About the Artist

John Brown studied at Glasgow School of Art under the guidance of David Donaldson and Duncan Shanks both of whom had a big influence on his work. After graduating in 1968 John enjoyed early acclaim, winning awards at the Royal Academy and the Royal Scottish Academy as well as exhibiting regularly at galleries around Scotland.

After a number of successful and rewarding years teaching, John returned, in 1996, to concentrate on his own work. Much of his work in recent years has been informed by his travels to places further afield from his studio in Edinburgh. Exotic trips to Havana, Catalonia, Cilento and Tuscany, places bursting with colour and warmth lend themselves to John’s adventurous and assured brushwork. Collage is a favourite starting point, helping him to identify the composition.

Familiar scenes from his teeming sketchbooks are used as guidelines that are taken on a journey from recognisable landscapes and vignettes of village life to much more expressive and intuitive, abstracted finished pieces.

John Brown - CV

1945 Born in Scotland

1963-68 Glasgow School of Art Graduated, D.A. in Drawing and Painting

One Person Exhibitions

1970    Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow

1979    Moray House, Edinburgh

1992    The Torrance Gallery, Edinburgh

1996    Open Eye Gallery, Edinburgh

Duncan R Miller Fine Arts, London

1976    Duncan R Miller Fine Arts, London

1998    Open Eye Gallery, Edinburgh

1999    Duncan R Miller Fine Arts, London

2000    Open Eye Gallery, Edinburgh

Duncan R Miller Fine Arts, London

2001    John Davies Gallery, Stow-on-the-Wold

Duncan R Miller Fine Arts, London

2002    Open Eye Gallery, Edinburgh

2003    John Davies Gallery, Stow-on-the-Wold

Richmond Hill Gallery, London

2004    The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh

2005    Duncan R Miller Fine Arts, London

Richmond Hill Gallery, London

2006    The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh

2007    Duncan R Miller Fine Arts, London

2008    Duncan R Miller Fine Arts, London

2009    The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh

Lemon Street Gallery, Truro

2010    Duncan R Miller Fine Arts, London

Rendezvous Gallery, Aberdeen

2011    The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh

Lemon Street Gallery, Truro

2014    The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh

2018    The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh

Awards

1967    Royal Academy - Landscape Studentship Award

Royal Scottish Academy - Maclaine Watters Bronze      Medal

1968    Glasgow School of Art - Post Diploma Exhibition - Highly Commended

Royal Scottish Academy - Carnegie Travelling Scholarship

1969    Travelling Scholarship to European countries

1970    Royal Glasgow Institute of fine Arts - James Torrance Award

1993    Society of Scottish Artists and Artists Craftsmen - Arts Club Award

Society of Scottish Artists and Artists Craftsmen - Scottish Provident Award

1994    Heinzel Gallery Award

Elected Member of Visual Arts Scotland

2005    Elected Member of Royal Scottish Society of Painters in Watercolour

Alexander Graham Munro Award - RSW

2009    En Plein Air prize from Paisley Art Institute

2010    RSW Council Award Residency, Collioure France Charles Rennie Mackintosh

Association Prestigious Print commissioned by Art in Healthcare

Works Purchased by

Robert Fleming Holdings Ltd

Scottish Life Assurance Co. Ltd

John Menzies plc

Korean Embassy

Lillie Art Gallery

University of Edinburgh

British Steel

Dunfermline Building Society

Kuwait Royal Family

Hugh Martin & Partners

Royal Bank of Scotland

Aida Cherfan Gallery, Beruit

Aberdeen Assets

Works in Private Collections

Britain, Canada, France, Lebanon, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland and the USA