All the elements combine to make the unusual enticing

0 Derek Robertson’s Migrations draws on recent journeys along the shared routes of avian and human migrants

plethora of realist seascapes and light/water studies, with her largely abstract, geometric acrylics vividly evoking both African and Scottish settings.

Outwith the official selection, previous bursary winner and East Neuk native Jill Macleod also combined acrylics with geometric and deconstructive techniques, distilling mainly local scenes – from the Forth bridges to Pittenweem itself – into felicitous juxtapositions of diagrammatic forms, diverse brushwork and sensuously deployed colour. Sydney Clare Checkland’s unique photographic method – high-definition, near-microscopic close-ups of unnamed everyday objects, printed via dye sublimation on polished aluminium – magically renders the familiar strange, variously suggesting flames, lush fabrics, ice crystals, sunset or sunrise, while accompanying poems, from Shakespeare to Kathleen Jamie, trigger yet more teasing associations.

Marrying oil paint’s depth

of hue with watercolour-style fluidity, Sarah Knox’s impressionistic paintings and prints gorgeously conjure coastal and mountain vistas, often of the Highlands and Hebrides, while intense summer shades and strong draughtsmanship make Fiona Douglas’s floral works equally covetable. Highlighting the multifarious artistry on display, Keny Drew’s impishly whimsical stained-glass creations – some dreamed up collaboratively with local musical hero King Creosote – unite elements of East Neuk lore, photography, screenprinting, eco-activism and superhero adventure; young master craftsman Frazer A Reid’s luscious wooden wares encompass furniture, wall-hangings, tableware and surfboards; Moyra Stewart and John Scott respectively ring the changes on virtuosic raku pottery, and Julia Cowie casts metal vessels and spoons palpably redolent of ancient landscapes and peoples.

SUE WILSON

2 Bursary winner Sophia Pauley’s geometric acrylics vividly evoke both African and Scottish settings