Painting the Isle of Skye, My Solo Show and Wee Bit of Scottish History

Speed bonnie boat like a bird on the wing,
Onward, the sailors cry.
Carry the lad that's born to be king
Over the sea to Skye.

Quiraing, Isle of Skye 2017

I can't believe it's been since September that I've posted! I spent many hours getting ready for my solo show Through Time and Place: Five Decades which opened on December 2nd. The opening reception was one week before my 50th birthday.

As you might surmise from the title, my paintings represented 50 years of places I've been in my life. I focused on places that touched me in some way. Some were places I lived and other were traveling or on pilgrimage. There were 32 in all and the piece above was one of them.

Loud the winds howl, loud the waves roar,
Thunderclaps rend the air,
Baffled our foes stand by the shore,
Follow they will not dare.

When I last posted on this blog, I told the story of my incredible hike up to the Old Man of Storr. After coming down the mountain, I was cold, famished and needed a restroom! I'd read about a hotel north of the Storr and as luck would have it, it was on our way to our next destination.

The Flodigarry Hotel

A Victorian Hunting Lodge Built in 1892 for Maj. R. Macdonald

This bar was highly rated but when we arrived it was packed so we went and had lunch in the lovely restaurant. Of course, by the time we finished our lunch the bar was nearly empty. It's all about timing!

I'd been wanting to try something called "Cullen Skink Soup." Though the name might sound less than appetizing, the soup was incredibly delicious. It's a very lightly smoked fish soup with a cream base. SO good. I also had some salad and Talisker 10 year. Talisker, by the way, is the only distillery on Skye, but more on that later.

The soup was hot, delicious and perfect after a hike in the drizzling rain!

The hotel had a lovely sitting room and had we been staying there, I think it would have been difficult to get me to leave this room!

I can imagine sitting there for hours sketching and looking out to the sea ...

One reason I wanted to stop at this hotel was the Flora Macdonald Cottage, where you can actually stay! (Someday!!!)  It was her home early in her marriage, from 1751-1756.

Flora was the courageous lady who dressed up Bonnie Prince Charlie as an Irish spinning maid named Betty Burke after the Battle of Culloden (1746) to help him escape the British Army! She went to jail but eventually was released and became a heroine to the Jacobites. She moved to America but eventually moved back to the Isle Skye.

The Major, for whom the hunting lodge (now Flodigarry Hotel) was built for, was a descendant of Flora Macdonald. 

Someone was staying in the cottage but at least we got to see the outside!

And speaking of the Bonnie Prince's escape to Skye, that is the subject of the Skye Boat Song! (Which is now used as the Theme to Outlander but you'll note the different words!)

Press play for this beautiful version of the Skye Boat Song, sung by Laura Wright.

 After walking the grounds of the hotel we headed to the very North of the Isle of Skye ...

Though the waves leap, soft shall ye sleep,
Ocean's a royal bed.
Rock'd in the deep Flora will keep
Watch o'er your weary head.

There is a small "Museum of Island Life" where you can see how people used to live on the Island. It was closed that day but we were still able to see the beautiful stone structures.

Behind it was Kilmuir Cemetery, which was what I had really wanted to see!

Grave of Angus Martin ... said to have stolen the headstone of a king for himself!

Burned are our homes, exile and death,

Scattered the loyal man.

Yet ere the sword, cool in the sheath,

Charlie will come again.

But I didn't come for Angus  ... I came because Kilmuir is where you find the grave and monument to Flora Macdonald.

You know it's windy when your hair goes sideways. It was howling! In the distance you see the ocean. One of my favorite designers is also buried in Kilmuir. Alexander McQueen. It felt fitting that I was in my Stewart tartan shawl.

The image I decided to use on the postcard for my solo show was the very first painting I did in the series. The painting is from a photo I took on my first trip to Edinburgh in 1990. It took me a long time to figure out where exactly it was taken. I couldn't remember but alas with the help of the internet I finally figured it out. 

It was a home designed by James Craig in the 1700s. He was the architect who designed the New Town, in Edinburgh. This structure became the city's observatory until the very Paladian one that was established in 1776 took on the job. The 1776 one also happens to be where my coworker Siri worked years ago. How cool is that? This original "Observatory House" was built in the 1700s on Calton Hill and I have read that you can now rent it out for events. Can you imagine?

"Edinburgh, Scotland 1990"

11 x 14"

Oil on Wood panel

600.00

My paintings for the solo show were all on wood panels. As you can see, I start with a very loose underpainting.

Then laying in more color, I started figuring out where I might want to do some silver leaf that would integrate into the painting and even enhance it a bit.

"Isle of Skye"

6 x 12"

(sold)

The reception felt like a huge success. There was a great energy and so many surprise guests, friends and family showed up. There was a lot of love in that room! On top of that I sold 17 paintings that evening, which was very exciting and quite unexpected! A few more have sold since then so there are 11 of the 32 still available.

I'll post more of the paintings and reception, as well as more Scotland soon! This time it won't be 3 months! Hoping to post again for Christmas about the Fairy Glen!

Speed bonnie boat like a bird on the wing,
Onward, the sailors cry.
Carry the lad that's born to be king
Over the sea to Skye.

~ Skye Boat Song

Lyrics by Sir Harold Boulton (b. 1859)

Links

Flodigarry Hotel

Skye Museum of Island Life

Kilmuir Cemetery and Flora Macdonald Monument

Blessings and light!