THE MINIATURISTS III
Artists Jo Barker Stephen Bowers Philip Braham Sara Brennan John Brown Hugh Buchanan David Cass Jonathan Christie Rebecca Collins David Cook Stephanie Dees Amy Dennis Kate Downie Matthew Draper Philip Eglin David Eustace Joe Fan Gus Fisher Archie Forrest Lachlan Goudie Linda Green Martin Greenland
Derrick Guild Claire Harkess Mark Hearld Ian Howard Jane Keith Ed Kluz Alex Knubley Diana Leslie Angie Lewin Michael Lloyd Kirsty Lorenz Frances Macdonald Christine McArthur Calum McClure Ewan McClure Angus McFadyen Jock McFadyen Alison McGill Barry McGlashan Michael McVeigh Hannah Mooney Ross Ryan
Campbell Sandilands Arran Semple Naoko Shibuya Charles Simpson Emily Sutton Natasha Todd Geoff Uglow
THE MINIATURISTS III
November and December 2019 Welcome to our third instalment of The Miniaturists. For this collection, we were inspired by the miniatures of Hilliaird & Oliver, which were exhibited in Elizabethan Treasures at the Portrait Gallery earlier this year. As our first two editions were limited to three dimensional objects, we wanted to continue the theme but broaden the challenge to fine artists and include tapestry for the first time. The artworks are 7.5 cm square, two dimensional in format, with anomalies here and there. We are overwhelmed by our artists’ response; some have spent more time creating a miniature than a full size work or rather have regarded the miniature in exactly the same terms as a large scale work. We are, as ever, indebted to all the artists who responded to the brief with such enthusiasm and detail; for many, making a miniature has given birth to new ideas and directions. The Scottish Gallery
Jo Barker
Ink Study 2, 2019, cotton, linens, wool, embroidery threads, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £980
Ink Study 1, 2019, cotton, linens, wool, embroidery threads, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £980
Stephen Bowers Inspired by Edward Lear’s surreal classic, a miniature diorama that peeps into a tiny fragile world. Invoking ideas around childhood, threat to native species (The Owl) by the feral (The Pussycat) climate change looming in the form of the Tsunami with a touch of East-West tension in there as well. We are all in the same boat.
The Owl and the Pussycat - and the Tsunami, 2019, miniature ‘diorama’ in porcelain, cobalt, traces of glaze, archival glue and box-board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £520
Philip Braham
I was dropping my daughter off at gymnastics one evening when a strange event began to unfold in the sky: the clouds suddenly seemed to swirl in waves, lit from the setting sun below. I leapt out of the car and took a quick snap on my phone just before it dissolved with the disappearing light. I learned that this rare phenomenon is known as an ‘Undulatus Asperatus’ and is caused by turbulence in the atmosphere, often preceding a storm. I considered using the image to make a large-scale painting, but I was concerned that it might appear too theatrical and ostentatious, so when I was asked to contribute a painting to The Miniaturists III exhibition, I thought this would be the ideal scale for such an image. Philip Braham
Against the Sky, 2019, oil on prepared paper, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ850
Sara Brennan
Little Yellow Vertical I, 2019, linens, wools, cottons and sewing threads, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ980
Little Yellow Vertical II, 2019, linens, wools, cottons and sewing threads, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ980
John Brown
I nearly always begin a painting by sticking paper, cloth, card, newspaper on to a board to build a compositional framework, working from large to small. Unexpected relationships of colour and texture frequently appear as pastel and paper react together offering welcome ‘happy accidents’. John Brown
Yellow Marking, 2019, mixed media collage on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ350
Hugh Buchanan
When I taught at Edinburgh College of Art Summer school I would take my students to Greyfriars, so aptly named, to teach them how to work with a limited palette; to paint tonally. This is one of the demonstration pieces that I did for them to copy. The point of the exercise was to demonstrate that even complex compositions can easily be rendered in one colour, in fact it is often easier to do so, and that by choosing the right colour, in this case an authentic Edinburgh grey, one can truly summon up the spirit of the place. Hugh Buchanan
Greyfriars Kirkyard, Edinburgh, 2019, watercolour, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ235
David Cass
For as long as I’ve made art, I’ve either knowingly, or accidentally made artworks that wage a battle of opposing components in both design and concept. Often, it’s a minor conflict: perhaps simply using new paint on an old substrate, combining industrial metal structures with organic imagery, or, using watercolour paints without water to describe an image of water. David Cass The notion of a rising horizon is both evocative and timely. Sea levels are rising. This new global phenomenon needs our attention. Cass’s series of paintings creatively pose the topic from dozens of diverse perspectives, upon a variety of supports. Despite appearing to be playful in form, these paintings act as a kind of miniature icepick to the brain, raising awareness. John Englander, oceanographer & author
Horizon 56%, 2018, oil on mirror box, H7 x W7 cm, ÂŁ390
Jonathan Christie
Jonathan Christie’s paintings are inspired by the land, sea, buildings, paths, harbours, skies, hills, walls, colours, rivers, interiors, textures and light of many places, including England, Scotland, Wales and Italy. His work is concerned with memory and spirit of place, mixing location and architecture with moments in time and personal objects. His paintings often move through a process of constant change and development, where the physical and interpersonal aspects overlap and overlay. This applying and removing of ideas and paint creates a ‘history’ that implies more than just a single, specific point in time, rather evoking a personal Genius Loci.
Apparition (Double Shadow) II, 2019 watercolour, gesso and graphite on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £290
Rebecca Collins
Rebecca Collins lives and works on the northwest coast of Scotland, finding her subject walking in the varied and dramatic landscape around her home by the Sound of Sleat. Her deep familiarity with this part of Scotland offers her a unique perspective. Having been a first-hand observer of the changing seasons and extremes of weather, she understands and uses this versatility as her principal subject.
West Coast Landscape, 2019, oil on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £290
David Cook
When it comes down to painting flowers, it is the visual effect that fascinates me; using them as an experimental laboratory in which I can explore form, colour and the relationship between the surface and the subject. Flowers hold for me a pure beauty, fragrant, silent in a variety of colours and shapes. There is energy, a vibration of colour there. The flower is short lived but burns bright; soon to wither until it blooms the following spring. Looking at this every day is so powerful; I just want to paint it. David Cook
Apple Blossom, 2019, acrylic on board, H7 x W7 cm, £270
Stephanie Dees
Producing the miniature paintings has been an interesting and enjoyable challenge: as the 16th century miniaturist painter Nicholas Hilliard stated, ‘A thing apart from all other painting or drawing’. Indeed. I approached the work completely differently. My pace was much slower and controlled. I only worked on them for short bursts at a time. I also stood back a lot more, making sure such small scale works read well from a distance and had some of the gem like quality that is traditionally associated with miniature painting. I feel thinking differently about these works has had a positive effect on my regular practice and I’ve certainly learned from it. Stephanie Dees
New Town Study, 2019, mixed media on card, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £470
Winter Light, 2019, mixed media on card, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £470
Georgian Faรงade, 2019, mixed media on card, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ยฃ470
Amy Dennis
I enjoy the sculptural form of the Bass Rock which appears on the horizon like a table top object. I have been working on a cast plaster (Jesmonite) ground. The plaster is inscribed, polished and painted with thin layers of pigment and acrylic binder to create a distinctive surface. Amy Dennis
Miniature I, 2019, pigment and acrylic on jesmonite (plaster) on wood H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ295
Miniature III, 2019, pigment and acrylic on jesmonite (plaster) on wood H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ295
Miniature II, 2019, pigment and acrylic on jesmonite (plaster) on wood H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ295
Kate Downie
East Pier, St Monans, 2019, watercolour on gesso on wood, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ470
The Zig Zag Breakwater, 2019, oil on card, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £470
Matthew Draper
Downpour on the Bass Rock, 2019, pencil and graphite on paper, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ190
Illuminated Part IV, 2019, pencil and graphite on paper, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ190
Philip Eglin
The themes for my work have often included irreverent depictions of Christian religious imagery. With this particular series of tiles I have focused on borrowing/re-drawing specific details associated with portrayals of the Crucifixion by Lucas Cranach and Matthias GrĂźnewald. I have deliberately chosen to employ the ceramic technique of sgraffito, which involves using a needle tool to cut/gouge a line through a white slip layer to reveal an underlying red earthenware clay body, redolent of the shocking, though strangely beautiful, flayed flesh of the original painted images. The tiles are individually made in a red earthenware body, covered with a white slip under a transparent lead glaze with the occasional added splashes of copper and iron oxide and fired to 1060c. Philip Eglin
Miniatures I-IX, 2019, red earthenware, white slip, transparent lead glaze, copper and iron oxide, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ225 each
Miniature VIII, 2019, red earthenware, white slip and transparent lead glaze H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ225
Miniature VII, 2019, red earthenware, white slip and transparent lead glaze H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ225
David Eustace
This 5 x 4 inch Polaroid was made in my apartment in NYC around 2002 on an old Wistafield camera. There’s a sort of silent voice I find communicates with me when working with mannequins and it’s something I’m drawn to. David Eustace
NYC, Plaster Head I, c.2002, Polaroid film, H12.7 x W10 cm, £475
Joe Fan
The single flower is a familiar motif within Joe Fan’s large scale works. In this miniature work, he has chosen to isolate a single red flower, making it all the more symbolic.
Flower, 2019, oil on canvas, H7.5 x W5 cm, £220
Gus Fisher
Courage, 2019, stoneware and gold lettering, H7.5 x W7.5 cm edition of 3. ÂŁ390
Trust (left) and Integrity (right), 2019, stoneware and gold lettering, H7.5 x W7.5 cm edition of 3, ÂŁ390 each
Archie Forrest
Poppies and Roses, 2019, mixed media, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ595
Three Cherries, 2019, mixed media, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £595
Fruit Bowl, 2019, mixed media, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £595
Granny Smiths, 2019, mixed media, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £595
Washline Cellardyke I, 2019, mixed media, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £595
Washline Cellardyke II, 2019, mixed media, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £595
Lachlan Goudie
In Flight, 2019, watercolour on paper, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £420
Summit, 2019, watercolour on paper, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ420
Linda Green
Zolenoid, 2019, mixed media, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £225
Reziztor, 2019, mixed media, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £225
Martin Greenland
Ideas formed and some were discarded, and some retained on the surface as the piece developed. It became a wistful, somewhat lonesome landscape; a reconstruction of holiday memories without the people. It is a private place, visibly before me but one I can only enter in my imagination. Even though it is tiny, the piece had all the same difficulties with construction and concept as a large painting. A tiny mark out of place became a large fault or altered the feeling of the piece. Martin Greenland
Little Headland, 2019, oil on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £850
Derrick Guild
Eye, after Hodges, 2019, oil on linen, H8.5 x W6.5 cm, £900
Earring, after van der Kooi, 2019, oil on linen, H6.5 x W5 cm, £850
Claire Harkess
Double Dove, 2019, watercolour, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £390
Collared Dove, 2019, watercolour, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ390
Mark Hearld
Birds, 2019, mixed media on paper, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ350
Hare, 2019, mixed media on paper, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ350
Ian Howard
Little Wing, 2019, pigment, silverpoint, graphite on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ295
Vanitas, 2019, pigment, acrylic, silverpoint, graphite on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ295
Jane Keith
Fields I, 2019, oil pastel on paper, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ210
Fields III, 2019, oil pastel on paper, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £210
Ed Kluz
For the past 12 months or so I’ve been looking closely at 17th and 18th century engravings. The techniques used by the engraver to build up an image have fed into the means by which I’ve created the images for this exhibition. Different types of cross hatching and a strong sense of dark and light are used to slowly build up an image - I pull the building from a mass of scratches and fine lines. Ed Kluz
Miniature Building, 2019, scraperboard, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ350
Alex Knubley
Hebridean Dreams, 2019, oil on canvas, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £230
Dunes, 2019, oil on canvas, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £230
Diana Leslie
I chose to stick with the idea of the miniature as a portrait. But also a self portrait eyeballed as Hockney might say from life. I like artist’s self portraits. They push and pull and demand form. Diana Leslie
Portrait of the Artist, 2019, oil on wood, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £335
Angie Lewin
Miniature III, 2019, watercolour, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ380
Miniature IV, 2019, watercolour, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ380
Miniature II, 2019, watercolour, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ380
Miniature I, 2019, watercolour, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ380
Michael Lloyd
I had been asked to produce a medal for British Art Medals, which is what this design was originally destined for. The subject is everlasting love, which for me, who is someone devoid of any heroic impulse, seems considerably more advantageous than running a mile in four minutes or other activities of that ilk! The medal I scrapped but the sentiment I have a wish to retain. Michael Lloyd
Declaration, 2019, Buckingham etching paper, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ195
Kirsty Lorenz
Votive Offering no. 137, Wood Sorrel, 2019, watercolour, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ235
Votive Offering no. 136, Heart Ease, 2019, watercolour and acrylic, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £235
Frances Macdonald
Hebridean Landscape I, 2019, oil on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ550
Hebridean Landscape II, 2019, oil on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £550
Christine McArthur
Two Pears on the Shore, 2019, acrylic on conservation board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £235
Vertical Rain: Blue Coffee Pot, 2019, acrylic on conservation board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £235
Calum McClure
Sussex Tree Nocturnal, 2019, oil on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £450
Sussex Yew Trees, 2019, oil on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £450
Ewan McClure
To complete his ground-breaking A Galloway Landscape, Robert Henry sent a polite request to his friend Hornel for a pencil sketch of ‘...a bit of winding burn...’ which Hornel granted. The finished work divided critics and the public, but unforgettably distils and reimagines the local topography. Such historic works both inform and distract the eyes of subsequent painters and challenge us to go on rediscovering this distinctive region afresh. Ewan McClure
Galloway Miniature, 2019, oil on paper, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ350
Angus McFadyen
I believe that inspiration is a matter of being receptive to things you see every day. When something interests or excites you, you remember it and it may crop up again somewhere in the future, not necessarily consciously. Techniques can also be influential; engraving is by and large, very linear. A lot of my engraving is influenced by textiles and fabric designs. An engraved mark can be used in a similar way to a stitch or a thread, and inlays and carving can be applied like embroidery as points of interest. Usually I polish my engraving tools to give a very clean, bright cut. However, for these miniatures, I realised that by slightly roughing the tool it left a softer, more directional mark that catches the light quite differently. Angus McFadyen
Angus McFadyen
Butterflies, 2019, sterling silver, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ1,250
Leaves, 2019, copper, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £850
Chrysanthemums, 2019, sterling silver, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, ÂŁ1,250
Jock McFadyen
Mallaig is one of the most beautiful of the western ports in Scotland. The sky is a clear ultramarine and the town looks like a new pin when viewed from the boat. As long as it is not raining. I have made a small, miniature edition which is acrylic on postcard, mixed media; a signed and numbered edition of 50. Jock McFadyen
Mallaig, 2019, acrylic on postcard, H14.5 x W17 cm, 1/50, Framed £250 U/F £220
Alison McGill
Aerial View II, 2019, oil and wax on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £425
Over Land and Sea, 2019, oil and wax on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £425
Barry McGlashan
Lately I’ve been making paintings which often seem to refer to the act of painting itself; so my miniatures became about miniatures. For me, they also served as a comment on the joys of detail; those favourite corners of paintings you will visit at your favourite galleries. Here I reference two specific paintings which I felt spoke of the meditation on character and identity; a Pompeo Batoni from The Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, and a David Allan from The Scottish National Portrait Gallery here in Edinburgh. I wanted an element of the hand to be present in each painting as a miniature would often be seen that way - held close, perhaps something given personally, a very intimate form of art. That is what we are seeing here in my three paintings: the process of a commission to make an image of a loved one to take on some far voyage, chosen from an artist’s sample book, ‘paint her this way’, to be held close and remembered. Barry McGlashan
The Commission I, 2019, oil on panel, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £550
The Commission III, 2019, oil on panel, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £550
The Commission II, 2019, oil on panel, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £550
Michael McVeigh
Harbour, 2019, oil on copper, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £220
Boat, 2019, oil on copper, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £220
Hannah Mooney
Without relying on literal representation, I try to suggest an essence of place, time of day and atmosphere. I find painting technically challenging, especially outside. Painting the sea and sky can be energising, cold, confusing and yet ultimately rewarding. Hannah Mooney
Study of Sea and Sand II, 2019, oil on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £275
Ross Ryan
West Coast Seascape II, 2019, oil on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £380
West Coast Seascape I, 2019, oil on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £380
Campbell Sandilands
Cosmic Play, 2019, sumi ink and woodblock on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £175
Tropical Storm, 2019, sumi ink and woodblock on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £175
Arran Semple
My piece – ‘Looking towards Rainbow Bridge, Tokyo’- is an observational depiction of the most populous city in the world. Visiting Japan for the first time in June 2019, it was an overwhelming experience and a sensory overload. For me the most striking element was the diversity of architecture, and this view from Midtown Tower gives a good representation of the eclectic mix of periods and styles. Drawing a miniature was the perfect format in order to convey the compact and frenetic feeling in this metropolis. I’m currently studying Illustration at Camberwell College of Arts at UAL. My work often revolves around the built environment and human influence in a cityscape. I find it fascinating to compare various cities I’ve visited and how they’ve developed to accommodate 21st century design. Arran Semple
Towards Rainbow Bridge, Tokyo, 2019, pen on paper, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £285
Naoko Shibuya
A Bright Summer Day, 2019, oil on canvas, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £395
Deep Red Autumn, 2019, oil on canvas, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £395
Charles Simpson
Paintings of such a size cannot suggest grandeur and drama as in large works. Small paintings require an element of charm and perhaps quirky interest‌ I thought that small flower and still life studies would be suitable, also allowing me to introduce splashes of brighter colour. Charles Simpson
Cup of Flowers, 2019, oil on plywood, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £295
Emily Sutton
I have cupboards full of tiny objects collected from junk shops and fleamarkets from all over the world, including over 200 lead animals, some of which feature in these three works. Painting in miniature was the perfect opportunity to celebrate the small treasures that are often overlooked, both in my studio cabinets and in the natural world. As a lover of detail,I find working at this small scale very satisfying and enjoy the jewel-like quality of the tiny images. Emily Sutton
Three Birds, 2019, watercolour, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £380
Cat and Crab Apple, 2019, watercolour, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £380
Black Swan and Polar Bear, 2019, watercolour, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £380
Natasha Todd
Even though this piece is physically small, I wanted to convey the same sense of space that I create in full-scale work. For me, the challenge was to miniaturize my geometric forms, to give them depth, light, and shade with a palette of cool blues and contrasting earth tones. Natasha Todd
Balance, 2019, acrylic on paper, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £165
Geoff Uglow
Can one make the ocean appear miniature? Geoff Uglow
Beaufort Lundy II, 2019, oil on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £950
Beaufort Lundy I, 2019, oil on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £950
Beaufort Lundy III, 2019, oil on board, H7.5 x W7.5 cm, £950
Published by The Scottish Gallery to coincide with the exhibition: THE MINIATURISTS III November and December 2019 ISBN: 978-1-912900-12-1 We would like to thank all of the artists for their contribution to the exhibition. Designed, photographed and produced by The Scottish Gallery Printed by J Thomson Printers All rights reserved. No part of this catalogue may be reproduced in any form by print, photocopy or by any other means, without the permission of the copyright holders and of the publishers.
THE
SCOTTISH
GALLERY
CONTEMPORARY ART SINCE 1842 16 DUNDAS STREET • EDINBURGH EH3 6HZ +44 (0) 131 558 1200 • scottish-gallery.co.uk
THE MINIATURISTS III
THE
SCOTTISH
GALLERY
CONTEMPORARY ART SINCE 1842