‘Assoonasi came back, I wondered why I’d gone away for so long’
After 27 years in London, artist Stuart Mcalpine Miller has returned to Scotland to live. With an exhibition at the new Castle Fine Art gallery in Glasgow, he talks about the influence of Pop art and place on his work
Agraduate of Glasgow School of Art, artist Stuart Mcalpine Miller attracts the attention of galleries, critics and collectors across the world. With celebrity fans and his distinctive Pop art paintings hanging in the world’s best known hotels, he could have happily stayed in London.
Sir Paul Mccartney and JK Rowling are admirers. He’s painted Pele and Lady Gaga. A childhood spent in Ayrshire had been swapped for a position at The Savoy, as artist in residence.
However, the 52-year-old has left the bright lights for the douce Perthshire town of Callander. Now he props up his latest work in front of the living room window so he can savour the changing light and view of Ben Ledi.
Returning to Scotland encouraged the creative juices to flow. Heavily influenced by Andy Warhol and inspired by our age of mass consumerism, he discovered something new to engage with – a nation grappling with the dilemma of independence.
This has led to four of his latest works – a series of dramatic paintings which aim to depict a nation wrestling with the uncertainty of its future.
Unveiled last night at Castle Fine Art’s new flagship gallery in the heart of Glasgow’s fashion quarter, the artist said he was happy to be showing his paintings in Scotland once more.
“It’s a big return for me, I’m coming back to my native country and it’s fantastic to be exhibiting in Glasgow again after 20 years,” he says.
“I’ve returned after what feels like a lifetime away. You never forget your roots and this feels extra special, it’s like a homecoming.”
Here he explains the inspiration and journey that has led to his four new works.
1) Only The Braveheart I grew up in Kilwinning, Ayrshire, and lived in London for 27 years before deciding to move back to Scotland. I loved being in London, but it’s a city you tend to pass through. It took me 20 years to get out the other side.
Coming back to my native country was quite a big thing. Living in London makes you appreciate where you come from. As soon as I came back, I wondered why I’d gone away for so long.
These paintings are special in that respect. They concentrate on being Scottish, and go into ideas that are quite political. But they don’t aim to provide answers. Instead they highlight that there are two sides to every debate.
They explore the idea of power and concern for the quite volatile position we find ourselves in.
In this one, the Saltire runs through the back of the piece, while the figure’s arms extend at the bottom to represent the rest of the Saltire. So she becomes an integral part of it.
However the marks on her face show she is obviously in turmoil. The words “attack of the female” reflect her position of power, where decisions are being made. But she is surrounded by these comic book characters and super heroes, which suggests this is a challenging situation, that needs to be navigated properly.
The female element reflects the powerful women leaders in Scotland, Europe and in the world.
2) Confused By The Notion I realised I wanted to return to Scotland after walking the Rob Roy Way. It’s around 100 miles long and runs between Drymen and Pitlochry. The landscape is really beautiful. I missed that and wanted to be back in Scotland.
My paintings are based on the relevance of now, and this series reflects a particular time in our lives.
While there’s a question mark over our own futures, as long as we have a strong foundation – represented by the comic books of our youth – we can move on.
There’s a figure in a very pensive pose, as if she doesn’t want to make a wrong decision. Behind her, there’s a shape like a keyhole, something is waiting to be unlocked.
My paintings are based on illusion – there’s this illusion between something that looks like a photograph but it has been painted. Like a magic eye, you’re trying very hard to focus to see the image.
3) Back To Back I’m sure people who see my paintings hanging in a gallery wouldn’t know what goes into producing them.
I wear magnifying glasses and go very close to the canvas when I paint. There are no brush strokes. I use water colour brushes with oil paints
“You never forget your roots and this feels extra special, it’s like a homecoming”
to give it a fine, flat finish.
They are challenging and I’m very focused, it’s quite intense.
I work quite fast, around 20 paintings per year. I work for ten hours a day, sometimes 70 hours a week. It takes around two and half weeks to do a painting depending on the size.
Back To Back is quite a complex work. I’ve used traditional Scottish comic books in three of the pieces. These comic strips are often concentrated on the idea of family, their foundations are in happy families.
I’m making a social comment. I’m saying that foundation is the key to all our futures, and the foundation I’m using is the cartoon imagery. The transparency means it’s like looking through a window. I’ve included a rainbow effect to suggest there may be a happy future. However the double image of the figures suggests opposition and opinion, that there are two sides to every situation.
4) Common People I was artist in residence at The Savoy in London. It had been shut for a refurbishment, reopened and AA Gill reviewed its restaurant and made a comment about the artwork.
It was all copies and prints of Old Masters in cheap, ornate frames. They realised they had made a big mistake.
It was a long process before I was commissioned. They said ‘We don’t want you to compromise’ but I was constantly having to put my foot down. I said I had to be left to my own devices, otherwise they might as well get a photographer.
I had never worked in the corporate world. I’m not sure it was the most fun experience.
Like Back To Back, this painting reflects on there being two sides to each question. However, the answers can also head off in lots of different tangents.
Ma Broon and her daughter can be seen through the main figures. There’s almost a wistfulness to them, as if they are saying ‘if only I could be part of this person.’
Most of us read The Broons and Oor Wullie as children, they’re part of our foundation. That’s very different to children today, who use so much technology. You wonder where the foundation is coming from for that generation.