Inverness Museum & Art Gallery, until 12 January 2008

Tjørnuvík, Faroes

WINNER of the 2005 RSA Alastair Salvesen Travel Scholarship Eòghann MacColl’s journeys to Shetland, the Faroe Islands, Nova Scotia and Iceland form the basis of this solo exhibition of paintings and drawings. Born in Inverness and a graduate of Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, MacColl has travelled extensively in Europe exhibiting in Scotland, Hungary, Estonia and Barcelona.

Curiously the artist’s interest in migrating peoples and “histories separate, yet shared” is explored primarily through landscape and place names in “Edges”. The small gallery at IMAG can only accommodate a narrow range of work and I suspect that a larger show would give a more comprehensive impression of the artist’s process.

The paintings, all mixed media on board, were developed from drawings on location and whilst they are technically interesting, there are no human references here. The landscapes have presence and their textures are fascinating, but it seems as though difficult questions have been avoided in favour of atmospherics, signposts and surfaces.

Issues of “identity, place and continuity of culture”, the depopulation of small communities and the complexity of cultures on the edge are simply not addressed by this selection of works. Overall I found the level of engagement disappointing given the prestige of the award.

The use of found materials within the mixed media work links place literally to the paintings, but I did not have a sense of this artist actually digging into the earth on which he stood. ‘The Turning Point’ (Mixed media on board 2006) is such an example, with a ground of deep blue ocean and map green landmass expanded to the edges as if stretched across part of a globe.

With a place name as the focal point this painting with its aerial perspective has a naïve quality to it. ‘Lake Bras D’or, Cape Breton Nova Scotia’ (Mixed media on board 2006) is another example, place names shifted to the edges of the work, jutting into the splattered and fluid middle section of greens and blues like headland.

More abstract works such as ‘Horizon Study No2 – Iceland’ (2006) with light emerging from beneath the horizon are quite beautiful due to colour and paint handling. Larger scale mixed media works such as ‘Shift: Sneefellsness, Iceland’ are engaging for their use of texture. Here glacial opaque greens and blues are contrasted with the thick bitumen like texture of earth invoking fire and ice. ‘Iceland’ with its silhouette of land sitting on an expansive horizon and sky accented with acidic green reflects an isolated view or physical edge.

Works on paper in the exhibition are like snapshots of the artist’s journey. There are some wonderful drawings as part of this series in graphite. Among them ‘Dyrfjoll, Borgarforour Eystri’ (06/04/05) stands out for its beautifully shaded and scored marks and sensitive handling. It is a small sketch but has a sense of the monumental in it. The artist’s drawing of ‘Jarlshof Shetland’ (24/04/05) is both an accomplished drawing of a small cross section of the ancient settlement and a successful abstract composition.

There is a greater sense of geography explored here than assimilation of cultures. It is a shame not to have a series of events including an artist talk connected to the exhibition touring the Highlands, especially in 2007. There are potentially many issues relating to cultural identity that might begin to be explored in more depth through the artist’s experiences, but ironically not by the works themselves.

Specific references through use of materials or place names mean little to the general public on their own and whilst works may well be site specific their meaning is obscured the moment the exhibition travels. Landscape as geography dominates and so ultimately this is what we respond to, the subject and the handling rather than any deeper exploration. I found the whole exhibition lacked insight into the regions explored by the artist and the ability to communicate a range of interpretative “Edges”.

© Georgina Coburn, 2008

Links

• Royal Scottish Academy