CAROLINE HEPBURNE-SCOTT

Caroline lives in Edinburgh and has a studio in the Scottish Borders. She says of her work, 'The natural world has always been the inspiration driving my paintings. While studying at Edinburgh College of Art I created work with very strong drawn elements.  I was involved with using light and abstracted touches from transitory elements in the environment, also mixed media to explore new directions while conveying a feeling of atmosphere and setting. 

After some time travelling in Australia and New Zealand and working within a lively Aboriginal artist's community, I completed a Post Graduate Diploma at the Cyprus College of Art in Paphos.  Here my work moved towards a more naturalist tradition while I concentrated on landscape painting and wildlife and botanical studies.  It is in this vein that I continue to work from the Borders, an area where I grew up and gathered so much inspiration.

Drawing is still the foundation and strength behind all my work, from where an instinctive use of space develops.  The detail found in the drawings is something I enjoy enormously. The often imperceptible mark making is so delicate it is hardly known how a surface has become so interesting, and so draws the viewer in.  Contrasted with the use of strong shapes, the technique becomes effective.  Line is such an important element to me, and I constantly strive to combine this with tone.

The paintings have developed from the endless combinations of subtle colour variations found in the Borders.  They hold a deep sense of calm, a quality these areas evoke in me.'