Calum McClure, Trees by Candida Stevens Gallery

CALUM MCCLURE TREES

12 Northgate, Chichester West Sussex PO19 1BA +44 (0)1243 528401 +44 (0)7794 416569 info@candidastevens.com www.candidastevens.com

In his second solo exhibition at the gallery Calum McClure reflects upon one of his longstanding preoccupations, trees. The exhibition brings together work spanning a ten-year period, the oldest painting is Falling Tree I, (2012) from a series which focused on the felling of sequoias in California. Along with these images of historical logging, there are paintings of ornamental and botanical specimens, in country estates and private arboretums around Scotland. These were used as symbols of wealth and power, which evoke memories of empire and the collection and study of foreign species. Most of the exhibition was made after the Spring of 2021 when the artist travelled to the tidal island of Eilean Shona on the west coast of Scotland. There he gathered images of its pinetum, which was planted in the 19th century by one of the island’s past owners Captain Swinburne. The resulting paintings show that some of the trees brought from abroad have fared better than others, some appear to have struggled with the climate, look untended or out-competed by the faster growing spruces, whilst others have flourished and can be seen towering from the mainland. The passing of time is acknowledged in the title of one of the exhibition’s main works Forgotten Trophies, (2021). This painting depicts some of the rarest specimens on the island, planted in a sheltered hollow behind the main house. He has also made paintings of the native species such as the silver birches, whose gnarled forms hug the coastline. This tangle of the native and imported species can be seen in Trees and Windows On A Beach, A Dream, (2021) in which the trees appear to metamorphose and blend, creating a dance of shapes on the sand. There is also a hint at a human presence in the clean angle of a window on the right of the painting. The artist is not afraid to vary his style, from the more abstract pieces which have an apparent Japanese influence, to the more representational and depictive works, although there is a common language between the differing approaches. As with all of McClure’s work we can see this push and pull between the power and beauty of nature and our human will to perfect, tame and train it. With special thanks to the team at Eilean Shona for generously accommodating the artist for a residency in 2021. 5

Clearing And Felled Trees, 2021 Oil on canvas 120 x 180 cm 6

Forgotten Trophies, 2021 Oil on canvas 120 x 180 cm 8

Old Trees, New Trees, 2021 Oil on canvas 120 x 180 10

Partially Cleared Wood, 2021 Oil on canvas 120 x 180 cm 12

Silver Birch, Silver Moon, 2021 Oil on Canvas 120 x 150 cm 14

Falling Tree I, 2012 Oil on board 170 x 122 cm 16

Felled Plantation, 2022 Oil on canvas 40 x 60 cm 18

Trees and Windows On A Beach, 2021 Oil on canvas 56 x 81 cm 19

Midnight By The Railway, 2020 Monotype 60 x 85 cm 20

Blue Midnight Trees, 2019 Monotype 60 x 85 cm 21

Bonsai and Window, 2017 Etching 60 x 60 cm 22

Pathetic Fallacy, 2017 Etching 60 x 85 cm 23

Dusk Moon, 2020 Etching 52 x 66 cm 24

Japanese Tree, 2021 Oil on board 50.5 x 40.5 cm 25

Shoreline Trees, 2021 Oil on board 40.5 x 30.5 cm 26

Benmore, Japanese Print, 2015 Oil on canvas 40 x 50 cm 27

Autumn Sun, 2022 Oil on canvas 40 x 30 cm 28

Lily Pond, 2021 Oil on canvas 45 x 35 cm 29

Pool and Red Sun, 2021 Monotype 43 x 31 cm 30

Isolated Group, 2021 Monotype 43 x 31 cm 31

Avenue Of Trees, 2021 Monotype 43 x 31 cm 32

Sparse Group, 2021 Monotype 43 x 21 cm 33

Mist, 2021 Oil on canvas 18 x 24 cm 34

Shoreline Trees In Orange, 2021 Oil on canvas 18 x 24 cm 35

Trees On A Hillside, 2022 Oil on canvas 24 x 18 cm 36

Small Painting Of Large Trees, 2021 Oil on canvas 18 x 13 cm 37

Moon, Trees, Shore, 2021 Oil on canvas 13 x 18 cm 38

b. 1987 in Edinburgh Living and working in Glasgow 2010: Graduated in Drawing and Painting from Edinburgh College of Art SOLO EXHIBITIONS 2021 Le Tiers Paysage The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh 2019 Sussex Landscapes Candida Stevens Gallery, Chichester 2018 In These Places The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh Somewhere Becoming Rain Glasgow Print Studio 2017 Generations of Colour Tatha Gallery, Newport-on-Tay 2016 Monotype Glasgow Print Studio Nocturnes and Botanics The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh 2014 Reflection

The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh 2013 Monotypes The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh 2011 New Paintings and Drawings The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITONS 2021 MONO (co-curated with Scott Campbell) Glasgow Print Studio 2018 From The Sublime to the Concrete The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh 2017 Good Nature Candida Stevens, Chichester, West Sussex Spring - Looking At The New Candida Stevens, Chichester, West Sussex Small is Beautiful Flowers Gallery, London 2016 Fly 2016 Visual Arts Scotland Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh Out of the Wood 39

Groundwork Gallery, King’s Lynn Summer Exhibition Royal Academy RSA Open Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh Summer Exhibition Lemon Street Gallery, Truro The View From The Train Glasgow Print Studio Promised Land Tatha Gallery, Newport

Albemarle Gallery, London RSA Open Exhibition Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh Mixed Christmas Exhibition. The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh

2015 Converge Visual Arts Scotland 2012 Summer Exhibition Mellerstain House Gallery Summer Exhibition (invited artist section – curated by Barbara Rae RA). Royal Academy of Arts, London

2016 W. Gordon Smith Award - runner up

2011 New Contemporaries Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh Art Toronto 11th International Art Fair, Toronto, Canada (w. The Scottish Gallery) RSA Open Exhibition Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh Mixed Christmas Exhibition The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh

2012 Calum McClure on how winning the Jolomo Award has changed his life - Susan Mansfield

2010 Graduates 2010: A selection of work by six UK art college graduates . 40

AWARDS 2020 Jerwood Printmaking Today Prize - shortlist

2011 The Jolomo Bank of Scotland Award for Landscape Painting PRESS | PUBLICATIONS

2011 An Estate of Mind – Article by Susan Mansfield following the announcement of the Jolomo Painting Award, The Scotsman, 2011 2010 ECA Degree Show Exhibition review by Duncan Macmillan, The Scotsman. May 2010 Meat Hook, ECA Exhibition reviewed in The Skinny by Ben Bennett, 18th Jan 2010

Published in April 2022 by Candida Stevens Gallery on the occasion of an exhibition featuring the work of Calum McClure Catalogue © Candida Stevens Gallery Text and artwork © Calum McClure Photography © Dan Stevens All rights reserved