Resonance

Hi, I thought I would post a few images from my current show. This is especially for those who cant make it to Edinburgh for one reason or another. The show looks good. Well spaced, with lots of light, and this current collection will not be seen again in its entirety. The show finishes on the 12th of October and I really recommend you take a gander.

http://www.openeyegallery.co.uk/Open+Eye/Angus+McEwan/

Is that a watercolour?

Shadow boxer- Cuba, watercolour on collage, UF- 59 x 46cm

the start of shadow boxer

Yes!

Occasionally standing in front of my paintings I am confronted by that question. Even standing peering at the image, I am surprised and delighted that the viewer cant quite ascertain how its been produced. Perfect! I wouldn't want to produce an image that can be easily picked apart.

The two images at the top reveal how i build up the surface before adding drawing, then watercolour.

Its a long and laborious job, with lots of tiny brushes, but the effect is worth it! Well, I have to believe that, or I wouldn't be able to justify the pain and long hours at the easel to myself .

I shan't reveal anymore than that.

Something Different

"Cool Breeze", watercolour on collage, 80 x 104cm, 2010.

This exhibition offers something different to my usual fare, although I hope, still recognizable as being from my hand.

I have been experimenting with building up the surface of my painting with watercolour papers, tissue, mulberry, hemp etc, (to create a textured surface) on which I am using watercolour. It, of course, creates its own set of problems, but I believe the end result is worth the extra hassle. I have also started to use figures in my work. Not much of a revelation I know, but something I have been wanting to do for some time. I must say, both of these introductions have offered something new to my work which, I hope, will be welcomed by all who see the show.

http://openeyegallery.co.uk/Open+Eye/Angus+McEwan/

Resonance

New Show

The Open Eye Gallery

34 Abercromby Place

Edinburgh EH3 6QE

Friday 24th September - Tuesday 12th October 2010

Angus McEwan, RSW ARWS



Resonance 2010
As I brush past old walls, doors & alleyways, I imagine sounds of past lives, like whispers in the wind, The walls resonate in my imagination; music, crying, weeping, celebrations, singing, bullets zipping, shouting, laughter, etc, all woven into the fabric of the buildings, untouched by a restorer’s hand.

Human lives lived and lost, a narrative unfolds as I wander with my senses heightened. History is absorbed and reflected by the walls around me. Resonating, past lives speak to me through the textural marks on the surfaces, as I carefully observe and transcribe. It is my duty to pass on their stories. Conjecture, interpretation or even embellishment, sometimes when a painting is bereft of human presence the piece speaks volumes about human lives and their struggles. The occasional human figure in a painting allows us to empathise on an emotional level with their predicament or surroundings, our imagination is thus engaged. Through my paintings I try to imbue some of the characteristics of each object/surface, while reflecting upon the scene in front of me. If I am partially successful I will have left the viewer with the impression of more than just textured surfaces, perhaps on the odd occasion familiar sounds and smells may be triggered. Maybe a memory of something or somewhere personal may be triggered by the image. Your participation and imagination, as viewer, is a vitally important component for the story to take flight.