My art is solely about Coigach, a group of tiny villages strung out on the northwest coast of
Scotland where I live. Coigach is a very remote area with few people living in it, a unique,
prehistoric landscape of hills, bare croft land, beaches and islands. I love to be outside walking or
out on the water. I feel driven to make work about this special place and my experience of moving
around in it. I take many photos as I walk around and make rudimentary sketches and they act as
references for my work. My interest lies in the shape of the land, the colours in the landscape, the
changing light, the wild weather as well as the marks left by humanity - old walls, fence posts,
telegraph poles, ruined crofts and lazy beds. I feel immersed, physically and emotionally in this
landscape of my home. These are the things that interest me and why I want to come back to the
studio and create.
The way I work is not set down in stone. Usually I begin with acrylic paint, inks and oil pastels and
sometimes with collage. I don't have anything particular in my head apart from knowing it's going
to be about the landscape. I start with the surface of the canvas or board and make marks in a very
free way with nothing in mind. That excites me and I will often document those early stages. I like
what happens there, just letting go with materials and enjoying them for their own qualities. It is
often lost completely in the future work but it does lead me to a place - the tone or mood will
suggest something to me and I'll start to think about the composition. My aim is to keep things
incredibly loose. I like to put down rough blocks of colour first. I scratch into it with various tools,
wipe away with rags, and add marks with oil pastel and graphite. Decisions about design and colour
change as I respond to what emerges and my move the painting away from initial ideas, leading me
in a totally different direction. The work becomes its own entity and the studio is usually reduced to
a huge mess!
During my childhood my family moved home every couple of years, often abroad. It was only when
I moved to the Highlands to run a Hotel and restaurant with my husband that I really felt I'd come
home. It was during this period that I discovered my need to make art. I studied for 2 years at
Bridge House Art in Ullapool. I quickly began making and selling my work widely and eventually
sold my business to concentrate fully on my art