Artist statement

The light of East Lothian changes so often through a day. Landscapes, cloudscapes are fleeting
images that can last only a few seconds. The striking light can place a orange glow over the sea or
a building, then change quickly to a rain swept image with a rainbow arching the sky. 
Like St Ives in Cornwall the light is clear and unpredictable, but can produced striking images and
because the land is low level it heightens the drama the frequent  brilliant cloudscapes.
Starting in the spring of 2001 I was invited by a neighbour, to use her shed to paint the landscape.
On seeing her shed I noticed that it looked onto the river forth and had a splendid view of Fife.
Recently I had moved to Cockenzie with my family from London and one of the attractions was
the amazing cloudscapes that happen most days. From stunning sunsets to murky fogs
all has a presence and beauty. So I begun to try and capture these cloudscapes.
The first were crude and lack skilled and knowledge of why the sky was this way. But as the
sketches piled up what became clear was I had a found a subject that I could investigate that
allowed to use my interest in oil painting, composition and form.
It was the quickest of how a sunny day could change to a storm, how a rainbow could come and
go, how bleak it could be, how even on the greyest of days the sea and sky were still of interest.
I began to photograph these fleeting images and take them to my studio and with my memory
begin to piece together bigger more finished pieces.
So after 18 months of study I now have the beginnings of a one man show. My aim at present
is to have complete 10 large scale studio pieces and 20 alfresco paintings completed in my
neighbours garden.

Andrew Crummy