Nice day in the garden. A calming influence.

This is one of the paintings I've sent to the Milngavie Book and
Arts Fair this weekend with Art Forum Gallery.
It's a small painting of a wee road in the Algarve. The perfect
antidote to the horrid wet weather!

Candili

Candili, Greece. This is one of my favourite places.
You can book it for yourself or a large group.
On the island of Evvia which is connected to the
mainland by a bridge. You fly to Athens and hire a car,
after which it is a two hour drive.

Only a ten minute drive to the beach, there are many places
to explore nearby. Set beside the village of Procopi, the estate itself
has a wonderful courtyard, swimming pool and gardens.

www.candili.gr

On a door in Siran

Part of the boundary wall at Jupiter Artland is
given over to thus sculpture by Henry Castle.
It's called 'Hare's Hill'

More from the wonderful Jupiter Artland. This is
Cornelia Parker's 'Landscape with Gun and Tree'.

The Jim Lambie wall, 'A Forest', at Jupiter Artland.
Jupiter Artland is a wonderful outdoor trail of
environmental sculpture outside Edinburgh.
There is also an indoor gallery and a cafe in the
Steadings courtyard.
Well worth a visit. More later.

www.jupiterartland.org

in the garden

Been photographing poppies. Lovely colours.

In a bar in France

Ailsa Craig

Small painting of The Window Walk at Ardkinglas Garden
in Argyll. It's gone off to the Lime Tree Gallery in Long Melford
in Suffolk. Size....10x8 inches.

Pascal Migeon

In the small Languedoc town of Aigne the sculptor
Pascal Migeon's house is easily found. There are examples
of his work to be found in many local towns. Often a small
creature carved into a wall where least expected. I've even seen
one indoors in a kitchen.

www.pascal.carbonmade.com

Troon Beach

Lovely day for a walk on Troon beach. Went to Troon to pick
up some paintings from 'The Gallery' and the tide was out, the sun
was shining and I had my camera....

Rain

Summer in the garden.

Castle Urquhart on the banks of Loch Ness. For 500 years it was
an enormously important medieval fortress and as such open to
many raids and power struggles. From the 13th to the 17th centuries
it suffered many bloody attacks. At one time, after the invasion of
Scotland by Edward the First, it came into English hands. Another time
it was the base for Robert the Bruce, King of Scots. Most attacks though
were the work of the MacDonalds, Lords of the Isles. These were in the
15th and 16th centuries. Eventually the Grants, who owned it latterly, gave up
and abandoned it after an enormous explosion destroyed much of the main fortress.
Now it is owned by the National Trust for Scotland.

That wee black bit in the loch is not the Loch Ness Monster....but it is close to the
most recently reported sighting.

I've never seen the monster but way back in the early seventies when I was filming
'Pathfinder' for the BBC I spent a bit of time with the Loch Ness Investigation people
and saw some pretty convincing photographs taken under water.