Stockiemuir in the Snow

Well this is my favourite so far. It’s a real personal painting for me. The previous painting commissions had taken quite a lot of time, so I wanted to experiment with a more fluid style, and really figure out how to complete work more quickly.

A year or so previously we had a really cold, snowy winter in Scotland (yes ‘even colder’ than normal!). I was up early one day for work and peeked out between the curtains, and realised it had been snowing. I grabbed my phone and took a photo through the window. Bizarrely, that photo turned out completely blue! I absolutely loved it and made a mental note to self that it would make a brilliant painting.

It wasn’t long after painting the bungalow commission that I started this painting. It was on a Sunday evening and I was feeling particularly inspired having watched the Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year show. Watching other artists work really gets me into my creative zone.

I mixed up my blues, and got on with it. I worked on it for a few hours that night, and by the time I went to bed, it was looking quite close to completion – result! I worked on it for another few hours that week and that was it.

This remains my favourite painting, not only because it is a personal view out of my window, but more so because it is a reminder that I can work quickly and finish a painting that works, without it needing to be so detailed.