PICTURES: Caithness art show back again with nearly £4000 sold on opening night

On Monday, the Society of Caithness Artists (SCA) held its first physical show since 2019, in a new venue where 30 artworks were sold and almost £4000 taken in.

The SCA chair Ian Pearson said there had been a good turnout of artists from all ages groups with 91 submitting their works and 239 pieces on show at the ETEC building in UHI North Campus.

"At our last annual exhibition, which was online, there were 57 artists taking part so the increased numbers just show that one can not beat a real live event," said Ian.

"We have several new faces appearing and the venue has plenty of space to show off the art. As it’s the first exhibition of its kind held in this venue there are bound to be minor hitches and we'll try to react accordingly.

"We will learn from this experience and continue to move on acknowledging that all people want is to get back to normal activities such as seeing art for real."

Ian made a short speech introducing the principal of the UHI North Campus Debbie Murray who welcomed everyone to the event.

At the exhibition there is a special display of glass by local artists in recognition of this year's International Year of Glass. Artists involved included past SCA chair and glass artist Denis Mann who is famous for his Mastermind trophies. Also included is stained glass by Moira Webster.

There was also a tribute section for the late Thurso artist Joan Powell who passed away earlier this year. Joan produced a large volume of works spanning five decades. Born in Yorkshire, she relocated to Caithness with her husband and young family in 1959, where she remained for the rest of her life.

Lord and Lady Thurso attended the opening night on Monday and both said they were delighted with the show. "It's great to be back together post-Covid and what a fantastic venue," said Lord Thurso. "Everyone's really enjoyed it." Lady Thurso reiterated his sentiments saying: "I've enjoyed every minute and it's a perfect venue for this exhibition."

The couple said they were interested in a possible purchase but would not reveal which piece took their fancy.

Many of the familiar names at SCA exhibitions were present on Monday including Jackie Newton who said: "It's great to be back to normal. Online shows are fine but it's hard for people to relate to the size of things and understand colour. It's lovely to get a real exhibition again."

Jackie's granddaughter, 11-year-old Ava Matheson, was one of the youngest artists at the show and showed great skill in using a reduced colour palette to create a tribute to Vincent van Gogh. "She's very talented and the painting has already sold," said Jackie.

Penny Irvine is another regular at local art shows and has four works on display created with felt and fibre and through pyrography. Penny talked about the politicised nature of her art saying: "I'm looking at the power industry – though it brings power to the people it essentially takes it away. Despite protests people rarely get what they want and with privatised industry people are basically losing money and in poverty because of it."

Scott Livingstone has a series of works at the show created through mixed media and found objects such as timber from a shipwreck he recovered from the coast at Thurso East.

"I started with stone carving and veered off into using electricity to burn patterns into wood. I'm also recycling materials such as wood and insulation foam and covering it with papier-mâché and natural string." One of Scott's 3D works shows Thurso Bridge and even incorporates tiny lights within it.

Veteran of the Caithness arts scene, Jenny Bruce, has a new selection of work on show based on her observations of light playing on the surface of water in Edinburgh canals. "It's now been 62 years that I've been painting," said Jenny who lives in the Scottish capital.

"I've been capturing the movement of water in the Union Canal in Edinburgh – this year is its 200th anniversary and during Covid I've been recording the bridges, aqueducts and viaducts for the Institution of Civil Engineers to update their records."

Mike Weeden from Wick has a striking series of colourful acrylics on show he created over the last year. "I like to bring joy through the painting with colour and form along with a bit of humour. There are some dark and sinister moments within them though – it represents the dark shadow within."

Shelagh Swanson has returned to Caithness after living in Aberdeen for a number of years and has reimmersed herself in the local arts scene. "I have four pieces and one in the glass showcase. I'm living in the Bower area and am currently artist in residence for Sinclair's Bay area as well as teaching at North Lands glass. It's really lovely to be back showing work here in Caithness again."

Valerie Barker who lives near Ulbster is back with her sublime textile landscapes. "I use recycled sari silk thread. The most recent one I have on show is called Over the Flow and shows the Scarabens." Valerie's other works on show also incorporate local scenes with the linear aspect of the threads perfectly complementing the wide Caithness landscape.

The SCA show runs until August 5 with many works still for sale. Entry is free and the gallery is situated within the UHI North Highland ETEC building by Ormlie Road. The show is open from 3pm until 8pm every day except Sundays.

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