 Bridge Cottage Art Cafe is open! I hope this finds you well and that you've had a wonderful festive season. I'm delighted to say that we opened our art cafe in Poolewe on Friday 3rd November and it's been nonstop ever since. For now, my daughter Ailsa and husband Iain are running it, with me helping out at the weekends. We've been overjoyed at the response from locals and visitors alike - everyone is very happy that we are open at this time of year. So many places closed at the end of October for the season. The homemade baking, soups and hot filled rolls have been going down a treat, and I am making progress with my barista training! The wee gallery and gift shop space upstairs is a great space for showcasing all our work. Ailsa painted a wonderful mural, inspired by our lovely Highland scenery, on one wall of the cafe (see photo below). Our winter opening hours are 10am to 4pm, Thursday to Sunday.     Above - Some of the work I've produced during the portfolio course - pen and ink, small oils and a monoprint (window) Bridge House Art Portfolio course Just before Christmas, I completed the first 8 week term of the art portfolio course in Ullapool. I've learned so much over that time, now it's time to pause and reflect. We've had a week each of a wide range of topics, using a variety of media, including charcoal, ink, oils, acrylics, collage and printing ink. Among other things. we've been taught methods of:
Next term we'll be focusing on our own individual projects. The course ends with a group exhibition at An Talla Solais (where we are based for the course) in Ullapool, from 25th Feb - 3 March 2024. Pebbles on the Beach
I'm not planning to attend any markets next year. Now that we have the premises in Poolewe with the gallery space, all my artwork and related products are available to purchase from Bridge Cottage Art Cafe. I'll be there in person at least some of the time at weekends in January and February, and much more regularly after that. I look forward to seeing you there! I still have some items at Loch Torridon Community Centre Gallery and also at The Button Bothy in Poolewe. For those of you further afield, my website shop remains open. In the meantime, thanks again for your continued support. Wishing you a joyful, healthy and happy New Year. all the best Jennifer
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 'Distant Isles II'. Currently on show at Loch Torridon community centre gallery. I hope this finds you safe and well end enjoying the summer. It's good to hear that things are opening up again - it's been a long time coming. New moving image work on show In my previous newsletter, I mentioned that some new work had been selected for an upcoming exhibition. I'm happy to let you know that the online exhibition, 'A Space Between', curated by the Society of Scottish Artists, is now open and is available to view until 5th September. My moving image piece, combining photography, spoken word and recorded sound, is called 'Sand'. There is a lovely range of work to enjoy.  Postcards now available I've produced a set of six postcards featuring local scenes and landmarks (4 are shown below) and am happy to say these are now available from a couple of local stockists - Gairloch Gifts (at the Filling Station) and the GALE centre. They're also available directly from me at Poolewe Tuesday Market. I'm there most weeks until the end of October. Details of dates are available on my website. Some of these images are also available as photographic prints and canvases via my photography portfolio on the Photo4me website. Restock of Loch Torridon community centre gallery I delivered some new work to the lovely Loch Torridon community centre gallery the other day - several seascapes (see top image) and a selection of small works and greetings cards. I'm happy to say that they're now also stocking a selection of my customised sketchbooks and notebooks. The gallery has a great mix of work on show (including ceramics, baskets, glasswork and more, see images below) and there is a lovely popup cafe, which is open Monday - Friday 9am - 6pm.
Many thanks for your continued interest in my work. Do pop by and say hello at Poolewe Tuesday market, if you're in the area. best regards Jennifer  'Distant Isles III' - off to a new home via the An Talla Solais Members' Show. I hope this finds you safe and well. The past few months have been busy with supplying my stockists, as everywhere gradually opens up again. It has been good to be back at Poolewe Tuesday Market again - there are always interesting conversations to be had with visitors, as well as with my fellow stallholders. It's great to hear how many creative folk are around!
Inchgowan Fine Art Inchgowan Fine Art is opposite The Old Inn, just along from Gairloch Harbour, over the old bridge. I'm delighted to announce that I now have artwork on show at a lovely local gallery - Inchgowan Fine Art in Gairloch (formerly Solas Gallery). There's some framed work on the walls, mounted work in a browser and smaller framed and mounted work - all original watercolours and mixed media. The two paintings shown below - 'Coastal 6' and 'Shore 1' are currently on show there. There is an interesting mix of work by several artists - well worth a visit!
New stockist The gift shop at Gairloch Filling Station has recently been extended and revamped into a great space. Happy to say I have some items available there - selected mug, coaster and greetings card designs. Open Monday - Saturday 8.30am - 5.30pm.
New work - new directions I recently submitted some work to the Society of Scottish Artists (SSA), of which I'm a member, in a new format for me - moving image, or more specifically, a film poem. It's called 'Sand'. I've spent a lot of time walking on sandy beaches (very lucky, I know) over the past couple of years, which inspired the (spoken) words and images. I am delighted to say that my piece has been selected to be shown in an online exhibition on the SSA website in August! I'm very happy with this outcome, as I'd been keen to combine words and images (and other sounds) for a while and this provided an ideal opportunity. The theme for the open call was "A Space Between'. I'll let you know when it's available to view online. Sand photograph - a still image from my first film poem.  Coming Soon .... Do you still send postcards when you're away on holiday? I know, I know, we've forgotten what it's like to be away on holiday. Here's hoping you get to travel before too long. I was away for a break last week, in another beautiful part of Scotland - yes, there are definitely other beautiful parts - and it was so refreshing to have a change of scene. We don't need to go far to get the holiday feeling, I believe. Back to postcards ... there's a new project in the offing, more news soon! Keep an eye on Facebook and Instagram for updates. Here's a sneak preview.
As always, a selection of my work can be seen on my website. As things have opened up in recent times, I have been open for prearranged studio visits - these will recommence later this month. It's so much better to see artwork in real life than on a screen!
Thank you for your continued interest in my work. I hope you're enjoying the summer, wherever you may be. best regards Jennifer  Sometimes it is the things you see every day which inspire you. A colour or texture catches your eye, and you're hooked. The itch starts, and you find you have to paint it. Whatever it might be. This happened for me a couple of years ago, when I was working with the lovely Vital Veg at Midmar. Every week I packed beautiful, colourful veg into veg bags for customers. Some of the veg came home with me. And some of that came with me to the weekly art class I was attending.  I wasn't aiming for still life. Nor was I trying to make an exact, photographic image. I was aiming, I think, for a celebration of deliciousness. I laid the veg (the larger the better, some soil was often present too) on a sheet of white paper on the table I was working at, with a large piece of (usually cartridge) paper beside it. I had seen that this was how the wonderful Elizabeth Blackadder paints her gorgeous flowers. I am a great admirer of her work, so off I went...  Another influence fed into this process. A few years ago, I attended a workshop with Sofia Perina-Miller, whose work I also greatly admire. She paints fabulous striking flowers, as well as many other subjects. She showed us how to paint directly onto paper, without doing any initial drawing. This was an entirely new experience for me - and I found that I loved the freedom of it! Instead of feeling constrained by the pencil lines, I was "free" to paint directly, loosely, using vibrant colours, which resulted in more lively work. Sofia usually adds meticulous pen and ink details to her work. I left mine as they were; as I may have mentioned before I have rather limited patience!  There is always a certain amount of fear involved in painting this way. I had to learn to be brave, to trust that the colours I was choosing and the marks I was making were strong and true and confident. This was no time for fiddling around with details and tentative marks. Before I started, I would look carefully at the veg, get a feel for the overall shape and size and proportions, the main colours, the shadows on the paper. Really look, and get a feel for it. It helped to stand up, to have everything I needed to hand and to just do it, quickly. I love this way of working; writing this makes me want to do some more of this kind of work.
Some of my veg paintings are available as digital downloads from my Etsy shop. Various items (prints, mugs, phone covers, tote bags etc.) sporting my veg paintings can also be found on Redbubble. All the paintings can be viewed in my gallery (most originals are available)
It was time for a break. A week off on the west coast. We looked at the weather forecast, but didn't pay much attention to it. We had decided to go, whatever the weather. The trick is just to get out in it. If it's fine in the morning, don't delay a walk on the beach until the afternoon. It could well be raining by then. It could be raining in an hour, or in half an hour. That's the beauty of the west coast, in many ways. The constantly changing light, the endless shades of the sea and sky and how they sometimes seem to merge into one. Skye disappears behind thick banks of raincloud, only to reappear with bright shafts of sunlight illuminating its eastern slopes and shores.
One day we had a wonderful trip to Applecross. The day started grey and damp, but we headed there, undaunted, stopping at Torridon on the way. The General Stores there have lovely home baking and good coffee, so a stop there was a must. The Gallery is worth a visit too - it's in the community centre there and has a wide range of work by local artists (including yours truly). I dropped off some cards there too. Delighted to have another outlet. Applecross was looking picture-postcard perfect. Blue sky, blue sea and throngs of holidaymakers enjoying what the Inn had to offer. We availed ourselves of the food and drink and very good it was too. The return journey was made via the Bealach na Ba (pass of the cattle), which I was more familiar with approaching from the other direction. We spent many family holidays in Lochcarron, including New Year and Easter. If the weather was cold enough, we would make the trip to the top of the Bealach and skate on one of the little lochans there. After my father had tested the ice, of course. A hard frost for 3 nights or so was all that was required - and no snow to spoil the ice, of course! The view down to Kishorn from the Bealach brought back memories too. There was no sandy beach in Lochcarron, so in the summer if the weather was fine and warm, we would drive over the hill to swim at the sandy beach at Kishorn. One memorable summer, the mackerel came in to the shore, after sprats, which they drove boiling to the surface. I have vague recollections of my brother and father running along the shore with buckets, scooping fish out of the water. Or maybe that was the story that was told. Somewhere, there is a set of family diaries which were kept during those holidays. This year, history moved on and it was my son who brought back a great catch of mackerel from a successful fishing trip.
The older I get, the more I believe in fate. In things happening for a reason. Those apparently coincidental meetings which result in all manner of happenings. Sometimes we have to engineer fate a little, but that's not a bad thing. Everything and everyone needs a little nudge in the right direction every so often. And so it was that I ventured out into Royal Deeside a few weekends ago, to see what opportunities might be there, for exhibiting my paintings. I had in mind a visit to Larks Gallery in Ballater. That is where we went. I got into conversation with the gallery owner, and the next thing I knew, I'd been invited to be "Artist of the Month" for March. I floated home on a little cloud, while feverishly working out if I had enough framed work to fulfill my promise. I didn't, but I had enough time to remedy the situation. I always work better to deadlines, so this helped me get myself organised. Over the past few years, realisation has dawned that no-one will see my work, or have the chance to buy it, if it is sitting in my studio. Simple really, isn't it? Occasionally, of course, someone will see my work here on my website, but that is less common. So, I am delighted to have some of my work currently on show at Larks Gallery (including the three paintings shown above) and hope it will be the start of an ongoing relationship. They are now stocking some of my greetings cards too.
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