Original Blog post published: 5th December 2020.
We are all living with new habits threaded through our daily lives. I have kept my habit of supporting the archaeology of Orkney with donating proceeds from my artwork inspired by Orkney’s Neolithic history. I became infatuated with the standing stones at Stenness and the Ring of Brodgar on my first visit and they became a theme for my work for years. Once I was able to stay longer in Orkney, I began volunteering at the summer season of the Ness of Brodgar. I helped with small finds and the Orkney Archaeology Society’s summer “Dig Shop.” It is no surprise that at this holiday time of the year and with the 2020 dig season cancelled, I have found a way to continue to support them.
On this website, you can find the 9 small paintings that I made sitting on or around the closed Ness of Brodgar trenches. I had special permission from site director, Nick Card, to paint and so these are one-of-a-kind small works. I tried to paint at least once a week and hoped for the best of the weather.
Painting Becomes Printed
In 2018, I was one of the artists in residence at the Ness of Brodgar. We were surprised to have a very large “Art Hut” and I took advantage of its 15 foot length and created a 15 x 5 foot long painting. It is a montage of landscape, shape and shadows that caught my imagination that summer with details of incisions found in other seasons.
The painting uses artistic license and I have corners of one structure, the hearth of another and the standing stone of yet another. I titled it “Homage to the Montage in the Sondage with some Debitage on the Side.” Structure 12 is predominate as are the special words written and suggested by the visiting diggers that stretch all along the bottom. These words are so unique that there is an accompanying glossary!
With the help of Jim Bright who was taking 3-d photos of the trenches, I have been able to say:
“Honey, I shrunk the painting!”
from the movie “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids!”
For a limited time, a high quality and certified giclee print of my painting can be purchased online directly from https://www.nessofbrodgar.co.uk/product-category/cards-prints/ Each purchase includes the print sent directly from the printer and the glossary. You can see more about my work and why I choose certain areas of the sondage to work with right here on this site at: https://www.nessofbrodgar.co.uk/product/homage-print/ In 2019, the Orkney Museum exhibited this painting and others alongside artefacts from the Ness. See more at https://artworksoftheearth.com/media/
A White-line Print Gets Printed
I worked in watercolour and oil pastels during my time at the Ness of Brodgar’s summer 2019 season. Using the watercolour white-line woodcut technique that is commonly known as the Provincetown print in North America where it originates, I created one large print.
For inspiration, I returned once again to Structure 12 and combined the aerial view with all other levels of sight and varied the relative dimensions, right down to an incision found on a stone during the final days. You can purchase your certified high quality copy here https://www.nessofbrodgar.co.uk/product/structure-12-print/
Standing Stones and More…
I have painted many images of the standing stones, the Orkney landscape and sky. I am drawn to the center of it all, the Heart of Neolithic Orkney and the Ring of Brodgar and the Stones of Stenness appear frequently as the main focus of my painting, watercolours, and prints. So many people visit Orkney and an original artwork can only be owned by one person that I am pleased to take my artwork and put it on tea towels, totes, mugs, mats and more. Many people like to travel light, so I shrink my art smaller and sell mounted prints.
This year, I even put one of my plein air paintings of the Ring of Brodgar on a tile. I did this exclusively to that the proceeds would support the OAS, Orkney Archaeology Society. You can purchase this directly from them at https://shop.orkneyarchaeologysociety.org.uk/product/brodgar-blue-skies-limited-edition-printed-ceramic-tile-with-stand/
Ceramic tile of an original plein air painting. Your purchase supports the Orkney Archaeology Society.