Hamilton, Isobel

Isobel Hamilton is a fine artist originally from Scotland. She is a self-taught artist, with a degree in Photography, Film and Television and a Masters in Pure and Applied Chemistry. Isobel emigrated from Scotland to Nova Scotia in 2013 and now lives with her husband in a house in the woods in the Annapolis Valley. Isobel works mainly in acrylics, using small brushes and many layers and glazes to build up colour and give a real sense of light and depth. She has always had an eye for detail – in Scotland she worked as a fingerprint expert – and she has developed a photorealistic style.

ARTIST STATEMENT

The current focus of her work is on ‘timeless’ subject matter, and capturing a sense of light and dark. Unlike some artists she enjoys making use of black in her paintings; not in a negative way, but rather the warm encompassing of natural darkness. Moving from a big city (Glasgow in Scotland) to the countryside she was struck by how dark the night was with no man-made light, and the feelings evoked by a single light in this setting.
Isobel’s work is a response to the hustle of the present day; the 24/7 lifestyle, the need to be connected at all times, constant electric illumination. This can be exhausting, and we forget to take time to enjoy the simple things. Isobel captures the warmth of light, and the peace of quiet contemplation of a light in the darkness, and finds beauty in the still, the simple, the atmosphere.