We have been having a few stormy days here recently. It has been wonderful! I love thunderstorms at the best of times but what they do to the landscape is make it a dramatic and exilarating place to be. With the sun peeping through the clouds and the darkness of the sky, parts of the hillsides lit up like a light shining on a stage. Of course, it inspired me to paint some little stormy landscape watercolours.
While I was painting the landscapes it struck me that I have not painted any seascapes. Neither have I painted any of the islands that I grew up seeing - specifically Ailsa Craig (below, right) and the Bass Rock (below, left). I spent the first part of my childhood living on the west coast of Scotland. There were regular trips to the seashore at Ayr and Prestwick and I travelled the road to school every day seeing the Ailsa Craig sitting just off the coast. Being the remnants of a volcanic plug, I was always afraid the volcano was going to erupt again. Thankfully, it never did.
Later on, my parents moved to Bo'ness on the Firth of Forth. We were only there for a few months but we took trips out the the far side of Edinburgh where the Bass Rock and it's glowing white surface of gannets and guano could be seen for miles around.
So these two, little Scottish seascapes are the result of my musings. I have to admit, sea is much harder for me to paint than hillsides. I should challenge myself a bit more often.
They are now available to buy in my shop.