Shetland/Coastlines
The Open Eye Gallery
34 Abercromby Place
Edinburgh
0131 557 1020
www.openeyegallery.co.uk
14th Jan - 11th Feb 2015
Mon - Fri, 10am - 6pm; Sat, 10am - 4pm
Seascapes and the nature of edge-of-island living are the focus of these two new exhibitions running concurrently at Edinburgh's Open Eye Gallery in January, providing a little braw, wind-in-the-hair escapism for those feeling city-bound in the grey heart of winter.
In 'Shetland', her first solo show at the gallery, Ruth Brownlee explores the view from the land to the sea. Brownlee is a graduate of Edinburgh College of Art, turning from a BA (Hons) specialism in Tapestry to concentrate on landscape painting in recent years, with some considerable success.
Layering depth into the broad flatness of blustery seascapes, her evocative canvases are largely the inspiration of a move to Shetland in 1998 and work and rework the artist's fascination with the windswept islands that have since been her home.
Brownlees medium is acrylic paints and other media, her concern with texture finding an outlet in the use of material such as sand, which, rubbed into the paint, aims to 'build up a believable essence of the environment'.
That, arguably, is one of the guiding principles behind seascape painting, although down the centuries, artists have utilized various different methods to achieve it. Some of that variety, in modern context, can be seen across the hall at Open Eye. The group show, Coastlines, continues the maritime theme, showcasing a variety of styles and preoccupations from contemporary artists familiar to Open Eye gallery-goers.
Amongst the works on display are offerings as diverse as Claudia Massie's bright view of the new Forth Bridge construction site; Chris Bushe's wintry depiction of waves breaking at Saligo Bay; and the blues of Sarah Carrington's light-filled view of the sands at Iona. Alongside evocative contributions from Richard Demarco, Frances Walker and Glen Scouller, it's enough to make you want to turn up your collar and head on down to the sea.
Sarah Urwin Jones
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