"Sweetheart"

8 x 10"

Oil on board

After the recent visit to New Abbey in Dumfriesshire, I knew that I had to do a painting at some point of Sweetheart Abbey, the 13th century Cistercian monastery that was founded by Lady Devorgilla, wife of John Balliol. The ruin is a spectacular one and stands proud over the modern day village. It was built using local sandstone and has the most amazing red and orange colours when the sunlight hits it at different times of the day.

Painting buildings has never been one of my strong points, but I'm reasonably happy with how this one turned out. It's more 'fussy' with the details than I had originally intended, but the results are good nonetheless. I'll probably do more paintings of the abbey in the near future, perhaps with broader brushstrokes.