This is a LARGE and vibrant oil on canvas by the Yorkshire-born Scottish artist, Robert Maclaurin (b. 1961). He is best known for his exquisite landscape paintings.
He studied Drawing and Painting at Edinburgh College of Art. Indeed, Rob was in my year and class when I was studying at the College - so I am very familiar with his work. Like me, he graduated in 1983 - but he was a better student and went on to complete a post-graduate year!
He was awarded a scholarship to travel to Italy in 1984 - and then was subsequently given a Turkish Government Scholarship that allowed him to paint in Istanbul for 15 months. He returned to the Eastern Anatolia area on a regular basis for the next 15 years.
Maclaurin has been a full-time professional artist of international repute since his graduation. And is widely exhibited and has won numerous prestigious grants and artist residencies over the years.
This front of the work is not signed or titled by Maclaurin (which is typical of his work). There is a light pen signature on the back of the frame and the date 1997. The oil shows an image of a Turkish gentleman standing in a vibrant forest landscape with a screen of abstract terracotta-coloured tree trunks in the background. The little figure holds out his arm - and is shown holding a little lit candle that lights the whole forest scene in front of him. The candlelight bathes the trees in a glowing golden light.
This is oil painting is certainly typical of Rob's style in the late 1980s / 1990s when he was travelling through Turkey, Armenia, and the surrounding areas. - and it is also a larger-scale work by him. At this time he was much interested in depicting small single figures in lush forests or climbing exotic mountainous landscapes. There is something rather desolate in these single figures depicted all alone in vast, all-encompassing, and slightly alien landscapes.
Today McLaurin lives in Central Victoria in Australia - having moved there in 2001. He still regularly comes back to visit his homeland and to exhibit new work in Scotland. He has a well-deserved international reputation. The last time that I saw him was a couple of years ago when he was holding a solo exhibition at the Open Eye Gallery, in Edinburgh.
Dimensions: Frame is 64.5 x 69 cm. The canvas is 56 x 60 cm. The frame on this work is a very sturdy one with a thick dark oak frame - the back of the canvas is covered with hardboard as part of the framing process - and it has a pen inscription and the date of 1994. The canvas is probably signed and this might be evident under the wooden backing board.
Fair price for this lovely work - his pieces are starting to fetch four-figure sums in prestigious auction houses, such as Lyon and Turnbull in Edinburgh. It has no condition issues - and is ready for you to just hang on your wall.
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