early Morning, 2016, oil on canvas, 30.5 x 30.5 cms / 12 x 12 inches 53
46. The Surf ’s Up, Westport, Kintyre, 2016, oil on canvas, 76 x 101.5 cms / 30 x 40 inches 54
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Frances Macdonald Born Glasgow 1983–1986 Elected Council Member, SSWA 2004–2010 Elected Council Member, RGI 2013 Charles Rennie Mackintosh Residency at Collioure
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SOLO EXHIBITIONS
SELECTED MIXED EXHIBITIONS
1975
Aberdeen Art Gallery & Museums McLean Museum, Greenock The Royal Scottish Academy The Royal Glasgow Institute of the Fine Arts Visual Arts Scotland The Royal Scottish Society of Painters in Watercolour
Gallery Paton, Edinburgh 1977 Shore Gallery, Edinburgh 1988 Macaulay Gallery, Stenton 1989 Sue Rankin Gallery, London 1993 The R.G.I. Kelly Gallery, Glasgow 1994 The R.G.I. Kelly Gallery, Glasgow 1995 The R.G.I. Kelly Gallery, Glasgow 1996 The Scottish Arts Club, Edinburgh 1997 Open Eye Gallery, Edinburgh 1998 Cyril Gerber Fine Art, Glasgow 1999 Open Eye Gallery, Edinburgh 2000 Portland Gallery, London 2001 Art 2001: The London Contemporary Art Fair 2002 Portland Gallery, London 2003 Open Eye Gallery, Edinburgh 2003 Portland Gallery, London 2005 Art 2005: The London Contemporary Art Fair 2005 Portland Gallery, London 2006 Portland Gallery, London 2007 Portland Gallery, London 2008 Portland Gallery, London 2009 The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh 2009 Portland Gallery, London 2010 The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh 2011 Portland Gallery, London 2013 The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh 2013 Portland Gallery, London 2014 The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh 2015 Portland Gallery, London 2016 The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh
COLLECTIONS
Adam & Company, Edinburgh Haines Watts Chartered Accountants, Glasgow Drummond Miller Solicitors, Edinburgh First National Bank, USA Fred Olsen Cruise Lines Gleneagles Hotel Halifax I and H Brown Ltd Misys PLC Capital Property Group Royal Bank of Scotland Robert Fleming Holdings Ltd Stena Shipping Line Aberdeen Asset Management and private collections worldwide
The view from Crinan Harbour, October 2016
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Published by The Scottish Gallery to coincide with the exhibition: FR ANCES MACDONALD BY SEA AND LAND 30 NOVEMBER — 23 DECEMBER 2016 ISBN 978-1-910267-49-3 Designed by Martin Baillie Printed by Allander Print Ltd
16 Dundas Street, Edinburgh EH3 6HZ tel 0131 558 1200 | email mail@scottish-gallery.co.uk www.scottish-gallery.co.uk
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