The Maclaurin Art Gallery News
Improvements to the Courtyard Things are happening in the courtyard thanks to some amazing volunteers who have given up their time to help Friends of the Maclaurin maintain the planting area in the courtyard. Over the last few years the Friends have renewed the seating outside the gallery, providing benches and picnic tables for visitors to sit out in the sunny weather. This year we lost our plant supplier and so a group of green fingered volunteers kindly stepped up and planted a new herbaceous border in our big trough on Thursday! They’re a hardy bunch too, with all the work done in the rain! It's an amazing job and huge thanks to the newly formed Courtyard team, Pattie Kewney, Geoff Caldwell and Kayte Mapes. When we spoke with Pattie on Thursday she summed up the day’s efforts, explaining, “We’re soaked to the skin but pleased with the result! There is always a good feeling about volunteering and contributing what we can for the enjoyment of the community.” Yes indeed, everyone benefits from this and we all appreciate the team’s sterling effort. A few photos, before and after, and, in case you wondered how many potted plants you can fit into a compact car...
More excitement at the weekend, along with some good weather, when we launched the CELEBRATING JOHN BYRNE exhibition on Saturday. We were delighted to welcome John Byrne’s daughter Celie, to open the show.
This vibrant selection of predominately new work by Scottish artist Lex McFadyen, adorns gallery one. Most of his work was completed in his sunny French studio at Noyers-sur-Serein, Burgundy. Each one a shining jewel on the canvas and, so far, has proved a popular show with visitors. Images here are from launch day on 24 May and show Lex alongside the gallery’s curator Dianne Gardner. McFadyen grew up in Ayrshire before completing his degree at Glasgow School of Art and he went on to have a successful career in fashion. Now he has come full circle, returning to his first love of painting and we are delighted that he has returned to Ayrshire for a solo show! This exhibition runs until 30 June. There’s still time to see it… or call in again for another look! All artwork is for sale and affordably priced, original artwork. The perfect statement piece to transform any wall in your home.
Spring has been busy in the gallery with the launch of both the Glasgow Society of Women Artists' annual exhibition and ‘If You Don’t Ask’ by freelance photographer for the press, Alistair Devine.
The first exhibition of the year is Ayr Sketch Club's Annual Exhibition. It's always a popular event with a wide range of Ayrshire based artists. We hosted a ‘Meet the Artists’ event midway through their exhibition as, sadly, their scheduled exhibition launch was cancelled due to storm Eowyn. What a great afternoon it was, bustling with artists and visitors! This exhibition continues until the end of March.
Heading into Spring, we are hosting a variety of art workshops in the Patrons Gallery, over the next few weeks. We have already kicked this off with a fabulous Pastel Workshop by Gregory Moore, Artist and Printmaker in February. We didn’t even get a chance to advertise this on our social media pages, before the 2 days were booked up! Similarly, Angela Ortenzi-MacColl has already proved a big success, with another of her collage workshops coming up on 22nd February (no spaces left!). Next on the agenda is Sue Howat from Sixpenny Studio, who will be teaching her interesting watercolour and Indian ink resist technique. There are 2 date options for this workshop, Tuesday 4 March and Saturday 8 March 2025. Anyone interested should register directly with Dianne Gardner (Maclaurin Trust): dianneagardner@gmail.com Further workshops will appear, just keep your eyes on our social media pages - Facebook and Instagram , where the latest up to date information will be advertised.