I am an artist and designer, living and working in the Highlands of Scotland.

I take inspiration from my experience of this landscape – its unique shapes, texture, colour and grain. I often work out of doors, throughout the year, as this allows me the richest response to my surroundings.

My work explores the detail of what I find – water-courses, trees, boulders, lichen, vegetation, roots, sky, rain and wind, and traces of man’s presence in the landscape. I use mixed media – watercolour, oils, inks, chalks, acrylic, charcoal and anything else that comes to hand. Working outside, whatever the weather, often brings unexpected results.

I also use photography – not only as a starting point for studio paintings, but as a means of building up multiple images, each of which contributes to an overall record of place. I am interested in exploring the presence of discarded objects in the landscape and the history they can reveal – building stone, metal-work, timber etc. Also how this echoes with storytelling, poetry, and music to capture the spirit of these remote places.

I set out to capture the unique essence of a place through the small, often overlooked, details.

Mullardoch driftwood painting by Tristram Woolston - painted on location in the Highlands of Scotland

Painting driftwood outdoors at Mullardoch in the Highlands of Scotland