Show at the Lemond Gallery

It's been all go this week getting ready for a two-person show with Peter Foyle in a couple of weeks at the Lemond Gallery on the outskirts of Glasgow.

It's not often I exhibit in Scotland, never mind in Glasgow, so it's all very exciting.  Here's a sample of the paintings that I've been parcelling up today that are going to be on show.

Distant Sea with Poppies, Tantallon Castle (Oil on linen, 32 x 32)

Yellow Flowers on the Cliff, Portrush (Oil, 10 x 10)

Dark Sky over the Campsies (Oil on linen, 20 x 20)

Evening Sky over Irish Sea (Oil on linen, 24 x 26)

Gorse and Clouds, Morar (Oil on linen, 12 x 12)

When I'm doing a show, I keep in mind that there has got to have a good mix of sizes, locations and moods.  You're telling a story in an exhibition, and the paintings have to 'read' as a collection on the walls.  

Each exhibition is a one-off, and so this collection of paintings is never going to be all together again.  You're acting as your own curator, so it's quite a task, because you've got to keep the idea and tone of the whole show in your head whilst you prepare it over several months - even though you're not responsible for the final hang and the way the show ultimately looks on the walls.  But that's part of it - once you hand over the consignment, that's you giving over the show, and the work is literally out of your hands.  Which is all part of detaching yourself from the paintings which you've put yourself in to.  

When you see them again, hanging on the walls in a show, they are quite different.  A certain process of mutability has taken place.  They're not mine any more, which is why I can sell them.

The gallery where these paintings are going to be shown is a really large, light-filled space that has a very homely feel, so these are all very colourful, upbeat paintings full of light and texture.  I've tried to put in a good number of local paintings, so there are several of the Campsies.

The show opens on Saturday 19th October at 11am, and there's going to be a full-colour catalogue available.  If you'd like one, drop me a line.

For more information, click HERE.