Home of the Dallas Cowboys

Got to visit Cowboy Stadium in Dallas to watch my niece's high school team play in their State Championship final. About a 5 hour drive each way. This huge stadium puts UK stadiums to shame for the quality inside the place. Even the seats were padded and the whole place has a roof on it.

Texas Dec 2011

Well here I am in Texas visiting my sister.  It hardly ever rains here but strangely it all reminds me of home in Scotland. Watch this space over the comings days and weeks to see what happens during my stay here.

Edinburgh with the lights on!

Here is a photo I took of Edinburgh late yesterday afternoon.  Hope you like it.

Latest Ebay listings

I have several paintings on Ebay this week. Do have a look.
Several commissions on the go at the moment keeping me busy too.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/mackamart/m.html?item=320776805025&sspagename=STRK%3AMESELX%3AIT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649&_trksid=p4340.l2562

Painting and drawing from my sketchbook - Culloden

My niece Kimberly is over from Texas and wanted to vist Culloden, near Inverness, today.  She really enjoyed the visit and whilst there I completed a drawing of Leanach Cottage and a view of the actual battlefield from the cottage itself.  The battle took place in 1746 and lasted less than an hour.

Paintings on Ebay

I have listed some of my paintings on ebay. See the link below to take you there.

http://myworld.ebay.co.uk/mackamart

Patchings Prizewinner

Following my recent post on 23rd April I was delighted to find that my painting gained the Winston Oh award from the judges.
You can see my entry on-line and other exhibitors using this link. If you wish, you can vote for me in the People's Choice award.
http://www.patchingsartcentre.co.uk/festivalexhibition/onlinegallery/exhibition2011/painting.php?cat=lp&pic=75

Just back from a holiday in the Adriatic including Dubrovnik and Venice. Watch out for some of my sketches soon.

Edinburgh Art Shows

Spent a few hours yesterday enjoying some of the exhibitions currently on show in Edinburgh. The first was a visit to the Dovecot Studios, Infirmary Street to see a wonderful show by one of my favourite artists, Kurt Jackson. He journeys along the length of the River Forth, which flows past Edinburgh and paints on site. A video is projected onto a wall showing Kurt at work creating some of the paintings in the exhibition.
http://www.lemonstreetgallery.co.uk/exhibitionImages/kurt-jackson-the-forth/F12.jpg

Next I viewed the RSA Exhibition (Royal Scottish Academy building) at the Mound. This shows work by some of the most important Scottish Artists and caters for all tastes.  I derived most pleasure from looking at the sketchbooks on show in some of the cabinets. I believe you get an insight into the artist's way of thinking and planning for larger works.

I then had a quick look in some of the Independent galleries in Dundas Street.  The Open Eye Gallery has some lithographs by Joan Miro and prints by Dali.

Scottish Borders Holiday

This week I am staying in an apartment in Peebles. The apartment is within a property called Kingsmeadows situated right on the River Tweed (see photo).

The weather is pure blue skies, the temperature only chilled by a wind off the North Sea. In sheltered corners it is pure bliss.
Spent some time cleaning out my dirty palettes ready for a season's painting en plein air. Yes, I did say palettes in the plural. I do have a few. Why you may ask? Well, they do have different colour set ups, are different sizes and weights. Lightweight ones tend to travel abroad and the bigger metal ones stay more local.
Painted a small cottage scene today on Khadi paper. I have a pad which measures about 5 inches square and I am working on a series of these cottage paintings. This one took about 30 mins including drying time. 

I'm back!

I haven't blogged for a long time. I have now re-shaped my blog site and will be posting on a regular basis.
I recently had a successful exhibition, a 3 man show in Edinburgh's Dundas Street Gallery in February. I am now delighted to have been accepted into the Patchings Art Exhibition for the third time in five years. This will be displayed at the Patchings Art Festival from 9th June.