News — Artist Interview

If you follow Broth, it won't surprise you that one of my favourite things to do is visit artists at their studio. Call me a nosy parker but stepping into an artists workspace is for me like entering Ali Baba's cave- you never know what riches you're going to find. Fiona MacRae's studio in rural Argyll is one such place that never disappoints. Tucked away up a meandering track in mossy woodland, Fiona's studio is a treasure trove of spectacles.Having beachcombed her entire life, Fiona MacRae's studio is a shrine to both natural and man-made forms scavanged from the shoreline. There are whalebones, coloured sea glass, mermaid purses, driftwood and calcified sea creatures, but also a confetti of plastic odds and ends, corroded rubber and knarled bits of oxidised metal. Wherever you look, there's something to marvel at.

Over the years, it has become abundantly clear that beachcombing is an important part of MacRae's practice. It works its way- albeit surreptitiously- into her paintings by means of colour, texture and form, and is used directly in her assemblage artwork. For this reason, I was curious to learn more about her love of beachcombing, how it informs her art-making and where it all started.

Read on to discover more about Fiona MacRae and her delightful art.

A couple of weeks ago, I visited Dan Jamieson at his home and studio in Walthamstow, London. Dan is both a long-standing friend and member of the Broth Art stable, so our meetings are just as much a discussion of upcoming projects and new work as they are a chinwag...............(continue reading).

Sally Fitchard is a ceramic sculptor living and working from her home and studio in Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, UK. Speaking of her love of clay and fascination with the human subject, Sally reflects on her artistic journey so far and how people-watching- a skill adopted out of necessity as a military child switching schools every two years- continues to inform her practice.

This June, we caught up with Laura McMorrow a multi-disciplinary artist living and working in Leitrim, Ireland. Working across painting, collage, film and sculpture, Laura makes work that draws on nature. She has a Masters in Fine Art from the University of Ulster in Belfast, and in 2017 was awarded the Burren College of Art 'Emerging Irish Residency Award.'

Maureen Nathan is an artist who uses a multitude of mediums and materials to explore and respond to her surroundings. Born and raised on the west coast of Canada, Maureen settled in the UK as a young adult. She splits her time between her home and studio in North London and her workspace in rural Dorset. Her work has been shown with the Royal Society of Portrait Painters, The Royal Academy, Wells Art Contemporary and the Royal West of England Academy. 

To give our followers more insight into Maureen's practice, we made this short video. For further information about her work, click here to visit her profile on the Broth Art website.