contemporary art – Clive Ramage Art

Chaos & Control – Printmaking in Scotland Now

I’m delighted to have two of my etchings included in Chaos and Control: Printmaking in Scotland Now, currently showing at the Royal Scottish Academy in Edinburgh (until 26 June 2026).

My two etchings of Dunnottar Castle from different viewpoints

The exhibition brings together the work of many of Scotland’s leading contemporary printmakers, celebrating the incredible breadth and diversity of printmaking being produced across the country today. Curated by acclaimed printmaker Ade Adesina RSA and RSA Head of Programme Flora La Thangue, the exhibition explores both the traditional craftsmanship and the innovative approaches that continue to make printmaking such an exciting medium.

For me, printmaking has always been a vital part of my artistic practice. Although many people know me primarily as a painter, I have spent many years exploring traditional intaglio techniques, producing etchings that are every bit as carefully considered and time-intensive as my paintings. It’s a highly technical, process driven artform and I love the fact that, while it still allows me to be creative in the same ways being a painter does, the day to day job of printmaking feels and is completely different to working on canvas or with paint.

The two works selected for the exhibition are inspired by Dunnottar Castle’s dramatic clifftop position and are viewed from two different angles. The etchings were produced using traditional copper plate methods. Hard-ground line establishes the structure, followed by successive layers of aquatint to build tone and atmosphere. The plates were repeatedly bitten, adjusted and, in some areas, worked back through scraping and burnishing to recover light. The final images emerge through this process of construction, erosion and recovery, reflecting the same forces of weathering and resistance seen in the landscape itself.

It was a real pleasure to attend the opening evening, to meet up with some old friends and to see such an inspiring collection of work brought together under one roof. The exhibition showcases established names alongside emerging artists and demonstrates just how vibrant Scotland’s printmaking community continues to be.

If you’re in Edinburgh before 26 July, I’d highly recommend paying it a visit. Admission is free, and it’s a wonderful opportunity to experience the richness and variety of contemporary Scottish printmaking.

Bass Rock show at Fidra Fine Art, Gullane. Only 1 week left!

The Bass Rock (Nocturne)
Oil on wood panel
60x40cm
£1450

Just over a week to see this amazing show of 70 pictures by 30 artist at Fidra Fine Art in Gullane. All of whom have been inspired by the sheer beauty of the Bass Rock.

Bass Rock

4 September to 3 October

Featuring:

Julia Albert-Recht, Claire Beattie, George Birrell, John Boak, Georgina Bown, Davy Brown, Dominique Cameron, Alan Connell, Ann Cowan, Fee Dickson, Matthew Draper, Michael Durning, Ronnie Fulton, Andy Heald, David E Johnston, John Johnstone, Suzanne Kirk, Simon Laurie, Neil Macdonald, Julia McNairn White, Rachel Marshall, Ann Oram, Clive Ramage, Gregory Rankine, Pen Reid, Pascale Rentsch, Arran Ross, Jayne Stokes, Astrid Trügg and Darren Woodhead.

It has cast its spell over artists and writers such as Turner and Robert Louis Stevenson. In the 17th century, it was dubbed Scotland’s Alcatraz following Cromwell’s invasion of Scotland. Now the Bass Rock, which sits a few miles off the coast of North Berwick in East Lothian, is to be the subject of our latest exhibition.

Around 30 artists have been invited to present their unique view of the famous volcanic plug, which is home to 350,000 seabirds, including over 150,000 gannets – the largest ‘single rock’ colony of northern gannets on earth.

It is an irresistible, imposing, brooding and beautiful muse for artists and it has inspired a fascinating and varied collection of work for this show.

The exhibition continues until Sunday 3 October, I hope you will be able to come and view the work “in the flesh”.

Blue Moon in Morocco

I love to see how the moon appears to change colour, size and character as it moves through the sky on its nightly arc. For me, the moon is a thing of ever changing beauty, mystery and inspiration.

But where I am now it’s a cold, drizzly November night and unfortunately there’s no moon to see at all as yet, though she is up there in all her glory. So here’s one I made earlier. Inspired by a moonlit night in Marrakech 8 years ago.

I remember being mesmerised watching it rise slowly and lazily above the flat-roofed souks of the Djemaa El Fna in Marrakech. It was a clear late-November night, but the town’s main square was as busy and colourful as I’d heard it always is. Above the seething masses of lost-looking tourists, locals on the make, donkeys and carts, charmers and snakes, children begging, children fighting, shopkeepers bartering and the constant barrage of mopeds and bicycles, horses and goats, the moon’s bright glow cast a beguiling spell over my first Moroccan night. The warm breath of camels condensed then wafted up on the chilly breeze that had begun to sweep down from the High Atlas mountains 30 miles away. Pungent aromas steamed from cauldrons filled to the brim with earthy-tasting snails for curious tourists to try. Spicey flavours sizzled from market stall tagines and exotic vapours oozed out from deep inside the crowded souks. Here I was, only 4 hours after leaving Scotland where the same full moon cast a very different spell across the icy land that would soon be blanketed in deep and heavy snow for over a month.

And a quarter of a million miles above us, indifferent to the bustling world below, the moon appeared frozen in the sky. Familiar features intoned with the cool transparent hues of Prussian Blue, spread thin across a face of brilliant white. And as I looked up, she appeared to look down, watching everyone everywhere that ever was or ever will be. And in turn, each tiny, insignificant character continued to play out their roles, heads down in the darkening night.