The Art of Catriona Maclaine
THE ART OF CATRIONA MACLAINE: AN APPRECIATION
By Ash Charleton
I have been a fan of Catriona MacLaine’s art for some time, and am quite frankly astonished that it has not been taken up and exhibited before now for its originality of vision, power and technical accomplishment. In this article I will be sharing my personal appreciation of Catriona’s work in three areas:
- a. The power of the art works themselves
- b. Their technical accomplishment
- c. The distinctive colour palette
Power:
The acrylic paintings in particular are certainly powerful stuff: they attract the eye and draw you in with their richness of detail and colour. However, despite the profusion of images they somehow manage not to be cluttered, mainly because it is clear that some kind of symbolism is at work, and each part of the painting is telling part of the same story.
This kind of work is usually labelled naïve or primitive art, but in the case of Cathie’s paintings it is something of a misnomer. Instead it is a kind of symbolist/surrealist offshoot, with highly symbolic figures in dreamlike landscapes, carrying out obscure acts of great significance. They are like cards for a tarot that hasn’t been invented yet, or scenes from a mythos which has been lost. In one particular painting “The Caged Bird 1994”, we have a female, crinolined Harlequin, masked (though her face is also a mask), looking lost and desolate in a room full of strange objects, touching the figures atop a wedding cake as if they were chess pieces, while in the background a lone figure appears to be weeping in a boat. It’s clear we’re at some deeply meaningful juncture in things, but the painting remains mysterious as to what, exactly. With Catriona’s art, no two people see the same painting or receive the same story, but everyone gets a profound sense of meaning as well as an emotional ‘hit’ from it. Powerful stuff.
Technical Accomplishment:
Catriona’s recent foray into pastel portraits is an interesting venture, and adds considerably to her range as an artist. They are a series of technically accomplished works, which not only give accurate renditions of her subjects, but also work well as compositions in their own right. In their use of light and gentle colour schemes they are reminiscent of early David Hockney (ref The Queen of the Rise), with much use of pale tones and indirect light sources. Many artists resort to non-representative art because of lack of technical ability: among other things the pastels attest to Catriona’s technical ability. This change in repertoire casts an interesting light on the paintings leading us to reflect that they (the paintings) are created in this distinctive style simply because they best exemplify her inner vision and not because she ( the artist) is unable to render them in any other way.
Colour Palette:
Despite the tremendous repertoire of subjects and viewpoints in Catriona’s work, one constant is her unique colour palette, and I would say that it is as a colourist her true talent lies, despite her innate ability with line. Her palette always gives a strange vision of fluorescent greens and dark reds, glowing turquoises and purples for shadows, flesh always shading towards a plant-like green. All her paintings are like looking into a world where all the colour values are just slightly different to this one: it is a unique and distinctive vision, and when she essays a new subject I’m always fascinated to see how her particular colour sense will interpret and illuminate this one.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, as stated earlier, I am amazed that Catriona’s work is not better known, as it has the accessible quality of much modern primitive art, linked to an enjoyable technical accomplishment and a powerful and distinctive vision.
When spending time at her home I find myself looking at these engaging and intriguing paintings for long periods, quite lost in their strange symbolism and original vision.
They are paintings that could be enjoyed in a gallery, but also in the home, their creative depth ensures they remain endlessly interesting :
every day there is something new to discover or feel in them.
