The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Local artists joining a world of watercolours
Think watercolours and you may imagine pretty landscapes with trees, fields and burns. This is not a description, though, that often applies to the work of Liz Myhill.
The Perth-based artist discovers her inspiration as far afield as a colourful market in India.
Her work Glimpse of the Bazaar is set to be a highlight of the 141st Open Annual Exhibition of The Royal Scottish Society of Painters in Watercolour (RSW for short), opening tomorrow at Edinburgh’s Royal Scottish Academy.
Liz is one of several Tayside artists selected to participate. A keen traveller, she has long been fascinated by remote locales, something she puts down to growing up by the coast, where travel, folklore and oral history were key parts of her childhood.
“There was freedom to roam, wildlife to watch and, with so many folk associated with maritime work, it was natural that members of the community would return from months at sea in far-flung parts of the world,” she says.
“I suspect it planted an early seed in my mind of how travel should be — a lengthy period away, gaining knowledge of the world and then returning to the village.”
Liz based herself for several weeks in a historic bazaar in Gujarat, squeezing herself in among what she describes as a “seething mass of porters, stall-keepers and customers”. She ate lunch with market workers at an open-air kitchen, allowing for chance encounters.
“I became a familiar face and, despite no common language, my activity was a source of much curiosity,” she recalls.
“I would frequently be requested through hand signals to make a drawing or portrait for someone and then plied with cups of chai as I worked.”
One of her peers, meanwhile, finds inspiration closer to home.
Carnoustie resident Jim Dunbar finds many vistas to recreate in the surrounding Angus farmland, where the farming calendar’s annual cycles provide the context to a couple of his entrants.
Breirded Field, Pitskelly Farm was painted on the edge of his hometown — breirded, Jim explains, is a Scots word that means “the first flush of green in a field, when the crop has sprouted” — while Hairst was captured on the road to the village of Arbirlot.
“They are both inspired by the passage of time, from sowing and germination through to harvest,” he says.
Jim has served as RSW president and is proud of this show’s role as a showcase for talent across the nation.
“The RSW plays a vital role in the visual arts,” he points out.
“The Open Annual Exhibition showcases members’ work and gives non-members the opportunity to exhibit alongside leading Scottish artists. This is our flagship show.”
Another RSW member, Morag Muir, finds her inspiration from the window of her home studio looking out over the Tay from Newport.
Surrounded by objects and bric-a-brac amassed over many years, Morag uses these to fill still lifes composed like stage sets, as with this one of this year’s works, Blue Sky Day.
Morag creates narratives inspired by her own life — though she is keen for viewers to come away with their own interpretations.
“These stories that reflect everyday situations and happenings in my life will inevitably resonate with shared experiences of heartache, pain, parenthood, loss, love and joy,” she says.
Another important component of Morag’s works is the backdrop of the estuary and the Dundee skyline, something she has come to appreciate more during the pandemic.
“During the challenges of recent times, I’ve come to understand and appreciate how lucky I am to live in beautiful surroundings,” she adds.
Jim, meanwhile, took the opportunity to learn a new skill, wood engraving, which he will be showing in a group exhibition in London early next year. For Liz, lockdowns meant an opportunity to immerse herself in stillness and solitude.
“I visited places I thought I knew well only to discover how many secrets they held,” she recalls. “There was time to experiment, try new ideas and develop technique and materials.
“In many ways, it was a bit like an artist residency with all the freedom and space that implies.”