The latest exhibition at Morningside Gallery will coincide with featured artist Ann Oram’s 70th birthday.
Ann is the featured artist in Into the Garden, which opens at the Morningside Gallery on Saturday, filling the gallery with painted blooms of every size and colour.
In a career spanning nearly 50 years, Ann has become well known as a painter of flowers and still lifes, and continues to paint every day in her Borders studio.
Ann said: “Gardens are my sanctuary and my studio. I love the element of surprise — the seasons dictate what I find, and I love what that gives me.
“I love still life, and painting things that are in front of me. I still get excited about the materials, working with watercolour, gouache, acrylic and oil, and I love colour.”
The Morningside Gallery exhibition features wild flowers painted in the Borders and Berwickshire, blossom inspired by a visit to Kew Gardens, and a selection of her ever-popular still lifes.
Eileadh Swan, director of the Morningside Gallery, said: “After exhibiting Ann’s paintings for many years, we are delighted to celebrate her 70th birthday year with this special exhibition.
“Flowers and gardens are synonymous with Ann and the brings the subject matter to life so beautifully on the canvas. A feature on her work was the natural choice within this larger exhibition.”
Ann was born in London in 1956 but grew up in the Highlands and studied at Edinburgh College of Art, where she later joined the teaching staff.
She has had solo exhibitions at the Scottish Gallery and Open Eye Gallery in Edinburgh, Duncan Miller Fine Art and The Thackeray Gallery in London and Corte & Nero in Vienna. Her work is in public and private collections around the world.
She said: “Art was my thing. I wasn’t really good at anything else. I knew from quite a young age that I wanted to paint, and I’ve been painting pretty much my whole life. It’s quite a privilege because not everyone gets that opportunity.”
And she continues to challenge herself, inspired by the words of rock star David Bowie: “He always said, if you’re in a pool and your feet don’t touch the bottom, that’s a good position to be in, push yourself a little bit harder, get out of your comfort zone.”
Into the Garden also includes work by artists Kate Bentley RSW, Jacqueline Orr RSW PAI, Mhairi McGregor RSW PAI, Jenny Martin RSW, Jennifer Irvine RSW RGI and Lorna Sinclair.
