Abernethy Forest
With an introduction by Patrick McConnell
Abernethy Forest
With their breathtakingly beautiful mix of alders, silver birches and towering Scots pines, casting a dappled light across heather-strewn woodland floors, Scotland’s Caledonian Forests are something to treasure. Cross-billed birds and red squirrels fuss over the pine cones overhead, with the fresh pine-scented air emanating from trees seemingly as old as time. Abernethy Forest, which forms the largest natural forest in the UK, is a remnant of the vast Caledonian woodlands that once covered Scotland. This nature reserve is part of the Cairngorms National Park area, which is host to unique Artic flora and fauna.
Helen’s sketch, made initially during a ramble through Abernethy Forest, deftly captures the delicate yet paradoxical blending of fragility and solidity of the trees. She has grasped the ineffable mixture of woodland, with its remarkable pines and birches, and caught the essence of the fixed and ephemeral aspects of this very special place. The sketch was made using pencils and crayons, and then used as the basis for working up an oil-based painting. Helen’s sketch and painting bring to mind the work of 19th century Russian artists such as Isaac Levitan and Ivan Shishkin, as well as that of Mikhail Larionov in the pre-Revolutionary period. They are redolent, moreover, of Gustav Klimt and his love affair with the birch forests of Central Europe.
The name of the Caledonian Forests comes from the Romans for whom the country was Caledonia, or wooded heights. The pines are descended from the early pines of 7000 BC, around the time of the Late Glacial period. In Celtic mythology the pine was the king of trees while the birch was the queen. The Cairngorms now comprise an intriguing jumble of mountain, forest and lake, an ecologically rich trove comprising pine, birch, alder, rowan and juniper, making autumnal visits to this area such a rewarding experience.
The Dell of Abernethy is also where the BBC’s Autumnwatch recently made its home, using the fabulous Cairngorms area in the filming of its wildlife programme. Chris Packham, the main presenter of the programme, and his colleagues used this place as their base for this year’s editions of Winterwatch and Springwatch, due its environment and abundant wildlife. Situated just outside Nethy Bridge, the Dell has access to the stunning forest reserves, with the Cairngorm Mountains and Loch Garten with its ospreys nearby. This delightful area represents an important habitat for biodiversity conservation in Scotland, providing inspiration for artists and biologists alike.
Patrick McConnell
November 4th 2019
The finished piece
The finished piece looks rather darker than I had intended but I have toned down the colour to create a softer image. When it has dried properly, it will get a coat of varnish and I’ll decide whether to offer it for sale or keep it for an exhibition I am staging in 2020. I hope you like it.
Creating depth
Forests are such life affirming spaces: they provide habitats for a wide range of plants and animals, provide oxygen for the planet and food for the soul. How do you convey all this in a work of art? I don’t claim to be be that skilled, but as I continue to work on the painting I will try to capture the soft light and shade of the forest and recreate the sense of peace that I experience whenever I go there. As the work progresses, I am beginning to create some depth. At the moment the contrasts in the undergrowth are are too harsh so I will work on softening these without losing that delicate sense of light and shade.
From sketch to canvas
The thing that always takes me by surprise when I visit this beautiful nature reserve, is the absolute silence. At the end of September, fresh from the endurance test that living in Edinburgh during the Festival has become, the absence of people and noise was a welcome relief. These two images mark the initial stages of my next painting, a sketch executed in situ and the first application of paint onto canvas. I am aiming to capture the softness of colour, and the play of light and shade among the trees and on the forest floor. I plan to use a muted palette of greens, blues and shades of brown but haven’t quite decided yet on texture. I’ll see how the piece develops.
Art by Smart 
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