Fiona portrays people who are connected to plants and the land. Her work here stems from investigations of the historical significance of the sitter's life, loves, or drives.
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Recent portraits were shortlisted as finalists for the Scottish Portrait Awards, the Trinity Buoy Wharf Drawing Prize, the Evelyn Williams Drawing Award, and the Scottish Prize for Fine Art.

Absentia - graphite and tinted gesso on linen canvas. 100cm x 80cm. 2025 Selected for the Scottish Portrait Awards 2026

Anna - work in progress

A work in progress portrait on the small desk easel depicts my older Paul, who suddenly passed away in recent years. He is here as I remembered him in our childhood: funny, kind, and protective of all living things.

Imelda - Soil Scientist, (diptych) - oil on linen and canvas. 65cm x 130cm. 2023

Imelda - Soil Scientist (diptych)
Shortlisted for the Scottish Portrait Awards 2024 and Tour until 2025.

Imelda is a plant and soil scientist who recently undertook a PhD in Scotland. After multiple sittings with Imelda over time and hearing about her journey with plants and the soil, I first tackled a working drawing of her connection to the earth. The drawing existed to become this oil painting to show Imelda's connection to the Scottish landscape, investigating how intercropping with barley and peas regenerates soil networks.

In this painting, Imelda models a scarf. Imelda's Dad gifted that scarf to her Mum, who then gave it to Imelda. Her Dad was killed during the Rwandan genocide in 1994.

Photographed elements of soil taken through a digital microscope instigated the making of mini monoprinted versions, which were referred to in creating the canvas to the left. The portrait of Imelda was tackled through in-person sittings, using photographic references to make preparatory drawings and then painting in oil on canvas.

Imelda
​Shortlisted finalist for the Trinity Buoy Wharf Drawing Prize 2023 and UK tour up to September 2024.
Shortlisted for the Evelyn Williams Drawing Prize 2023.

Murray
Longlisted for the Scottish Portrait Awards (Fine Art)

I envisaged the career that has taken Murray to survey the ancient trees of Savernake Forest and, through VSO, empowering a community to utilise a sustainable process in the forests of the foothills of Nepal and then on to surveying and upgrading paths all over Scotland. The background portrays how he has wandered in the landscape and the depths of the colours seen.

Murray - oil on linen canvas. 42cm x 42cm. 2023.

Extrospection (diptych) - oil on flax canvas. 42cm x 85.5cm. 2022

Extrospection self portrait (diptych)
Longlisted for the Scottish Portrait Awards (Fine Art) 2022.
Shortlist finalist for the Scottish Awards for Fine Art 2023.

​​I planned to paint a portrait of my brother, who had suddenly and unexpectedly passed away. I managed to sketch, but it was tough to paint.
​As an ethnobotanical artist, I create work that connects plants with people, place and time, so my self-portrait 'Extrospection' on rough flax canvas focuses on the land. Although, while painting, it was more of an introspection of time spent as feral children exploring the 'Gramps' and 'Sannies' near home. I work across various forms of media, including painting, mapping, drawing, installation, audio and poetry, with walking and plant material collecting the key to explorations.