It’s a phrase that came to me early on in my tree drawing career and has been my guiding concept as my art has developed over the last 15 years.
This particular tree sums up my understanding of the phrase, encompassing the way trees grow and the way I see them, underpinning every drawing I’ve made.
The body of the tree is in motion its entire life, mostly moving extremely slowly but sometimes very suddenly too. Every shift or alteration, large and small, contributes to the form we see today, sculpted over centuries.
We are witnessing the myriad decisions it made over its lifetime, along with some that were made for it by the deer, the forester, the poacher or the passer by.
This oak in Chatsworth deer park is at the end of its life now and is wearing its centuries of change for us to interpret.
A two person exhibition with Inês-Hermione Mulford
14th -17th March 2025 Custom House, Leith
When we regard the natural world, we can’t help but see ourselves reflected back, seeing our faces in the clouds, our forms within the lines of trees. This interplay between human perception and nature’s inherent patterns reveals an undeniable truth: we are not separate from nature; we are part of it.
In this exhibition Edinburgh based artists Tansy Lee Moir and Inês-Hermione Mulford look beyond landscape tradition, presenting artworks in charcoal and graphite which explore what it means to be alive as a tree or as a lichen or bryophyte.
By revealing the interplay of light, form and texture, these dramatic and detailed monochrome drawings challenge us to reconsider our place in the ‘More Than Human’ world, fostering a deeper connection and responsibility toward the environment.
Subscribe to my Studio Newsletter for invitations to private views and events. If you would like to view my work but are unable to visit an exhibition, I can arrange a studio visit in person or by video call – just get in touch to discuss.
The 2025 ‘Permission to Draw’ course is now full – email me to join the waiting list for the next.
I’ve always told people that drawing is a teachable skill, because I was lucky enough to have some great teachers throughout my career. It’s true – anyone with an interest can learn to draw what they see, I’ve seen proof of that with my own students.
So in 2021 I developed my online observational drawing course to share those skills and pass on the pleasure of drawing.
You can join my 2025 course now – it’s starting soon…
How this drawing course works
Permission to Draw consists of 10 classes in 2 x 5 week Blocks, giving you a full ‘toolbox’ for observational drawing.
Classes will run via Zoom on a Tuesday evening 7.30 – 9.00pm GMT, beginning in February 2025.
Block 1 Perception – starts 4th February
The cognitive shift, seeing vs knowing, negative space, relationships and mark making.
Block 2 Representation – starts 11th March
Measuring, line into form, tone, visual gym and bringing all the tools together
Free Taster session
I’m offering an introductory session on Tuesday 21st January 7.30 – 8.30pm GMT in my virtual studio, where I’ll show you how the course is structured and answer your questions about participating. Get in touch to get the link and I’ll see you there!
Charcoal printmaking is my new thing. I always seem to need a ‘new thing’ creatively, even though the urge to learn and innovate can slow down the art making.
I’ve made my peace with this little conundrum – I know myself well enough to allow for time spent on the edge of failure or disappointment, for the promise of a new discovery. I know I’d get bored very quickly if every drawing felt like repeating myself.
A layered drawing and redrawing of an old oak tree
Can I transfer a charcoal drawing using a gelli plate?
So my studio project for last autumn was to explore the potential for transferring charcoal drawings via a gel plate. I investigated the range and depth of mark making it offered, the possibilities for layering and combining drawings, making a series from one reworked drawing, tested the extremes of the materials.
Close details of the mark making possibilities
I got properly carried away and made more than 70 prints in my Big Studio with Outer Spaces Scotland. I absolutely loved it – it was still drawing, still charcoal, still very me, just with that extra excitement I needed to make the work feel fresh.
Testing the fidelity of the transfer with charcoal powder
My next steps this winter are to incorporate what I’ve learned into a new body of work for a spring exhibition. I’m also teaching a workshop on the technique on Jan 18th in Edinburgh, and considering offering an online version too, so let me know if you might be interested.
Installation views of my drawing ‘Shadow Dance’ in the 126th Annual Exhibition of the Society of Scottish Artists, at the Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh, 23rd November – Wednesday 11th December 2024.
This drawing is one of my latest body of work ‘Ghosts‘, which seek to capture some of the parallels between the tree and human figure.
Thank you to the SSA Council and volunteers for all their hard work in mounting this excellent show.
I found myself standing on a chilly field edge in rural Aberdeenshire, shocked into stillness by the sheer beauty of this twisting old beech tree. It appeared to be dancing, with a torso reminiscent of a marble statue, stretching its limbs away from the wind and towards the glimmer of mid-winter sun. I fell in love right there.
Sleeping dragon
Intrigued by the ruins of a small cottage amongst a shelter belt on a high ridge, I climbed the hill and discovered this horizontal tree wriggling its way across the slope. I nicknamed it ‘sleeping dragon’ and took photos from every angle. I think it could have been a willow but it’s hard to tell without its leaves, perhaps I’ll find it again when it wakes in spring.
The King of Haddo
The easiest find of the whole trip was waiting for me in the grounds of a country park, standing magestically behind its protective fencing. Small birds flitted between the low lying branches, clearly loving the opportunities that accumulated dead wood affords. I usually think of beeches as being feminine, but this tree seemed like the king of the parkland.
The levitating ash
After a frosty walk through dense blocks of forestry on the banks of the Ythan river, the path broadened and brightened as it emerged into an ancient landscape. Several people had told me I should visit this site, but the ruins of Gight Castle itself were not the memorable thing for me – instead it was the way that this ancient ash defied gravity, hovering above the pasture. The trunk combined living and non-living wood in a fascinating demonstration of the way trees adapt their forms as they age.
The looping tree
Walking through the small hilltop wood to this tree felt a little like a pilgrimage, since I’d visited it last winter and had a brief below-zero drawing session with it then. This year, being a luxurious 2 degrees above freezing, I managed to make 4 more substantial studies of this bizzarely balanced beech before my feet went numb. I have to get back to it on a warmer day…
The sculpted ash
Though I couldn’t possibly have a single favourite, I’ve saved the most spectacular tree from this trip till last. An ancient remnant of a parkland or wood pasture landscape, this ash was valiantly clinging on to life despite being a fragment of its former self and being surrounded by dead ashes, killed by Chalara (ash die back).
The surface of the sculpted ash
Its surface seemed to me to be like its own unique universe, with infinitely complex formations, ripples, whorls, nibbled edges and bored out holes. Sculpted by time, weather, humans and other animals, this single tree could be a lifeltime’s work for an artist like me. Where to start?
I had the pleasure of talking about trees and art on live radio this weekend.
BBC Scotland’s Out of Doors programme invited me to chat to presenters Mark Stephen and Rachel Stewart about the hashtag #thicktrunktuesday which I’ve been posting with for four years now, sharing some of the 1000s of tree photos I’ve gathered.
You can listen to the interview on iPlayer here, about 51mins into the programme (available in the UK only).
You can see my series of experimental charcoal prints – ‘A to B, a coastal journey’ in the ArtMovesFife ‘Way-Markers’ exhibition this weekend at The Boilerhouse, St Andrews Botanic Garden, St Andrews. 10am -4pm Friday 29th Nov – Sunday 1st Dec.
‘Trainspotting seals’, charcoal and acrylic on paper, 30 x 42cm
I used the charcoal transfer technique I’ve been developing to layer, change and extend my markmaking for these works. It was a good opportunity to try out the methods I’ve been teaching on my recent Charcoal Printmaking with the Gelli Plate workshops.
‘Birdsong and motorbikes’, charcoal and acrylic on paper, 30 x 42cm
Along our journey by train and foot from Aberdour to Burntisland, we stopped to listen intently to the sounds of the shore, making sketches as we walked. These new drawings have elements of those sketches embedded in them.
‘Lions of the mind’, charcoal and acrylic on paper, 30 x 42cm
Landmarks large and small puntuated our route along the coastal and I’ve included some abstracted references in these works which hint at them.
‘Conversations on the coastal path’, charcoal and acrylic on paper, 30 x 42cm
The four drawings in sequence form a journey remembered in charcoal. I’m delighted they are joining the other artist’s work for the event and a huge thanks to Kate Downie and Gillian McFarland for their inspirational artistic leadership.
‘Shadow Dance’, one of my ‘Ghosts’ series, has been selected for the Society of Scottish Artists Annual Exhibition at the Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh this autumn.
The SSA Annual Exhibition is one of the largest contemporary art exhibitions in Scotland. It is produced and supported entirely by artists with no public funding, bringing international and local artists together, enriching the creative culture of Scotland and providing a platform for diverse perspectives.
My large charcoal drawing will be exhibited alongside artworks including painting, sculpture, installations, video and performance selected from the open call, which attracted almost 2000 submissions.
Details
Open Saturday 23rd November – Wednesday 11th December
Monday – Sunday 10am – 5pm
Upper Galleries, The Royal Scottish Academy, The Mound, Edinburgh EH2 2EL
Entry: £6 | £4 Concessions
Free entry for under 16’s and SSA Members
Free Entry for all on Mondays
Two of my ‘Birken’ drawings will be showing soon at Dundee Botanic Garden’s Green Gallery, in the latest Art & Nature Collective show.
‘Autumn Treasures’ features works created by 22 members of the Collective. Each artist contributes their own voice and style to this unique collection of works inspired by the brief of creating small-scale works (20×20 cm) inspired by objects or scenes from autumnal walks.
The exhibition opens on Saturday 23rd November until 15th December, 11am-3pm daily and I will be invigilating on Friday 13th December.
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.OKPrivacy policy
‘Time made wood’
Announcing ‘More than Human’
Installation views of my drawing ‘Shadow Dance’ in the 126th Annual Exhibition of the Society of Scottish Artists, at the Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh, 23rd November – Wednesday 11th December 2024.
