Textile Commissions

 

Autumn in Drumrunie

 

This piece was commissioned to celebrate the birthday of a local resident, whose house nestles beneath Coigach’s famous mountains. I so enjoyed using pink and orange together, with the print marks of local plants adding to the texture and creating a harmony out of the autumn splendour of this part of the world.

 

 

Northern Shores

 

I was delighted to hear from a loyal customer that he had just bought a house near Kinlochberbie.  And so he commissioned me to make both a view of his house and of the nearby, spectacular, beach at Oldshoremore.  The two pieces will furnish this new house and on the darkest of days in the winter, should remind him of the glories of summer, when the north west highlands are full of yellow and brilliant blues.

 

 

 

 

Suilven, for Sasha

 

This panel was made as a birthday present for one of the many climbers for whom Suilven has a special place in their hearts.

 

The composition (100cm x 130 cm) was based on the view of the mountain from Ledmore, just to the north of Elphin, with the Ledmore river winding its way towards Cam Loch. 

 

The client requested that I use the burnt orange of the bracken and old heather that is found on the slopes of the low hills.  To this I added the range of faded yellows and gold found in the wide variety of grasses that are found on the flood plain of the river.  And, of course, the unmistakable silhouette of Suilven stands proud above it all.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Achnahaird Sunset

 

 

This was an enormous commission - 2.5 metres by 0.75 metres. Enormous in size and, I hope, in terms of success.  It was commissioned by a woman from London who has happy memories of sitting outside her tent on the old campsite, on the dunes at the back of Achnahaird beach, watching the sun set behind the brooding mountains of - left to right - Canisp, Suilven, Cul Mor, Stac Pollaidh, Cul Beag and the Ben Mor Coigach range.  A little artistic license allowed me to include the beach, as if you could see it from the top of Achnahaird Brae. 

 

 

 

 

Uallach na Mara

(The Burden of the Sea)

 

This is a romantic interpretation of a phrase favoured by the client, who lives at Ardmair Bay, the beautiful sweep of beach just north of Ullapool. 

 

I chose to find the positive in the word ‘burden’, imagining the sea full of herring, with shoals of them regularly finding their way into the nets of the fisherman of the west coast.  The boat is white and ‘gold’, giving it the status of a precious object, the source of plenty in the fisherman’s life.  And I particularly enjoyed writing this beautiful phrase – Uallach na Mara – over and over again on the fabric that turned into the bountiful sea. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Climbing Cul Mor

 

This large embroidered textile collage was created for a regular hill climber from London, whose favourite mountain happens to be Cul Mor. This is a subject I know well, given that our house looks on to the mountain and is named after it too. As well as the opportunity to depict the huge but gentle presence of the mountain (and its little sister, Cul Beag, peeking over its shoulder) the commission gave me an opportunity to show the slow and lazy route that both the road and the burn take as they wend their way through Elphin village.

 

 

Earthworks

Click here to see the Earthworks Exhibition Slide Show

 

March 2023

Earthworks Move into Print

 

At long last the book version of the Earthworks project is complete!  And as I leaf through the pages of the book, I feel the warm glow of a job well done, thanks to the solid support of Chelsea Frew (designer) and Ricky Frew (photographer).

This beautiful, high-quality art book contains over a hundred pages of images and words celebrating the intricate workings of the earth, as experienced through the eyes - and hands - of textile and mixed media artist Jan Kilpatrick.  Striking photography by Ricky Frew illustrates the landscape that both inspires Jan’s work and provides the materials from which the work is made.  The nature-led processes involved in the making are also recorded through photography, along with a selection of the finished textile and poetry works that emerged from this immersive project. It is a visual feast.

Earthworks, the book, is a textile-covered, hardback volume, almost A4 in size.  It is limited to an edition of 500 signed copies and was launched on the 28th May 2023.  It is only available through the artist’s website.  To make an order, please click here.

 

 

21st August 2022

I am excited to tell you that the Earthworks exhibition at The Ceilidh Place, Ullapool, is now underway and I understand that there have been a few sales already!  Quite often the buyers of work at this venue are passing through on a long trip around Scotland, so sometimes just take the work with them.  So, I thought that it would be good idea to make a slideshow of all thirty eight works and put it on my web site, in case by the time you go to see the exhibition, a few pieces have already flown the coop.  And if you are interested to see the work but cannot come to Ullapool in person, then at least you can take a virtual tour from the comfort of your own home.  Just click here to see the show.

I want to thank Ricky Frew for taking so many lovely photographs (I had to photograph some late-finished pieces myself, but I expect you'll be able to spot the ones taken by the amateur!); Chelsea Frew for designing the poster for the exhbition and Brian Davidson for making the slideshow (which is well beyond my capablitlies).

Everything comes from the earth and returns to the earth. It is the larder that provides for all living beings. And, in one form or another, eventually holds all our secrets and memories. This is an exhibition of textile works drawn from the earth, in terms of methods, materials and imagery.  In fact, some of the cloth has even lain buried in the peat for months on end!  If you'd like to see and read more about the journey towards the finished work, have a look at my Earthworks page.

The show of thirty eight new pieces of work will take place at the Ceilidh Place, Ullapool, between August 19th and October 30th 2022.The larger works will be on display in the Green Room (dining room towards the rear of the cafe), whilst smaller works can be seen in the cafe and bar areas. Please contact the Ceilidh Place if you are interested in buying any of the work. To read an informative review of this exhibition please click here. To purchase a high quality print of this poster click here.

 

 

One disappointment carried over from my winter endeavours is that I did not manage to settle to working on a book of images and words to accompany this exhibition.  A book is still in my mind but, in order to do it justice, I think I will be aiming for a Christmas publication rather than rushing it to be finished for August.  But I have a whole new set of desktop publishing skills to learn, so don't hold your breath!

Jan

 

9th July 2022

I'm now nearing the end of making this body of work, some of which has been lying around in my studio, in various half-conceived forms, for almost two years!  It really does feel that it is time to bring all of it to a finish and, nerve-wracking as it is, to let the public see what I have been up to all of that time.  There are 35 or 40 potential works, with there being space at the Ceilidh Place to display them all, depending on whether or not they sit comfortably in that environment.  You can see a preview of just a few of them in the gallery below.

I have exhibited at the Ceilidh Place a few times before, so I am hoping that that experience means that I have made a good judgement on the range and amount of work needed.  Not long now until I find out for sure.

 

Bed

June 2022

Time is making itself more and more present in my work.

After 15 years of residency in our sitting room, the old couch was sagging and so last summer we dismantled it and put the various elements – cloth, wadding and wood – to good use. All that remained was the bed of springs that made up the seat. This was stored at the back of the garden, gently rusting, waiting for its new purpose to be revealed.

Last week, I realised that there were various watery buckets of resources – leaves, sour milk, rusty nails - that had been, for some time, sitting outside my studio, also waiting to find their purpose. Added to this, the tea tent that I had put up to accommodate student lunches, as part of a Covid-safe environment, had suffered terribly in the winds and had to be dismantled, leaving a deeply muddy patch on the ground.

It felt like all these circumstances called for a giant printing ritual, an opportunity to put all these half-baked, half-realised dreams to bed. And so I laid the first old bed sheet on the muddy ground and layered it up with leaves, milk, rusty springs, more bed linen, spent onionskin dye, nails and more bed linen, then weighed it down with some old storage heater bricks, making a bed that would lie, untouched, for three months, just settling in to the earth, receiving both sunshine and rain in the course of the summer.

My plan is to share the results, in September, with the students on the Fabric of the Land course. I will then go on to use some of the printed fabric in making work along the emerging theme of alliteration.

 

Please click on an image to see the full picture.

 

 

7th April 2022

Easter is now upon us and for me it signifies the beginning of Open Studio Days and a long run of courses to plan and deliver.  And so, I now have to split my time, energy and concentration between these concerns and the finishing of the many Earthworks panels that I have been working on over the winter.  Of course, I knew this time would come, so I have tried to get beyond the conceptual stage for each piece so that the finishing off, which can be quite time-consuming when it involves stitching, is more of a repetitive and soothing process, providing a balance to the busy teaching activities.  One disappointment carried over from my winter endeavours is that I did not manage to settle to working on a book of images and words to accompany this exhibition.  A book is still in my mind, but in order to do it justice, I think I will be aiming for a Christmas publication rather than rushing it to be finished for August.

 

7th January 2022

I am continuing to work on this theme throughout the winter and finding myself straying into using wool, wood and stone, as well as eco-dyed and printed cloth.  It is an exciting journey!   The exhibition will be at the Ceilidh Place, Ullapool, in the autumn, which doesn't seem so far off now.

 

Unearthing the Work

 

11th October 2021

My long-term project – to produce a body of work on the theme of the earth – has been on hold since the spring, because the last few months have been all about teaching and re-connecting with friends and former students. Meeting up with my family was also put on hold but, now that I am no longer tied to the studio, I can get down south and visit them too.

 

Meanwhile, I am pulling out of storage all the part-developed cloth that I have been amassing and looking for a direction for each piece. My last teaching group was small, so I have already made a wee bit of a start by stitching alongside them and last week I actually completed my first piece for exhibition. This image is a detail from “The Midas Sun”.

 

And so “Earthworks” is now top of my creative agenda once again. I look forward, as autumn takes hold, of finding a way to realise my yearning to make this work. I have less than a year in which to do it. I know that sounds a lot, but life does get in the way and I think I will be very pleased if I can make this deadline. Here we go …

 

Jan

 

7th April 2021

It has been a long seven months since I last made a post to this web page.  Like most folk, I have had to mine the depths of my self-resiliance just to get through the twin challenges of the pandemic and a really tough Highland winter.  This has meant that I have not been able to focus on the theme of Earthworks.  Instead, I have been making small works for selling online, in order to make a living.  These have, I hope, answered both my need and my customers' need, to enjoy whatever light we have been able to find.  Mostly, I've been making colourful and positive images of my life here and this has given purpose to each day.

But now, buoyed up by the twin joys of spring and the vaccine programme, I feel ready to go back to the big ideas of the Earthworks project.  So, keep an eye on this page if you want to see some of the developing work!

 

21st August 2020

In the course of this year's lockdown, there have been many opportunities for little moments of observation of the landscape and the flora and fauna to be found within and outwith my garden.  Indeed, the quiet roads and the slow rhythm to each day allowed me to go deeper into my connection with the natural world.  And as the weeks turned into months, a slow-simmering plan for a new body of work emerged.  Everything comes from the earth and returns to the earth. It is the larder that provides for all living beings. And, in one form or another, eventually holds all our secrets and memories.

This is a theme that I have touched upon many a time, but now that I have spent several years developing the use of plants, minerals and found materials to make marks on cloth, I feel that I have the tools, the medium and the imagery to create some work worthy of this theme. But it will be a slow process, in thought and deed.  I imagine that I might have a collection of work - visual and written - in around two years' time, just around my sixtieth birthday.  I plan to call this collection, and the accompanying book, Earthworks.

My use of new media is limited to Instagram and the updating of this website.  So, I have created a website page for this new project and will occasionally post an image or piece of writing, should you be interested to look.  But most of the work will be under wraps until I feel that it is ready to share with an audience.

I am very excited to be taking on such a big theme over such a long period of time and hope that I can do the theme justice.  But, there is only one way to find out!

Jan    

 

 

Please click to enlarge image

 

 

To see the full range of finished work from the exhibition click here ....

 

Earthworks Exhibition Slide Show

 

Stockists

 

Buy Online directly from Jan

- Prints and Publications (including 'Earthworks')

- Cards and Hand Made Books

- New Textile works

or see what is available by visiting Jan in her studio (see Open Studio arrangments below).

 

Open Studio 2024

 

 

Until Easter 2024, Jan's Studio in Elphin is only open to visitors by appointment.

Please email Jan or telephone 01854 666279 to arrange a time that suits you.

 

Open hours from Easter 2024 onwards are as follows:

Easter Weekend (Friday - Monday) 10 am until 4 pm

then

Wednesdays

10 am until 4 pm

3rd April until 25th September.

NB There may be the odd occasion that Jan cannot open the studio on a Wednesday so if you are travelling a distance to visit, please check with Jan that the studio is definitely open.

 

See the Open Studio page for more details.

 

 

New Textile Work for Sale

 

All the work on this page is original textile wall art, hand dyed, printed and stitched  by Jan Kilpatrick.  Each is light in weight and is as easy to hang as any picture, being supplied with a hanging device already fitted to the back (unless otherwise stated).  The price includes postage and packaging to any UK address.  If you live elsewhere, please enquire first for a P&P quotation.

An acknowledgement of your payment will be sent automatically and the work will be posted within seven days.

This is a new shop . If you would like to be kept informed of new work being uploaded to this page (I plan to do this on a monthly basis), please sign up for my newsletter.

 

 

 

 Earthworks, the book, is a textile-covered, hardback volume, almost A4 in size.  It is limited to an edition of 500 signed copies and was launched on the 28th of May 2023.  It is only available through the artist’s website.  To make an advance order, please click here.

Prints and Publications

 

 

 

 

 

Luna Book

 

Please click on an image to see the full picture.     This book records a selection of the textile work made by Jan, over a number of years,in response to the theme of the moon.  It includes some of her own poetry and a couple of older poems that have stayed in her memory from her childhood and which still influence her today.  The book was published as a companion to an exhibition which took place at Jan's own studio in Elphin, Assynt, in November and December 2024. Luna, the book, is  A5 in size and printed on 48 pages of luscious, heavy weight paper.  It is limited to an edition of 200 copies and was launched on the 2nd of November 2024.  It is only available through the artist’s website.  Price : £12 (incl P&P. UK only)

 

Special Offer - Two Books for the Price of One!

 

As a celebration of both the publication of the Luna book and the exhibition itself, I am offering a parcel containing a copy of both the Earthworks book and the Luna book for only £40, including postage and packaging.  This offer lasts until Christmas 2024, which is when the exhibition ends. Price : £40 (incl P&P, UK only), Ref : 601

 

 

 

Earthworks Book

 

Please click on an image to see the full picture.     At long last the book version of the Earthworks project is complete!  And as I leaf through the pages, I feel the warm glow of a job well done, thanks to the solid support of Chelsea Frew (designer) and Ricky Frew (photographer). This beautiful, high-quality art book contains over a hundred pages of images and words celebrating the intricate workings of the earth, as experienced through the eyes - and hands - of textile and mixed media artist Jan Kilpatrick.  Striking photography by Ricky Frew illustrates the landscape that both inspires Jan’s work and provides the materials from which the work is made.  The nature-led processes involved in the making are also recorded through photography, along with a selection of the finished textile and poetry works that emerged from this immersive project. It is a visual feast. Earthworks, the book, is a textile-covered, hardback volume, almost A4 in size.  It is limited to an edition of 500 signed copies and was launched on the 28th May 2023.  It is only available through the artist’s website.    Read this delightful review by one very satisfied reader! Price : £42 (incl P&P. UK only)

 

 

 

Earthworks Exhibition Poster

 

High quality art print, A3, signed by the artist (bottom right-hand corner). Limited edition of 50. Price : £30 (incl P&P, UK only), Ref : 301

 

 

Yesterday's House

 

High quality art print, 30cm by 30cm, signed by the artist (bottom right-hand corner). Limited edition of 50. Price : £40 (incl P&P, UK only), Ref : 301

 

 

 

Card Shop (Winter 2024)

 

 

 

 

The Twa Corbies

 

The Twa Corbies Pack of 10 x Large format (15cm * 15cm) cards. Envelopes included. Price : £20 (incl P&P, UK only), Ref : 103

 

 

Birds in a Boat

 

Bird in a Boat Cards Pack of 8 x Large A5 format (15cm * 21cm) cards. Two of each design. Envelopes included. Price : £20 (incl P&P, UK only), Ref : 101

 

The Mountain Range

 

The Mountain Range Pack of 8 x Large A5 format (15cm * 21cm) cards. Two of each design. Envelopes included. Price : £20 (incl P&P, UK only), Ref : 102

 

From Source to Sea

 

I would like to live

Like a river flows,

Carried by the surprise

Of its own unfolding.

John O’Donohue, Irish philosopher and former monk

Water takes on many forms, as it tumbles its way from mountain top to ocean. Assynt, the region of North West Scotland where I live, is veined with peaty burns and puddled by hundreds of fish-filled lochs. And where the land meets the sea, the pattern of rock and pool is intricate as lace.

There is a great deal of life to be found at the edge of the land. Here, the birds paddle and parade, picking their way through the flotsam and jetsam cast ashore by each high tide. I find that I have no awareness of time when looking out to sea, but become hypnotised by the rhythmic movement of the waves and by the elusive nature of the horizon.

 

Please click on an image to see the full picture.

 

 

 

 

Marine Gallery

 

The following works were part of an exhibition held at the Ceilidh Place, Ullapool, during the autumn of 2016.  I shared the space, and the theme, with Glasgow-based mural artist and illustrator Chelsea Frew.

 

Goose Barnacles      120cm x 110cm  was £900, now £650

 

Urchin I (detail)      110cm x 110cm  Sold

 

Urchin II      120cm x 90cm  Sold

 

Cast      55cm x 150 cm Sold

 

The Pull of the Sea      105cm x 120cm  was £900, Sold

 

Stacs I, II and III  (Tryptich)          Each panel approx 55cm x 145 cm  Sold

 

Sea Garden     65cm x 135cm    Sold                                         The Blue Boat      55cm x 140 cm Sold

 

Ebb      110cm x 105 cm   £825

 

Star     125cm x 110cm was £750, now £500  SOLD

 

Husk     65cm x 135cm  Sold

 

Moon Jelly I      47cm x 150cm £650  Sold                                                     Moon Jelly II 50cm x 150cm £650 Sold

                                                  

 

Kelp     55cm x 155cm  was £750, Sold

Exhibitions

  

 Luna   

 

The Luna launch of an exhibition of mixed media moonscapes and winter landscapes. Also, cards and selection of small gifts.

Jan's Studio, Elphin, Sutherland 

Friday 8th  November  

Luna Exhibition at Jan’s Studio, Elphin,  11 – 3 

Early Bird opportunity to see the work for the first time and to win Friday's  prize draw.

 

Saturday 9th November 

Luna Exhibition at Jan’s Studio, Elphin,  11 – 3

Live music from Mairearad Green and a chance to win Saturday's prize draw.

 

Saturday 16th & Sunday 17th Nov       

Luna Exhibition at Jan’s Studio, Elphin,  11 – 3 

 

Saturday 23rd & Sunday 24th Nov    

Luna Exhibition at Jan’s Studio, Elphin,  11 – 3 

 

Saturday 30th Nov & Sunday 1st Dec   

Luna Exhibition at Jan’s Studio, Elphin,  11 – 3 

 

Saturday 7th & Sunday 8th Dec   

Luna Exhibition at Jan’s Studio, Elphin,  11 – 3 

 

Saturday 14th & Sunday 15th Dec   

Luna Exhibition at Jan’s Studio, Elphin,  11 – 3 

 

Buy the Luna Book here ..

 

 

 

   

NEW! Earthworks the book is now available. Click here to buy.

Earthworks

The Ceilidh Place, Ullapool  

19th August - 30 October 2022

I am excited to tell you that the Earthworks exhibition at The Ceilidh Place, Ullapool, is now underway and I understand that there have been a few sales already!  Quite often the buyers of work at this venue are passing through on a long trip around Scotland, so sometimes just take the work with them.  So, I thought that it would be good idea to make a slideshow of all thirty eight works and put it on my web site, in case by the time you go to see the exhibition, a few pieces have already flown the coop.  And if you are interested to see the work but cannot come to Ullapool in person, then at least you can take a virtual tour from the comfort of your own home.  Just click here to see the show.

I want to thank Ricky Frew for taking so many lovely photographs (I had to photograph some late-finished pieces myself, but I expect you'll be able to spot the ones taken by the amateur!); Chelsea Frew for designing the poster for the exhbition and Brian Davidson for making the slideshow (which is well beyond my capablitlies).

Everything comes from the earth and returns to the earth. It is the larder that provides for all living beings. And, in one form or another, eventually holds all our secrets and memories. This is an exhibition of textile works drawn from the earth, in terms of methods, materials and imagery.  In fact, some of the cloth has even lain buried in the peat for months on end!  If you'd like to see and read more about the journey towards the finished work, have a look at my Earthworks page.

The show of thirty eight new pieces of work will take place at the Ceilidh Place, Ullapool, between August 19th and October 30th 2022.The larger works will be on display in the Green Room (dining room towards the rear of the cafe), whilst smaller works can be seen in the cafe and bar areas.

Please contact the Ceilidh Place if you are interested in buying any of the work. To read an informative review of this exhibition please click here. To purchase a high quality print of this poster click here. To see the full range of finished work from the exhibition click here.

 

  

Trees Meet Sea

I spent some time over the winter of 2021/2022 making this large textile panel of an ancient oak tree, in response to a poem by Mandy Haggith.

  

oaks

  

eggcups propping up the pastry sky

  

now you're gone

  

there's nothing

to prevent

the clouds caving in

  

nothing to stop the fields flapping

  

This work is a bit of a departure for me, in that I used only recycled wool blankets, which had been bound up with leaves, boiled up in a huge pot over the bonfire and then overstitched.  I enhanced the dye marks on the tree surface by using a soldering iron.

This mighty oak panel stands at 1.5 metres by 1.5 metres and will be on display, along with work by other artists using a wide range of mediums, at Inverewe Gardens in the spring of 2022, and then at Dundee Botanics in the summer.  For more information, go to the Inverewe Gallery website page.

  

Crossing Borders: Breaking Boundaries    

The fine art and craft of five textile artists    

10th - 15th September  2019      Nairn Court House

I am delighted to join four other textile artists: Suzie Alexander, Becs Boyd, June Hyndman and Alison King, in presenting an exhibition of contemporary textile art as part of the annual Nairn Book and Arts Festival which, this year, features a lecture by Clare Hunter, who will talk about her celebrated  book, 'Threads of Life', on Sunday 15th September.  Clare is also facilitating a community textile project in the course of the festival and the results will be on display alongside the exhibition.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Fabric of the Land        28th August - 4th October 2018

"Fabric of the Land” is a thrilling collection of landscape-inspired work by North West Highland artists Jan Kilpatrick and Mairearad Green.

The raw wilderness of Assynt is a recurring theme in the rich textiles hand-printed and stitched by Jan Kilpatrick. This new work has an increased emphasis on the primitive print marks to be made using indigenous plants and minerals, making for imagery powerfully rooted in her sense of place. Mairearad says: “Jan has created a unique language of the land through her use of experimental textile techniques. I find layer upon layer of meaning in her work, which maps the journey of this land through deep time all the way to the present.”

Mairearad Green is an artist who embraces a range of creative mediums and this collection of paintings marks her emergence as a spirited and accomplished visual artist. Her West Coast heritage calls loud from these energetic, yet sensitive depictions of Coigach, Assynt and beyond. Jan says: “Mairearad’s intimate relationship with this rugged land, its moody seas and the huge windblown skies above makes for work that is full of expression and movement that both quicken and gladden the eye.”

This isn’t the first time that the two have collaborated – some of the songs on Mairearad’s “Summer Isles” album were co-written – and it certainly won’t be the last. 2019 will see them exhibit together again, alongside acclaimed Glasgow mural artist Chelsea Frew, in response to a residency at world-renowned Inverewe Gardens.

“Fabric of the Land” is on show at the Ceilidh Place, Ullapool (café and the Green Room) between the 28^th of August and the 4^th of October 2018.

www.jankilpatrick.co.uk                                        www.mairearadgreen.co.uk

 

 

December 2016   Under the Arbour

(Joint Exhibition)

Small embroidered textiles. Also showing is a selection of small handcrafted furniture by David Young.

 

The Macphail Centre, Ullapool

 25th November to 23rd December 2016

Admission Free.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Autumn 2016   Marine

(Joint Exhibition) 

Large embroidered textiles on the theme of the sea. Also showing, drawings by Mural Artist Chelsea Frew.

 

20th September - 5th November. Open all day every day. Admission free.

The Ceilidh Place, Ullapool 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

December 2015 Enchanted Wood

(Joint Exhibition)

Small embroidered textiles. Also showing is a selection of small handcrafted furniture by David Young.

The Macphail Centre, Ullapool 

 

 

 

 

Sept 2015 Assynt Sutras

(Solo Exhibition)

Large embroidered textiles and small framed images of the Assynt landscape.

The Ceilidh Place, Ullapool 

 

 

 

 

 Dec 2014  The Spirit of Trees

(Joint Exhibition)

Small embroidered textiles. Also showing is a selection of small handcrafted furniture by David Young.

The Macphail Centre, Ullapool

 

  

July - Aug 2014 Outreach Exhibition 

Sat July 19th - Sun Aug 31st 2014 

(An Talla Solais Members' Show)

The Ceilidh Place, Ullapool

 

 

 

 

  

April 2014  In the Garden with Friends

(Group Exhibition)

The Bield, Perthshire  

 

 

Dec 2013  Smallscapes

(Solo Exhibition)

The Macphail Centre, Ullapool

 

 

Dec 2012  Sing a Song of Stitches

(Solo Exhibition)

The Macphail Centre, Ullapool  

 

 

 

 

In and Out the Garden

 

I live in the wildest of landscapes. Our garden, which we have created from an acre patch of rough hill pasture, only blossoms because it is separated from the wilderness by the thinnest veil of mesh fencing, keeping out the deer, sheep and rabbits who eat the rest of the hillsides until they are bald.

We are now many years on from planting hundreds of trees and the air is filled with birds all year round. Most mornings, my first step outside the door is to feed these birds. Then I go up the back to the washing line and as I hang each garment, I get glimpses of the various mountains – Suilven, Cul Mor, Canisp, Ben More Assynt – through the reaching branches of all the young trees.

After breakfast, Brian goes up to the vegetable garden to do whatever seasonal jobs are on the go and I walk down the drive to my studio. For most of the year, we spend almost all of our time out of the house, taking tea breaks out of the way of the wind, on whichever bench is getting the sun, making end-of-the-day bonfires, watching the small happenings in our surprisingly lush garden.

This gallery of selected images reflects an on-going process of observation of this humble domestic environment, which is loved by me, Brian and all the small creatures who have made their home here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Please click on an image to see the full picture.

 

Textile Wildflower Meadow (detail)

As part of the 2009 Ullapool Community Textile Exhibition (organised by the Macphail Centre), I produced an installation that was part wild meadow, part mowed lawn.  I made a number of wild flowers out of fabric, paper, wire, ribbons and small haberdashery. Amongst the flowers portrayed were flag iris, marsh orchid, oxeye daisy and field scabious. I was pleased that, when placed within a real meadow, they looked most at home!

  

Flying Visitors

These little figures were made from grass, paper and feathers and appeared perched on a fence which was part of an installation representing the boundary of my garden.