Scotland west coast, View by Arisaig beach.  From a brief holiday in May, during most of which views were obscured by mist.

Towards St Andrews, Fife coastal path in November.

From the west coast to the east, and from spring to autumn.  A nice visible change in the colours between these two paintings.   This was the first day that it didn’t rain in a long while. Was my birthday, so that was my treat. And a relief to get out painting.

Hello, and I hope this finds you well.

Delayed to the point of almost never happening, I’m glad to have at last compiled a new blog post.  Lots of painting trips throughout the year have come and gone, and with the end of Autumn we’ve had quite a long period of mostly wet weather (or very cold) meaning I’ve only been out twice in about two months.  I did go out optimistically one other recent occasion, but in the end I needed one hand permanently just holding my cap onto my head.  Plus it was absolutely freezing after about 5 minutes.

Somewhat trapped indoors, I have recently taken up Mandolin, got back to overdue house maintenance and the regular removal of huge spiders from inside to outside that begins in Autumn (see photo at end).

Included here are a selection of plein air paintings done since my last post.   Including a few shots from courses and other tuition, demos, etc over the months.
Time is lacking, so I’ll hope not to  bore you with details and the painting is not always accompanied by the shot of the easel in the scene, though there are several of those here at least.
I do share some slightly deeper painting reflections towards the end of this post.
If you use Instagram, you can find me easily on there, and I always include those easel shots, from every plein air trip I make.  It’s quicker and easier to do it on Instagram.  And there I hardly share any thoughts/words at all, which may suit you better!

Some of these locations here you may recognise by now.  And I’ll be back to a few of them again next year I don’t doubt, along with many new ones.  In Spring I’m going for several days to paint in the northwest highlands, which I’m excited about.  These should feature some well known mountains, views of the Summer Isles and more.  That is, of course, if I have some luck with the weather (which I didn’t really at Arisaig this spring).  Otherwise I’ll probably just spend the time soaking up the…. rain.   Next year I’m also definitely going to ‘paint the forth bridge’ from North Queensferry and some long distance panoramic views from the Lomond hills.

The Lady’s Tower and Firth of Forth, springtime

The Lady’s Tower sunlit, from the west.

From this angle and tide half in, the beach in front of the tower is a sheet of magma with a little bit of sand at the top, and quite strange.  I did this one morning in June before meeting Andy Evansen who was teaching a course in Fife.  Really nice to be invited along and to meet Andy after several years of corresponding occasionally online.  If you don’t know of Andy’s watercolours (though I expect you do), then you really should do.  One of the world’s absolute best.  Do a quick search online and you’ll see what I mean.

Another evening.  A couple of pictures were taken.  I’ve never been very good at smiling for cameras and it’s never my idea!  Anyway, it was nice in this case to be asked.  Here we are in Anstruther.  I’d just painted the following painting of Anstruther Lifeboat station and harbourside.  Andy and his group had just been sampling the local fish and chips after another day of his course.  Thank you to Colin Joyce who it was also nice to meet this year, who organised Andy’s course and who I think took this photo (my memory is literally a disgrace and embarrassment – and a bit worrying).

Anstruther, The Reaper (herring boat) and lifeboat house.

Andy demonstrating for his students on Elie beach.

Boat at St Monans harbour; a plein air demo painting with local student

Wells Next the Sea; Demo painting from my Big Sky Art course.

Demo underway at Burnham Overy Staithe, during my Big Sky Art course this summer. Photo kindly donated by Andrew Morley (copyright).  The painting is shown below, not really complete, as is often the case.  The priority is for painters to get on with their own work as soon as possible once the demo has served it’s purpose enough – while the weather hopefully holds!

The Gyles’, Pittenweem. Another demo for a one to one student

Evening Sky, Crail in far distance.

This one is looking towards Crail from Kilminning nature reserve.  The reserve is now undergoing a rewilding transformation and the foreground area here, up to almost those bushes and trees should soon be a large pond.  This is very close to the easternmost point in Fife, and the area gets a lot of passing migrant birds stopping off.  The reserve should soon be much improved and a pretty amazing habitat.  I’ll be returning to as close to the same spot as possible to do an ‘after’ version of the scene in a year or two.

Where the easel was placed should soon be flooded with water for the new pond.

Old Ash trees near Boarhills.

These trees are visible from the road between St Andrews and Crail.  We pass them regularly.  Usually there are a few crows sitting in the tops at the right time of morning or evening.  This was mid day, summer, though I’m still tempted to put a few in…

St Andrews skyline.  Yep, two competing lead-ins.  I’m not saying it’s successful…

View southwest, near Fife Ness.

The old kirk of St Monans, receding tide.

This was a difficult one. Firstly, just to get to the spot was pretty treacherous, then a laborious one to draw out. The final outcome included some artistic licence as I pretended there was a bit more water, although the reflection was actually visible in a large puddle in front of me.

Newark Castle ruins, Lady’s Tower in far distance.

Step by step demo for a couple of plein air students who visited for several days’ tuition in August – a custom ‘painting holiday’ for them, that we worked out between us.  Contact me if you’d like to organise something similar.   I already have one of these booked for next summer.
The following two paintings were also demo paintings from that week.

The house on the rock, low tide, Pittenweem.

On Anstruther beach, evening.  I didn’t get a picture of us at the scene for this one.

St Monans windmill, August.  Another one to one demo.  Incidentally that’s the old kirk in the background and Newark Castle ruins on the distant cliff.  The beautiful harbour is between there and here.  As villages go, it has far more than it’s fair share of great painting subjects!

Windy day, between Anstruther and Pittenweem.  This was one of those really challenging ones in terms of the weather, but as usual in that situation I ended up loving it.  Also one where I thought the painting was terrible, but on reflection I rather like it (despite obvious faults, but as we know there are always those).  I always like the ones that were a memorable experience.  The experience is more important than the quality of the resulting painting, always.  Times like this it can feel that the world/nature is all yours, and everybody else is missing it by not being there.   I always feel this wish that I could share it more.  You witness so many great things.    There were still one or two hardy coastal walkers though, one of which made it into the painting, kindly assisting with a sense of scale.

Incoming tide, Isle of May in distance (artistic licence, since the island is somewhat off to the right from this angle…)

The end, and by this time the tide has receded what appears quite a long way, and is far more placid.  To start, it was just at the beginning of high tide and I was as close as I could get without likelihood of getting wet.  Painted at a mad rate, I think from start to end it was about 80 minutes of deep focus.  Honestly a proper learning experience, this subject being one that I’m pretty new to, and relish doing more of.  Having to hold images in the mind’s eye at time of blinking, continually.  And to retain that white.  A weird mix of being very bold and very cautious simultaneously.  The tension between opposites.  In fact painting (like life) is all about this, in every aspect.  The range between opposites/contrasts, and RELATIONSHIPS between PROCESSES.  The interdependancy of everything, the ecosystem within the frame.  And plein air watercolour is a one-chance, one-hit, first and all-at-once attempt.  We can try, and give it everything, and then there it was, is, done and yet meerly a part of the ongoing process... of being a painter, or a person.
This (and the next) painting were true adventures as all painting/s should be, and ones with long periods of meditative ‘flow’.  This state is for me always a much needed escape to freedom, at the same time as creating the feeling of being most ‘at home’ in the world that I ever get.  That too-rare feeling does not seem to me to be connected to any particular place, but rather feeling or being at one with place/the world more generally.
I wish such experiences were truly sharable.  But this is ultimately what my paintings are intended to be, or to do, as far as is possible.  (Such things are where my ongoing, never to be published or even finished ‘book’ delves.)

Fife Ness at high tide.

Sun quickly lowering, tide quickly receding, hands quickly numbing. Nowhere better I could be.

These last two paintings/experiences were among my favourite of the year.  Photos do not convey.  Very challenging in every way, and therefore important personal experiences.  The subject of crashing water over rocks is highly exhilarating as a situation, and highly demanding as a subject.  Obviously, an ever (fast) changing subject, and in the case of this second one, I was dodging blowing spume as well as sea spray.  Shot of easel at the end shows of course the tide somewhat receded again.  I timed both these as best I could to be at the scene just before high tide.  My easel was pitched as far east in Fife as it was possible while retaining dry feet.  It was windy, sun was getting low even at the start.
Here is where I feel alive, and properly painting.  Interpreting being there, and that interpretation of a moving, alive subject, into a still image, is not simple.  This is what it’s all about.   Knowing I’m lucky not to be in a war zone, starving, being murdered – yet anyway – as we watch this current global civilisation slowly collapsing in every way.

…… I had a couple of new articles published in the last couple of months, in Leisure Painter and the SAA’s Paint & Create magazines.  I’m also grateful to have been demonstrating at a few Fife art groups and have bookings for demos, workshops and a weekly class at various groups over the winter.  Am also doing a workshop in my home village next year as part of Crail Festival.   I’ve licenced my two instructional videos to a non-profit art school in England (though they will continue to be available also via my website) and will be working with the college to produce more videos in future.  One of next year’s projects I think will be a brand new self-produced video.  My plan is to make a very ‘real’ video, about plein air painting and being a landscape painter.  Not aimed at beginners or with instruction even being the main point.  Possibly more documentary in style.  It should feature local coastal painting as well as something from my trip to the northwest highlands.  Anyway, an idea in development.

All from me for now.   Thank you as always for your interest and support through another year.
Wishing you a good winter.  Look after each other,
Jem

That’s a pint glass.  He or she was delivered outside shortly afterwards.