John McClenaghen, the grandson of a ploughman and nephew to a shepherd, grew up in Falkirk, spending his time visiting his family's farms around Stirlingshire as well as the East Lothian Coast, where land meets sea. This early experience is echoed throughout McClenaghen's work, he says:
"Growing up on a farm meant when I visited my relatives, the farms seemed to be full of fascinating shapes and colours that never became mundane. My paintings of the land and sea allow me to express an experience of place and often to reconnect with my past."
McClenaghen went on to study at the Glasgow School of Art and developed his skill to capture his interest in these unfamiliar landscapes he experience as a young boy. While in education, McClenaghen honed his interest into the ever-changing landscape around us and the changes that happen moment to moment, noting how the world around us holds a rich visual history that is shaped by the lives of many different organisms, including ourselves.
"Our landscape is a material history that an artist can connect with as their brush follows a line of fence posts or the outline of some farm buildings. I am an expressive colourist painter harnessing the fluidity and dynamism of the medium to convey these experiences"
When creating his work, McClenaghen likes to sit with nature - either in a field, or by the sea - and begin painting on site. This allows McClenaghen to experience the interaction of every element himself - layering not only materials, but the attempt to express his feelings, he adds:
"When your subject is constantly changing, the interaction between the two offers endless opportunities to capture this in a changing surface of colours and marks."
McClenaghen's chosen piece for our newest Caskshare release - a Glen Grant 30 year old, finished in an ex Pedro Ximénez cask - titled, 'An Eternity of Borrowed Time' captures the short but beautiful lives of flowers and how their transitory beauty can seemingly last for an eternity in paintings:
"When you paint flowers you are always on borrowed time as you watch them begin to bloom, you also know how quickly they will fade. I painted them at a point where these cultivated plants meet the wider world of wild resurgent nature."
"I wanted to paint the wildflowers, garden flowers, and grasses on the border seperating two contrasting environments as they changed and interacted over time. I set out to showcase the struggle for space and light and sustenance in these short, beautiful lives."
This piece was chosen for our upcoming 30 year old Glen Grant release as it nods to the loved distillery gardens situated at the Glen Grant Distillery in Aberlour, created by James Grant in 1886, to showcase the many exotic plants and fruits he discovered on his tours as an army major in India and Africa.
McClenaghen has a way of representing something seen to the reconstruction of something felt. He draws parallels between the action of light and weather upon his subjects and the action of colour and mark upon the canvas. This is something truly remarkable.
If you're interested in learning more about John McClenaghen, you can find his paintings in a number of galleries over the next few months - showcasing at:
Whitehouse Gallery in Kirkcudbright until 21st June 2025
Eion Stewart Fine Art in Stonehaven until 31st May 2025
The Biscuit Factory Gallery in Newcastle until 20th July 2025
ScotlandArt Gallery in Glasgow until 6th September
You can also follow his work on social media:
Instagram: @johnmcclenaghen
Facebook: @JohnMcClenaghenArtist
X: @JohnMcClenaghen
Or contact through his website and find galleries selling his work:
www.mcclenaghenfineart.com
Thank you John!