About Alasdair Urquhart Artist and Poet
I am an Artist, Painter, Writer, Poet , Illustrator, Professional Creative
Since I was a young child, the exploration of my universe,
has been through mark making.
Through the innocence of this process,
I found a means of communication with others.......a point of contact.
Plants, Animals, People, Birds , Insects....... The Cosmos itself...............
..began to be revealed, before my wide, curious eyes.
It opened my life, my heart, my mind, something......... fundamental,
was touched deep within me, each and every time.
Always new.......
It was alchemy.... It was beautiful..... I felt my spirit soar........for I had found,
A Universal language.
For Man it has ever been thus;
since earliest times, it has been one of our most basic modes of interaction.
Art, draws on the essence of Nature, the Universe itself;
connecting us to her rhythms and illimitable moods.
When Ancient Man made marks on cave walls it was to reveal to their peers,
the mysteries of life....so also its practicalities; for the need for interdependence in
daily duties, if they were to survive.......... never mind thrive.
Today, there has never been a greater need for Art.
Art celebrates all of the senses;
giving the body balance and harmony, the soul and mind, a sense of belonging.
In the natural world, the function of each organism is to realise its fullest potentialities -
- that is its fundamental ethos.
We have a need, and duty, to create a Society in which, each one of us,
has a chance to develop, their creative abilities to the fullest,
in a caring, nurturing environment.
We need to redefine our vision of how we wish the world to be ......
The eternal moment is now.
for our world is perishing through this very lack.
Art works on the inner and the outer senses.
Our children are the future!
Unless they are nurtured and esteemed through the Arts
the present behavioural poverty
in our Society will continue to spiral down........."
http://alasdairurquhart.webs.com/apps/videos/videos/view/434...
How would you describe your style of art?
It is an internal response to the energies passing through me
in the Eternal Now.
it has a figurative, colourful element which is a partial response
to the visual impressions received. It is a synthesis of all of my senses.
..especially of Intuition and Knowing ....those most internal of journey senses.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyBgB68vxVo
Describe one of your paintings:
It is a portrait of a child...Leela....aged three
Her Grandmother commissioned it.
My brief was to capture the essence of her nature...
before her elfin quality, was lost, to social patterning,
and conditioning, which commences, when a child
begins to name things....
and their relationship with the essence of an object is lost.
She is situated in her garden, a wonderful space,
which has a Narnia feel to it.
It has been developed over a period of months.
On each visit I am growing more empathic to the
little one's vision and journey.
How do you decide on your subject matter?
It decides for me :-)
It is an internal process.. a beat begins , an upsurge of energy, taste , touch, smell..
..all the senses are heightened.
I feel gently led .... the internal process is partly rationalized by discerning these feelings,
articulating them.... often first in words.... free associations help the fluency, patterns emerge....
..often unexpectedly ..I love it ...a dance begins and I am led...lovingly on a new journey.....
....always different:)
Many of my paintings depict richly detailed scenes and reflect my own deep interest
in the lives of people and their work.
I believe that..... Lives are not ordinary – all our lives and the way we live them
and interact with our environment are important. I hold up a mirror to people and situations.
Due to the sale of the barn..my previous lovely studio..I have had a beautiful new studio built in my garden..
I am invited out to paint on Tresco, the Isles Of Scilly; The famed sub-tropical Abbey Gardens, and wonderfully diverse geography of this sacred Isle always provide a rich vein of inspiration for me.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CR8itsfqJ7A
I spend a lot of time on Dartmoor painting the scenes and wildlife, and on and by the rivers Exe, Teign and Dart in Devon. In Cornwall, I enjoy exploring the coves and cliff paths, the beaches and Ports.
Another of my loves is rural France. Initially invited over by Monaco Fine Arts in the early 90’s
to paint the scenery of Southern France and Northern Italy; I developed a love of the area
and spend as much time as possible exploring and painting in the wine regions particularly.
I studied at Dundee College of Art from 1974.... finishing my postgraduate studies there in 1979.
I won scholarships from the British Council to Budapest Fine Art Academy,
and the Elizabeth Greenshield scholarship twice from Montreal, Canada.
I have been exhibited at the Scottish Royal Watercolour Society,
the Royal Watercolour Society, and the Royal Institute.
Also in numerous galleries in towns across England, Scotland and Wales.
My work has also been exhibited and in private collections in Europe, America,
Canada and Japan.
I have received sponsorship from Rosenstiel’s Fine Art Publishers, London,
residencies at Grizedale, and Farringdon. My paintings have been published
by Rosenstiel’s, Medici and Parnassus.
Alasdair Urquhart Artist And Poet 