Scotland Series - East Lothian and Scottish Borders

East of Edinburgh and North Berwick lies the beautiful East Lothian and further on, the Scottish Borders.
As everywhere in Scotland there is so much to see and explore, it would probably fill multiple blogs.
Here now only a few of my highlights from the last two trips to Scotland.

 

A short  5 kilometers east of North Berwick and directly opposite from Bass Rock lies Tantallon castle.

A formidable half ruin of a mid-14th-century fortress, unique for it's defense, as there is only one single wall protecting it on the land side.

The other three sides are protected by steep cliffs dropping down to the sea.

Parts of the castle are in really good condition, considering the age, and visitors can still safely climb up some of the towers and upper walkways.
Some, one only can look at...

Here a view towards the castle from Seacliff Beach, showing the cliff location. The Royal Navy maintained a top secret research station here during World War 1.

Seacliff Beach itself is a hidden gem on the East Lothian Coast. Passing through a coin operated barrier, visitors reach a secluded beach. To the west two surprises await. The first is the amazing view of the castle as mentioned above, the second is an incredibly tiny harbour that has been carved out of the rocks, known as Scottlands smallest harbour.

The entry channel to the harbor is only 3 meters wide, blasted out of the sandstone in 1890 with a steam engine and compressed air!
The tiny harbor now gets rarely used for boats but more for diving and dive training instead.

Straight ahead, looking North, one has a formidable view towards Bass Rock,

and to the West, St. Baldred's boat, which is not really a boat but a dangerous rocky promontory, marked with a stone beacon surmounted by a cross. It is named after St. Baldred, an Irish Monk who has lived in this area in the 700th century.

I have to be honest, this next spot I would have missed wouldn't it have been for the bright yellow canola fields.

White Kirk, named after it's once white church, used to be on the pilgrims route from St, Andrews to Santiago de Compostela. It featured a holy well that unfortunately ran dry in the 19th century, due to agriculture intervention.

One of my favorite spots, St. Abbs, a small fishing village, lies further east in the Scottish Borders.
I discovered this gem while searching for the lighthouse on St. Abbs Head.

From the village leads a bautifully rugged way to the light house.

St. Abbs is named after Æbbe, an abbess and noblewoman who later became a saint!

St. Abbs Head Lighthouse

A short walk north of the lighthouse, in a secluded bay, lies Pettico Wick Bay Abbs Rock. This bay provides a natural trap for salmon as they swim down the coast and the jetty was build to provide a landing spot for the fishing boats supplying the lighthouse.

On the way back to St. Abbs, I chose the inland path, following Mire Loch...ad'mire'ing the Scottish light!

Farther south into the Scottish Borders one can find the ancient walls of Melrose Abbey

Founded by Cistercian monks in the 1100s as a quiet place of prayer, this monastery became one of Scotlands wealthiest and most significant medieval abbeys.

Historic Environment Scotland does an amazing deed in keeping the abbey in shape.

My favorite part of course is the bagpipe playing pig...only in Scotland!

But the headstone are also to die for ;-)

On the way back to North Berwick and back in East Lothian, Preston Mills is not to be missed!

Famous now as one of the locations the Outlander series has been filmed, this mill offers a view into the milling history. Built in the 16th century the mill, powered by the river Tyne,was used until 1959 to produce oatmeal.

As I visited the inside of the mill, featuring the machinery of the last water driven mill in Scotland, was unfortunately already closed for the season. All the more reason to come back.

However, the sheer historic beauty of the mill was overwhelming by itself!

Mural March 2019

After walking the Mural Trail in Glasgow last fall, I'm totally smitten by this form of art.
Ever since, I'm looking for murals where ever I travel. Since these murals are way to magnificent to hibernate on my hard drive I thought I dedicate one month a year to show off some of my favorites.
And - Magnificent Mural March - was born!

And now after a month of a mural a day on Instagram and Facebook I put them here all together, starting with Glasgow:

Here we go, for the first one I chose a mural from one of my favorite artists - Smug, Sam Bates from Australia

Although not officially named, it's said that this mural on Glasgow's High Street depicts St. Mungo, Glasgow's patron saint:
“One bird was hit and fell to the ground. The boys ran away. Mungo ran too, but he ran to the fallen bird. Picking it up he smoothed and caressed its feathers and prayed over it. After a little while it revived and flew away. Perhaps it was only stunned. The villagers called it a miracle and so it was that a small boy should want to help a fallen bird in trouble.”
Quoted from The Beloved St. Mungo (1989).
The mural was finished in February 2016

This next amazing mural ‘Fellow Glasgow Residents’, also by Smug is so detailed that I decided to break it up into multiple smaller sections.
The mural on the wall overlooking a car park on Glasgow’s Ingram Street shows all kind of urban wild life found in or around Glasgow. Featuring SMUG’s signature robin and squirrel and many more. Wonderfully executed with lots of little details!

Amazing how the light seems to come through, right?
Gives the saying ‘hole in the wall’ a completely new dimension...

Well, hello Squirrel!
In part three fall seems to give way to winter...

Now why would the squirrel be so scared?

That's why ;-)

And here the last one from Smug, another fantastic, multiple stories high mural:
‘Honey, I shrunk the kids....Sorry’.

What an amazing artist! If you want to find out more about Smug, see him paint and hear about his art check out this cool you tube video:
"Spraying Bricks"


This 7- story high mural pictured below, located at the Strathclyde University in Glasgow, is part of the 200 m long ‘Wonderwall’ honoring the people of the University and their many achievements!
I left the park garage ramps in the image to give some perspective!
Mind boggling, isn’t it?
Artwork by Art Pistol with Rouge-One and Ejek

Billy Connolly!
This fifty foot high mural on Glasgow’s Osborne Street is executed by Rogue-One after an orginal painting by John Byrne. It is part of a three piece portrait series that was showcased in a special BBC Scotland programme on the occasion of Billy Connolly’s 75th Birthday (Billy Connolly/Portrait of a lifetime) around the UK and now is displayed in the People’s Palace.
Glasgow born world famous Comedian and Musician Billy Connolly, started his professional life as welder in Glasgow’s shipyards before he became a folk singer and comedian. John Byrne was the artist who designed his first album sleeves!
Billy Connolly will also be the Grand Marshall at this years Tartan Day Parade in NYC, which will take place on April 6th, 2019.

A mural of a different kind by renowned Australian street artist Stormie Mills
This is the Glaswegian version of his ‘Lost Giant’ series, wearing a scarf with the Glasgow tartan. Entering Sauchiehall Lane this mural is somewhere between a haunting and a fascinating landmark.
I hope to see more of Stormie Mills Lost Giants in the future!!

I had posted James Klinges "Study of a Woman in Black" for the International Women's Day on March 8th

No matter if James Klinge portraits depict a woman or a tiger, the expressions on his portraits are exceptional! "Tiger Spirit" has become an icon on Glasgow's Clyde Street.

"The most economical taxi"
...wouldn't it be nice if taxis in Glasgow, or anywhere, would float?
Another fine artwork by....just look at the license plate ;-)
A detail that is not quite obvious, only if you look really close:
the background wall is painted, the artist wanted a brick wall as background, so he painted one!

This concludes the murals from Glasgow,
let's move on to Calgary with:

ᓲᐦᑳᑎᓯᐃᐧᐣ - sôhkâtisiwin - Strenght-Power

And the first of three portraits that I'll show here painted by Kevin Ledo.

This portrait depicts traditional Cree dancer Angela Gladue, created after a photograph from Calgary photographer Candice Ward.

Fortes et Liber
Free and Strong
By Faith47
For a change here a more monochrome mural.
But as expressive as can be nonetheless!

I love the message, the expression on the cougars face and especially the decision to put both, message and cougar in the heart of downtown Calgary!!
More to come from this very talented South African artist!

Bright, bold geometric patterns and shapes transformed into nature scenes. That’s how I would describe Mateusz Naperialski’s murals.
Very different from all the other murals, but no less intriguing. I really recommend checking out his website Gust of Wind Studio!

Mythical, whimsical, vibrant!
A mural that will keep you exploring within by Calgary based artist Katie Green.
Also an artist I hope to see more of in Calgary!

This concludes the Calgary murals and before I hop to Montreal here a mural that also deserves mentioning even if it's not in a big city!
A horse, of course!
Created by local Ktunaxa Nation artist PJ Gilhuly together with her daughter Lyla Gilhuly, it embellishes the entrance to Cranbrook’s downtown.

OK, now off to Montreal!

‘Norma and the Blue Herons’
This fantastic 4-story mural by Tristan Eaton is depicting Montreal born Norma Shearer, one of the first Canadian actresses to win an Oscar in the 1930’s.
There is a really interesting write up about Tristan Eaton and the making of this mural on the Montreal Mural Festival website, followed by a short video, I highly recommend checking it out!

Remember the cougar mural from Calgary further up?
The same artist, Faith47, created this wonderful mural below.
LA PUISSANCE PSYCHIQUE DES ANIMAUX - THE PSYCHIC POWER OF ANIMALS
 touches a string deep inside.
As I saw it the first time, I got lost in it and almost forgot to photograph it. Please click on it to see it in a bigger size, it is so worth it.
Since it was created on the occasion of the 2015 Montreal Mural festival it is already a bit weathered, nevertheless, this almost enhances the tranquil quality of the mural.
Just stunning!! ... and of course, I totally agree with her statement!

And here a really playful mural, an amazing street corner created by Waxhead.
‘Untitled’, I suppose as all art by this talented artist.

If you want to know more about Waxhead, his artistic career and where his alias is coming from follow this link to the Montreal Mural Festival page.

Melancholy...this mural by Dodo Ose is not only visual art, it is also poetry.
Dodo Ose is part of the ASHOP Crew Collective, an Montreal based group of talented mural artists.

The next two portrait murals are from Kevin Ledo, the same artist who painted the traditional Cree dancer portrait in Calgary.
The first one, ‘Portrait of Mary Socktish’ was painted on the occassion for the 2014 Mural Festival from an old photo of a Hupa tribe woman.

This second one, a portrait of Leonard Cohen.

This 9-story tribute to Leonard Cohen, on the occasion of the 2017 Mural Festival, was created by Kevin Ledo to honor the poet and song writer who passed away in 2016.
Born and raised in Montreal, Leonard Cohen studied at McGill University before becoming a writer and musician.
Montreal Mural has a great video about the making of this mural,
It’s well worth watching!!!

It is fascinating to see different murals, painted in 2014, 2017 and 2018 from the same artist...what changes, what stays the same.
All three portraits feature are very personal facial expressions, however the painting style is quite different in each of them.


‘Corazon vico’ - ‘Heart Alive’

A stunning mural by Saner!

In the artists words:’ A piece inspired by the beauty of life and nature in the cycles that open and close.’
It might especially appeal to me as I’m also working in the (Veterinary) medicine field but anyone loving nature will appreciate the intricate detail of this wonderful mural!

‘The Lumberjack and the Lynx’

A stunning, vibrant mural by the Montreal based art collective Clandestino, Shalack Attack and Bruno Smoky

And another colorful and super cheerful mural, this time from Buff Monster, a NYC based artist who in his own words ‘uses bright colors, bold lines and funny characters to make the world sweeter’!

Sucessfully so, I think!

'Looking Back'
As an old Roy Lichtenstein fan, this mural by British street artist Dean Stockton, aka D*Face is one of my favorites.
D*Face started his career over 15 years ago by posting hand drawn stickers all over the streets of London for unsuspecting by-passers to stumble upon.

Stunning Sci-Fi ish Portrait mural by Mexican artist Smithe!
Human or machine?
I love the play with the complementary colors.

The ‘Graffiti(ng) Granny’
A super cool mural on Montreal's St Laurent Blvd.
You are never too old!

Created by ASHOP, an artists collective spezialized in urban art and murals. Kevin Ledo and Dodo Ose, two artists featured in this blog are part of this collective.

 

My hope is that with my daily mural posts all through March and this blog I piqued your interest in this fantastic, amazing, stunning, vibrant and unfortunately fleeting art form

!