RSW

"All roads lead to Rome", watercolour on paper, 2008

A few of you may have noticed the RSW after my name. It refers to the Royal Scottish Society of Painters in Watercolours. I was elected in 1995 and have been an active participant in the life of the society, elected twice to council (now on my second stint) and have helped to hang numerous annual exhibitions. I have also had the honour of being Exhibition convener twice (basically in charge of the hang in the gallery) and thoroughly recommend viewing our annual exhibition, (if you can), it is a lot less traditional than most watercolour societies.





The reason for the inclusion on the blog is that the RSW website has been updated and I thought you may be interested in having a look at it:





http://www.rsw.org.uk/index.php

"Box of Curiosities", watercolour on paper, 2008

The theme behind my next one man show in the Open Eye centres around my collection of objects, which collectively, are what I would like to call "curiosities" . Here is the small blurb which is going to be used in conjunction with the work:

“Curiosities”
Angus McEwan RSW

Open Eye Gallery
2008

Over 300 years ago the foundation of Natural History as a science relied heavily on its partnership with art. Voyages of discovery were undertaken by scientists and artists in a symbiotic relationship to discover and collect “curiosities” of the natural world. This urge to travel and to discover has been a particular theme explored by many artists from many generations. The birth of photography and the development of scientific progress have changed the artist’s role from observer and recorder of the Natural world to that of opinionated commentator. Watching on the sidelines passively to proactively participating in and shaping society.

The role of the artist has been liberated from the bonds of representation and yet many like me find the greatest satisfaction in recording accurately and having an opinion. Perhaps, the best of both worlds.

I travel because I enjoy the “buzz” of discovering something new for myself. I don’t go to any place with a preconceived idea of what I will see or more importantly use. I try to let my natural curiosity guide me to whatever I find interesting at that particular point in time. I collect anything that appeals to me on my journeys and through time have amassed quite a number of curiosities of my own. These in conjunction with drawings, paintings and photography, have very often ended up as images which contain numerous elements of my journeys. Many of my paintings reflect my natural desire to record and observe, others reflect my opinions and points of view sometimes they contain both.

The paintings themselves through the creative process become curiosities in their own right.