INTRODUCTION
Uisge - Water in Gaelic. No doubt a familiar word for the whisky connoisseurs! Here we have the source: crashing tides, flowing rivers, rock pools of immeasurable depth and kaleidoscopic reflections – the waters of life. This new exhibition explores the coastal and inland waters of the West Highlands where Beth lives and works. It emerges as much out of her adult experience of living and working in the Highlands, as it does her childhood spent on Tiree, playing outside in the cold rain, sleet and snow, always finding warmth in the rockpools. A childhood of half understood words, stories and songs about lost cities under the sea, kelpies and child stealing fairies. Ominous thoughts on even the sunniest of days. Beth spent her early childhood on Tiree and, after a spell in Kansas, moved to Kingussie in the Highlands. She studied at Edinburgh College of Art, graduating with a degree in sculpture in 1995. Since then she has continued to draw and paint, travelling around the West Highands and Islands of Scotland to collect source material and sketches which are then worked up into larger pieces in her studio. Beth’s interest lies in the passage of time and our experience of looking at land and sea, during which nature’s forces feel transient, fleeting and elusive, and always fully alive. With tides, splashes, breaking waves and angry waters she captures very specific moments, and fills them with nature’s magnitude and endurance over time. Relationships of scale between person and landscape are palpable! Beth’s method of working on the paintings reflects her interest in continuity and change; being both in the moment and part of a larger evolving process. She adds paper and paint, washes parts off, sands things back time after time until she’s happy with the emerging painting. Some paintings emerge quickly, with little battle, and others prove to be a stronger force to be reckoned with! We look forward to welcoming Beth at the Private View and raise a glass to this incredible collection of paintings. Uisge Beatha!
Eileadh Swan Gallery Director
Notes
All paintings are for sale and may be purchased or reserved prior to the exhibition opening. We kindly request that decisions on reserves are made by 5pm on Friday the 7th of February.
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