“Welcome to our Highland studio and thank you for dropping by to view my miniature Masterworks oil painting, ‘Soul Mates’,

Every Autumn we watch as skeins of Greylag and Pink Footed geese soar over our home in the Northern Highlands of Scotland on their annual Autumn migration from the Arctic north to Loch Eye, a few short miles from us. Tens of thousands have been recorded in a single season on the waters of this beautiful loch on the Tarbat Ness Peninsular. Early in the morning they rise as one in search of foraging and the sound of their dusk return is quite spectacular.

These daily rituals are punctuated by another sound however; one that heralds the approach of swans, as they skim the chimneys of our stone cottage. These huge birds, necks outstretched, whose wings thump the air in a rhythmic heartbeat, are also destined for Loch Eye. All through the year hundreds of pairs are to be seen gliding across the surface and we have taken to cycling down there first thing in the morning, to simply sit and wonder at these gloriously elegant birds. Our stopping off place a fishing boat jetty, from where we watch trout jumping out of the water and swans going about their daily habits, usually well away from the well-used jetty.

SUBJECT - Imagine our surprise when one morning we came upon a male swan, who seemed to be ‘gardening’ the reeds and other marginal plants within arm’s length of the jetty. A few days later all was revealed, for he had been working on a nest for his mate – some two feet away from the foreshore of the loch, right next to the boathouse. Beautifully sculpted into an egg-shaped hollow, lined with feathers and down, the contoured nest fitted his female mate to perfection.

Usually, when we arrived, she was to be found away from the nest, he continued to garden, clearing a ‘path’ to allow her ease of access on her return. Such was their trust in us that we would settle down on the jetty and wait as she glided back and climbed aboard her nest.

Then came the day when we spotted four eggs in the nest, so we made a point of visiting as often as possible to revel in the devotion of these two birds, destined to mate for life.

And our patience was rewarded, for one brilliant Summer’s day early in July our arrival was greeted with obvious pride by the male – his mate had delivered of three cygnets and she was patiently waiting for the fourth to come through.

Our presence was not causing either of them any distress, so we quietly sat and watched as she lifted one wing to inspect her brood, before ‘cupping’ her wing around the three cheeping youngsters. The male continued his ‘gardening’ – while she continued her grooming. All-in-all we sat and watched for at least an hour, drinking in the harmonious family unit, whose pride in their achievements was obvious and whose dedication to each other was constant.

METHOD – these miniature Masterworks oil paintings are created using my unique method, a method based on traditional techniques, which are progressively worked through in layers from dark-to-light; a process that cannot be hurried, nor short-cuts taken. First, the underlying thinned colours of the underpainting, next the impasto stage, with glazes and tints used extensively to enrich and subtly enliven the oil painting – it is through these techniques where the ‘art’ of oil painting comes into its own.

As always, we thank you for reading and watching, with best wishes from Eileen and myself,”

Paul Taggart

Artist : Author : Presenter : Producer