A Little Bit of Sunshine!

'Sunflowers', £2500

Summer is finally here! After such a long winter it seems like Scotland has finally warmed up, and we have all been basking in the sunshine in St Andrews.
One of our Artery regulars, Jackie Gardiner, has delivered a little bit of sunshine straight into the gallery with her beautiful oil painting 'Sunflowers'. Jackie explained that when she first started painting this piece, it was to bring a little sun into life, as it was so cold and miserable at the time. We certainly find in the gallery that a bright and sunny painting such as this can lift your mood during the darker days of winter, and seeing as it has arrived at the beginning of summer, it definitely represents how we all feel just now.

Jackie's garden - a work of art in itself!

Jackie has a beautiful garden at home - which looks like a work of art itself - where she grows sunflowers herself during summer. This 'Sunflowers' painting was taken from a photo of some of the sunflowers from her garden.

With a large oil painting such as 'Sunflowers' Jackie can take up to six weeks to complete it, painting it in stages, allowing the rich oils to dry in-between each painting session, so it is a long process to produce a painting like this.

'Morning Light, St Andrews', £480

We also have a stunning painting of St Andrews by Jackie - 'Morning Light, St Andrews' - a view of the town from the West Sands. This is such a familiar and famous view - St Andrews is instantly recognisable, and also one of Jackie's favourite scenes to paint.

Come into the gallery for a closer look!

www.arteryuk.com

Paintings of St Andrews (with a funky new twist)

St Andrews, Winter £140

St Andrews is one of the most painted towns of Scotland, with artists of all genres favouring the town's beautiful West Sands beach, or the famous 18th Green of the Old Course.
One of our artists, Martin Devine says that St Andrews is one of his favourite subjects to paint, but with his unusual technique, and different outlook of the town, it gives the traditional St Andrews paitnting a fantastic modern twist.

St Andrews is a town which is steeped in history and tradition, and paintings of St Andrews often follow the traditional route, favouring golf scenes, lush greens and fairways, or images of the town's castle and Cathedral. Martin on the other hand paints St Andrews from a different angle, looking down into town from the East Sands direction, or looking into St Andrews as though you are out at sea. His unusual technique with watercolour only serves to update the traditional St Andrews image even more.

Martin uses watercolours, building up the colour, to get rich deep, pure tones and colours, and then he picks out the outlines using Indian ink, making the pictures almost 'pop'. The traditional idea of watercolour, is soft, pale, and watery, so this vibrant new take on a traditional medium really brings it into the 'noughties'.

Martin says that painting St Andrews is a pleasure - it's one of those towns that is so easily distinguishable, that even with a little artistic license when painting it, it is instantly recognisable. His other paintings also depict Scottish scenes, featuring rolling landscapes and quaint buildings - all with that modern twist.
All of Martin's paintings can be seen here http://www.arteryuk.com/artists/Devine,Martin/1/ or viewed at Artery Gallery, 43 South St, St Andrews