This week we visited the Scottish National Portrait Gallery…amazing! The photography was wonderful with many iconic photos, like John Lennon and Yoko Ono by Annie Lebowitz…his last photo.😔
I was drawn to the contemporary portrait gallery on the second floor…the simple compositions, the subdued color palettes…and everything about them! Some were very emotion filled and stirring…I was too mesmerized to snap photos of those, we just stood and took them in.
Others pieces were more colorful with amazing detail, color and brushstrokes. Below are three I kept going back to. Each one has a snippet of details within the paintings, all three held my attention as my eyes wandered around these paintings.
The portrait below of Tilda Swinton was painted by her once husband, artist and playwrite John Byrne…the opening photo on this page is of him. (just a touch of Hollywood injection here).🤭 I love how simple and expressive both pieces are.
I did finally make a little time to play at art and opened up one of the books I mentioned last week ( Make Every Day Creative) for prompts. I’m using papers with Daniel Smith watercolor samples on them ( a gift from the San Diego Watercolor Society right before we left on our trip) perfect timing and media to pack and travel with as these samples are small and go a long way!
One last thing…Halloween is a BIG deal in Scotland…or at least in Tayor & Lucinda’s neighborhood! We got to be there when so many little trick or treaters knocked on their door. Here they don’t say trick or treat… they tell a joke, sing a song, do a little dance…it was so fun! And yes…we carved pumpkins here too!
We travel because we need to, because distance and difference are the secret tonic to creativity.
Love hearing your travel news! Also surprised because I expected to hear that you were on a beach somewhere. Actually, hearing about Scotland. is so interesting, maybe just as well!.
How cool to see this! Never made it to that venue. Edinburgh is so creatively mysterious, fanciful and thought provoking isn't it? Aren't the Scotts a fun lot?