CINQ – Clare Blois, Margaret Cowie, Elizabeth Joss, Margaret McKay and John Nicholson

CINQ is an exhibition of work by five Inverness artists inspired by their regular visits to France.

The work in the exhibition includes paintings and drawings in various media. Some have been completed en plein air in France whilst others have been worked on in the studio based on studies and supporting photographs. This group of five artists have known each other for many years and they are united by their love of the French landscape, climate, language and way of life. Three have studios at Inverness Creative Academy and the other two attend courses there on a regular basis.

Clare Blois is an oil painter living in Beauly, working from her studio at Inverness Creative Academy. Her expressive landscape paintings have won many accolades and have been exhibited widely over the years. Recent work has developed into a more abstract approach. Clare looks forward to annual painting trips to France with her artist friends and has visited many regions. The Languedoc is one of her favourites.

Margaret Cowie has taken her paints to France many times. She is well known for her flowing and direct use of line and colour, whether the subject be landscape, floral or still life. She particularly likes to seek out characterful buildings and village-scapes on her travels, and is equally at home with oil, watercolour, pastel or charcoal. She is particularly drawn to the unique light to be found in Provence. She also has a studio at Inverness Creative Academy.

As a student Elizabeth Joss spent a year in Millau, Aveyron as an English Language Assistante before going on to work as a language tutor and interpreter in French. A respected artist, she makes frequent trips to France. Her painting covers a variety of subject matter and she has become known for her delicate mixed media work featuring the natural world through the seasons. She enjoys plein air painting and sketching, which provides material for larger studio work.

Margaret McKay paints mainly in oil but also enjoys pastel and watercolour. The breathtaking highland scenery inevitably provides subject matter for many of her paintings but she is also drawn to still life, life drawing and architectural subjects, and especially to interesting interiors and she is much admired for her handling of tone. For many years she has spent time in France with a group of fellow artists, as well as taking trips to the west highlands and Orkney.

John Nicholson has visited France with his oil paints for at least forty years. Painting en plein air, he has been able to enjoy the climate and immerse himself in the French way of life. Favourite haunts include the Tarn, Corrèze and Dordogne. Trained at the Byam Shaw School of Art in London, John has exhibited widely throughout Scotland and beyond. With his family roots in Skye, he often paints on the west coast. Meticulous in approach, he combines subject matter and abstract elements in his search for aesthetic, intellectual and emotional significance. See www.john-nicholson-artist.com